Jean-Claude Juncker, 64, will undergo surgery to treat a potentially fatal abdominal aneurysm 

The President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker,  is to undergo surgery to treat a potentially fatal abdominal aneurysm. 

The 64-year-old was due to retire on Friday but this has been postponed until December at the earliest because his successor Ursula von der Leyen failed to win parliamentary approval for her commission.

The Luxembourg premier will have surgery for the abdominal aneurysm on November 11, his spokeswoman said.  

He is suffering from an aortic or Abdominal aortic aneurysm, a swelling in the main blood vessel which runs from the heart to the stomach, AFP was told. 

Juncker’s duties will be covered by commission vice president Frans Timmermans and the president expects to be back at work in time to attend the handover to Von der Leyen. 

An AAA does not have symptoms and has been known to be a silent disease. If untreated an AAA can rupture and internal bleeding can have fatal consequences.   

It was not immediately clear how serious Juncker’s case is.

President Juncker (pictured during the EU Commission meeting in Berlaymont, yesterday) the was to step down from his position this Friday but this has been postponed until December at the earliest because his successor Ursula von der Leyen failed to win parliamentary approval

In August, Juncker cut short a vacation to Austria and was taken back to Luxembourg undergo for surgery to have his gallbladder removed, and he has often shown signs of discomfort at public events.

European leaders came to his aid when he struggled to walk before a NATO summit gala dinner in Brussels, July last year.

He has previously revealed that he suffers from sciatica, a leg pain originating in the lower back. 

Juncker has held Brussels’ top job for the past five years, despite recurring problems with back pain, but his commission has been winding down business in recent months.

Juncker is pictured in a wheelchair as he is brought in through a side entrance during the gala dinner at the NATO headquarters on July 11, 2018

However the current commission is just overseeing everyday business while Von der Leyen’s team prepares to take over from Juncker.  

Von der Leyen, the former German defence minister, had hoped to make a fresh start from this week. 

But the European Parliament rejected three of her nominees for commission posts, leaving her in limbo until new ones are put forward and confirmed.

And a Luxembourg court has been forced to delay the next hearing into a spy scandal where three agents of Luxembourg’s SERL intelligence agency have been accused of illegal wire taps in 2007. 

Juncker was premier at the time and is unable to stand as witness in the trial starting on November 19.