By placing a significant party figure such as von der Leyen at the head of the Defence Ministry, Merkel was widely seen as reinvigorating the scandal-ridden ministry's morale and prestige. [73] Until her 2019 appointment as the president of the European Commission, she was the only minister to remain with Merkel since she became chancellor in 2005.

Jun 17, 2020 · With Ursula von der Leyen as Commission President and German Chancellor Angela Merkel about to take over the presidency of the European Council, the European Union is set to be run by two...

Feb 21, 2025 · Von der Leyen, 66, has reigned supreme in Brussels ever since former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her political patron, helped to catapult her into the powerful executive role in 2019. Indeed, while von der Leyen was promoted to defense minister under Merkel, Merz was shunted aside and quit politics to work as a corporate lawyer.

Jul 2, 2019 · Her most important ally, however, is Angela Merkel, whom von der Leyen has stuck by through thick and thin. Merkel has returned the loyalty by leaving von der Leyen in place despite mounting problems at the defense ministry — and by …

Aug 17, 2024 · Von der Leyen is the only Merkel cabinet member to have been there since the beginning in 2005, having run first the family affairs and then the labour ministry. In 2013 she became Germany's first female defence minister, a notoriously difficult portfolio given post-war Germany's touchy relationship with military affairs and frequent defence ...

Die beiden Frauen verbindet eine lange Geschichte in der deutschen Bundesregierung. Die deutsche EU-Ratspräsidentschaft bringt Angela Merkel und Ursula von der Leyen nun wieder zusammen. Gemeinsam haben Kanzlerin und Kommissionspräsidentin viel vor.

Jul 3, 2020 · Von der Leyen and Merkel discussed by video call on Thursday (2 July) how they can use the German Presidency to get Europe through the crisis.

Nov 22, 2021 · Despite its traditional adherence to gender roles limiting women’s responsibilities to Kinder, Küche, Kirche, the Christian Democratic Party itself has been ruled by three powerful females since 2018: Chancellor Angela Merkel, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, and CDU General-Secretary Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. Despite occasional ...

Jul 2, 2019 · Ursula von der Leyen, a strong supporter of closer European cooperation, has been Germany's defense minister since 2013 and a fixture in Chancellor Angela Merkel's Cabinet over the longtime leader's nearly 14 years in power.

Jul 3, 2019 · Merkel chose Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to be her successor in Berlin, so Brussels is a logical progression for von der Leyen. This is where she can step out of Merkel's shadow, where the...