Friday

29th Mar 2024

Infographic

What Juncker said. A look at numbers.

  • (Photo: European Parliament)

It has become a tradition in the EU, inspired by the US president's annual address to Congress. On Wednesday morning (12 September), the European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker delivered the State of the European Union speech, also known as SOTEU, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

It was the fourth, and probably the last, time that Juncker addressed the MEPs. In May next year, a new parliament will be elected and in September it is expected to be busy with approving the new college of commissioners appointed by member states.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

This year's SOTEU was therefore special, and for Juncker an opportunity to review his achievements and set out a vision for the EU he will leave behind at the end of his term.

Amid renewed concerns over the rise of far-right and anti-EU forces in Europe, Juncker's speech was meant to be a political answer to citizens' concerns and his institution's positions on issues debated by EU leaders - on migration, the economy or social policies, as well as on the place of the bloc in the world.

What did Juncker say, and what did he emphasise? As last year, we looked at the words he chose, and which ones he used the most.

1 – The words used by Juncker in his SOTEU speech

2 – The twenty most used words in Juncker's speech

3 – The ten most frequently used words in each of Juncker's SOTEU

4 – The words used in each Juncker's SOTEU

5 – The words used by Juncker and Barroso in SOTEU speeches

6 – Number of words for each SOTEU

Author bio

The European Data Journalism Network (EDJNet) is a platform for data-driven news on European affairs brought to you in up to 12 languages by a consortium of media and data journalists from all over Europe, which includes EUobserver.

Juncker calls for 'global' Europe

In his final State of the Union address, Jean-Claude Juncker warned of "exaggerated nationalism" in Europe - and said the EU should play a more dominant role in shaping world events, as the US withdraws from the global stage.

Analysis

EU to shore up borders, returns and migrant detentions

The European Commission wants more border controls, detentions and returns for rejected asylum seekers. The harsh tone is part of a broader anti-migrant mood. "We are treated like rats," one asylum seeker stuck on a Greek island told this website.

Infographic

The Commission president in his own words

What do the most recurrent words in the Commission president's annual speech at the European Parliament say about our times? We had a closer look at the patterns.

Interview

How Juncker's 'do less' group concluded EU should not do less

EUobserver followed Karl-Heinz Lambertz, the president of the Committee of Regions over nine months - and six interviews - as he worked on one of Jean-Claude Juncker's pet projects: one of the five so-called 'future of Europe' scenarios.

EUobserved

Juncker, the 'sad and wiser' man of Europe

Despite bold propositions for the EU's future, one could not help feeling the Commission chief's State of the Union address already sounded like a farewell speech.

Opinion

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us