The Spanish, Belgian and Hungarian prime ministers set out profile of a Council president with whom they would like to work. The prime ministers of the three countries that will hold the next rotating presidency of the EU have said that the future president of the European Council should be someone who can build consensus, who respects the EU institutions and who can effectively represent the Union in international fora. The prime ministers of Spain, Belgium and Hungary, which hold the rotating six-month presidency successively from January 2010 until June 2011, were speaking in Brussels ahead of a two-day summit of EU leaders.
The prime ministers of the three countries that will hold the next rotating presidency of the EU have said that the future president of the European Council should be someone who can build consensus, who respects the EU institutions and who can effectively represent the Union in international fora.
The prime ministers of Spain, Belgium and Hungary, which hold the rotating six-month presidency successively from January 2010 until June 2011, were speaking in Brussels ahead of a two-day summit of EU leaders.
José Luis Zapatero, Spain's prime minister, said that EU leaders would discuss the criteria for the position of Council president tonight before discussing any specific names. Zapatero said the president should be someone "with a European vocation who wants to strengthen the Union as a matter of principle". His Hungarian counterpart, Gordon Bajnai, said he or she should be someone who can "represent Europe in a strong way", to help ensure Europe is not left out of major decisions on international issues. But he also said the president should be willing to "listen to everyone" and to be a good "consensus-builder". The president should be able to work with the existing EU institutions, such as the rotating presidency, to avoid "infighting" that might weaken the EU. Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium's prime minister, said that the president, whose term in office would last two-and-a-half years, should have "European commitment", should respect the EU's institutions and should be able to look for "consensus and compromise". Van Rompuy warned, however, against focusing too much on the personality of the president. "The future of Europe does not depend on one person. It depends on a balanced game of all institutions", he said.
José Luis Zapatero, Spain's prime minister, said that EU leaders would discuss the criteria for the position of Council president tonight before discussing any specific names.
Zapatero said the president should be someone "with a European vocation who wants to strengthen the Union as a matter of principle".
His Hungarian counterpart, Gordon Bajnai, said he or she should be someone who can "represent Europe in a strong way", to help ensure Europe is not left out of major decisions on international issues. But he also said the president should be willing to "listen to everyone" and to be a good "consensus-builder". The president should be able to work with the existing EU institutions, such as the rotating presidency, to avoid "infighting" that might weaken the EU.
Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium's prime minister, said that the president, whose term in office would last two-and-a-half years, should have "European commitment", should respect the EU's institutions and should be able to look for "consensus and compromise".
Van Rompuy warned, however, against focusing too much on the personality of the president. "The future of Europe does not depend on one person. It depends on a balanced game of all institutions", he said.
