2024-02-15 08:34:20
“Politico” arranged them with 12 more in the non-traditional ranking on the occasion of “Saint Valentine”
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Maria Gabriel and her husband are among the most influential couples in Brussels.
In this ranking of the 14 families with the most serious influence in the capital of the European Union, the Bulgarian MEP from GERB/EPP Eva Maydel and her partner fall.
The non-traditional list was prepared by the publication “Politico” in honor of the Saint Valentine holiday.
Each couple in the ranking was asked questions about how they met, how well they work together and how they deal with conflicts of interest if they arise.
Interinstitutional love interest – this is how the relationship between François Gabriel and Maria Gabriel is described. The romance of the family began in EP in 2010, but since then
spread out
in the institutions
of the EU – and of
continent
“Maria Gabriel is now Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of her native Bulgaria, after having been a European Commissioner,” writes “Politico”.
The publication also tells about their acquaintance at the time when the future Prime Minister (after the rotation) was still a young European Member of Parliament.
“Maria Nedelcheva meets Francois Gabriel shortly after being elected to the European Parliament”. At the time, François was assistant to Joseph Dole, then head of the EPP group.
Dol was also best man
at their wedding in 2012,” Politico describes.
Today, Francois Gabriel is the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Mezzola, and is responsible for external relations with the EU’s southern neighbors and the Western Balkans. “Politico” quotes François Gabriel that he would like the two to work together more often because
it’s hard for them
to be separated
between Sofia,
Brussels
and Strasbourg
In the rating for Eva Meidel, it is written that she has already managed to establish herself, as she herself said, as “the person to turn to for digital questions”.
During her first term as an MEP, she married Niklas Meidel, a prominent M&A lawyer.
These days, Eva Meidl is often pointed to as the future European Commissioner of Bulgaria, claims “Politico” and adds that she is
built
reputation as
friend of
the tech giants
in the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. There, Ms Meidel leads her EPP group’s work on the Chip Act, cyber security rules and data strategy.
The remaining 12 most influential couples include other politicians and representatives of large corporations, most of whom also met their spouses through their work in Brussels.