The Diplomat
The Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for protecting the European way of life, Margaritis Schinás, has been awarded the 17th Otto of Habsburg Prize, for the year 2020, in recognition of his commitment to defending European values.
The award was unanimously decided on 3 December by a jury chaired by Florentino Portero Rodríguez and made up of the members of the Board of Directors of the Spanish Committee for the Pan-European Union, with Carlos Uriarte Sánchez acting as Secretary.
By awarding Margaritis Schinás the Otto of Habsburg Prize, PanEuropa Spain wanted to highlight the commitment to democracy, freedom and Christian humanism of a convinced European, recognising his record of service to the construction of a United Europe and the protection of the European way of life, according to a note from the organisation.
“In very difficult circumstances, where the European Union is forced to take serious decisions in order to meet a series of major challenges, Schinás’ example is both commendable and encouraging”, the note adds.
The Otto of Habsburg Prize has been awarded since 2004 and has been given to personalities committed to the process of European integration and with strong links to our country, such as Marcelino Oreja Aguirre, Herman Tertsch and Rosario Silva Lapuerta, Fernando Álvarez de Miranda, José María Gil-Robles, Simeón de Bulgaria, Lord Garel-Jones, Gerardo Fernández Albor, Raimundo Bassols Jaca, Emilio Lamo de Espinosa, Francisco Pinto Balsemao, Darío Valcárcel, Nick Clegg, Iñigo Méndez de Vigo and Eugenio Nasarre.
Margaritis Schinás graduated in Law from the University of Thessaloniki Artistóteles and then graduated in Advanced European Studies, specialising in European Public Administration, from the College of Europe in Bruges. He obtained a Master’s degree in Public Administration and Politics from the London School of Economics. Since 1990, he has held various positions in the European Commission. He was a member of the cabinet of the Spanish European Commissioners Abel Matutes and Marcelino Oreja Aguirre, was deputy head of the cabinet of European Commission Vice-President Loyola de Palacio and head of the cabinet of European Commissioner Markos Kyprianú. He has also been a Member of the European Parliament, Deputy Director of the Bureau of European Policy Advisers (BEPA), Director General of Financial Affairs and Director of Communication at the European Commission. Following the 2019 European Parliament elections, Schinás was appointed Vice-President of the Commission, responsible for Migration Issues and European Lifestyle Protection.
Greek Commissioner Margaritis Schinás is married to Spanish Mercedes Alvargonzález Figaredo, with whom he has two children, Stergios and Juan.
