The new Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Stefano Sannino, has called for closer links between the service and the other EU institutions.
“Since the beginning of my mandate, I have said that I wanted the EEAS to be at the service of all the European institutions, to continue the cooperation and tradition organised under (its predecessor) Helga Schmid to try to work even better and to exchange more with the European Parliament”, he explained during an exchange with MEPs from the Committee on Foreign Affairs on Tuesday 26 January.
The Secretary General also hopes that the rapprochement between the EEAS and the institutions will enable the diplomatic service to be more closely linked to the European programme and that there will be more coherence.
Mr Sannino announced that he had launched a review of the EEAS’ internal and external working methods and organisation chart, hoping that the result would be ready by Easter. “It is important for the Service to be more transparent, for there to be a greater flow of information within the EEAS and with the other institutions”, added the Secretary General, specifying that he wants to improve the ability of senior officials to talk more broadly with MEPs. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)