The European Commission has, for a while since handed over the management of its representation in Austria to Patrick Lobis. As the official representative of the European Commission in Austria, Lobis reports directly to President Ursula von der Leyen.
Patrick Lobis is Head of the European Commission Representation in Vienna. / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons / Europäisches Parlament [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]
Patrick Lobis, a native of South Tyrol with Austrian and Italian citizenship, brings extensive knowledge and experience in the fields of communication, political analysis, and management to his new position. Previously, Lobis was deputy head of the Political and Economic Intelligence Unit in the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Communication.
EU-Kommissionsvertreter Patrick Lobis bei “Europa im Gespräch: Eine neue Ära für die europäische Sicherheit und Verteidigung”: „Bereitschaft 2030“ legt den Grundstein für eine gestärkte europäische Verteidigung. Wir müssen Sicherheit breit denken und investieren. pic.twitter.com/jNm63roxWZ
— EU-Kommission Wien (@EUKommWien) June 10, 2025
He began his career at the European Commission in 2012. His previous positions include the EU Commission Representation in Berlin, where he served as acting head and deputy head, among other roles. He is also very familiar with the Representation in Austria, having worked there as a political reporter at the beginning of his career at the Commission, where he gained valuable insights into the country’s political landscape. Before joining the Commission, he worked as a strategy consultant in the private sector. Lobis is a graduate of the Vienna University of Economics and Business and Harvard University.
Mr. Lobis replaced Christian Wigand, who had been acting head of the EU Commission Representation in Austria since September 2024, and will remain deputy head. Christian Wigand, a native of Graz, previously served as EU Commission spokesperson in Brussels for ten years, where he was responsible for labor and social affairs as well as justice and consumer protection.
The European Commission’s representations in the member states act as the “eyes, ears, and voice” of the Commission. They maintain contact with national authorities, stakeholders, and citizens, and inform the media and the public about EU policy. Their tasks also include providing political information and analysis to the Commission and organizing visits by the President and Commission members. Austria, which has been a member of the EU for 30 years, has developed into a strong European player and is also home to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) in Vienna.