site.btaEuropean Commission Swears Oath to Respect EU Treaties

The College of Commissioners on Monday swore a solemn declaration at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, pledging to respect the EU Treaties and to be completely independent in carrying out their duties during their mandate.

Under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union all members of the European Commission are required to give "a solemn undertaking" when entering upon their duties to respect their obligations under the EU Treaties.

This is the last step of the appointment of the commissioners, after last year they were nominated by their national governments, approved by Ursula Von der Leyen, confirmed by the EU Council, and heard and endorsed by the European Parliament.

Each Commissioner took the oath in their mother tongue. Bulgarian Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva said:

“I solemnly undertake to respect the Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU in the discharge of all my duties; to fulfil my duties with complete independence, in the general interest of the Union. In the discharge of my duties, neither to seek nor to accept instructions from any government, institution, body, office, or agency; and to refrain from any action incompatible with the nature of my duties and the performance of my tasks. I am aware that the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU establishes the obligation for each Member State to respect this principle and not to attempt to influence the members of the Commission in the performance of their tasks. Furthermore, I undertake to comply, both during and after my mandate, with the obligations arising from my office and, in particular, with the duty of integrity and restraint regarding the acceptance of certain posts or benefits after the end of my mandate.

Commissioners Valdis Dombrovskis, Maros Sefcovic, Kaja Kallas, Marta Kos, Hadja Lahbib and Christophe Hansen were absent from the solemn undertaking because of official commitments.