European Commissioner for jobs Roxana Mînzatu warned on Wednesday that the continuing conflict in the Middle East puts as many as 1.3 million positions throughout the EU in jeopardy.

The alert was issued while unveiling the 2026 Spring Semester Package, the EU executive's twice-yearly report offering economic guidance to the 27 member countries on the bloc's priorities.

"Owing to the Middle East war, up to 1.3 million jobs face threats, especially within energy-intensive sectors," Mînzatu stated during the press event.

"I must also stress that higher energy costs will hit lower-income households in Europe particularly hard, which is why we advise all member states to adopt targeted steps to assist vulnerable groups," the Commissioner continued.

The conflict, which started after Israel and the US carried out strikes on Iran in late February this year, has already produced clear effects on the European economy as energy prices have climbed sharply. The most recent European economic forecasts released in May show that the war has dampened growth across Europe while lifting inflation.

Economic figures on growth and inflation differ markedly among EU countries, a gap the Commission views as a risk to competitiveness.

Key priorities

The package devotes considerable attention to employment, stressing the need to foster quality jobs and the ways EU nations can address ongoing shortages of skilled workers in key sectors.

"Enhancing educational results and better matching skills to labour market demands stay central goals, also to ease labour and skills shortages that are especially severe in strategic areas such as cybersecurity, quantum, artificial intelligence and semiconductors," the Semester Package notes.

During the press conference, Mînzatu noted that 77 percent of European firms say skill shortages continue to block investment. She pointed to poor working conditions as the chief cause of those shortages.

"We cannot draw in talent, we cannot ease shortages, we cannot raise people's earnings unless we ensure good working conditions," the Commissioner said.

A competitive push

From the start of this mandate, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has placed competitiveness among the Commission's top goals as geopolitical uncertainties grow.

The latest Semester Package mirrors this focus, examining how Europe can bolster its standing globally.

In particular, the bloc aims to lower economic barriers inside the single market, foster a more business-friendly setting for firms and capital, and cut strategic dependencies, above all on China and the US.

For this purpose, the Commission urges member states to pursue stronger industrial policy, increased capital-market investment, and a simplification drive that would reduce administrative loads in both private and public sectors.

At the same time, the Commission seeks to speed up economic reforms at EU level, although success depends largely on member states' readiness to move forward, a persistent coordination issue.