EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - After weeks of speculation and recriminations over a lack of transparency, EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Thursday evening (19 November) to decide who will take up the new posts created under the Lisbon Treaty.

A new permanent president of the European Council and a beefed-up high representative for foreign affairs are designed to increase the EU's visibility on the world stage and help co-ordinate its work back home.

But after the jubilation that greeted the Irish Yes result in a second referendum and Czech President Vaclav Klaus' eventual signing of the treaty, the recent backroom dealing has both been very difficult and left the EU open to criticism about the lack of democracy in its decision-making process.

On 19 November, leaders of Europe's 27 member states will settle the question of who is to head the European Council and the EU's diplomatic service. However, for the European press, a process which should have marked a milestone on the road to European integration has been marred by a lack of transparency.

Male or female? Right-wing or left-wing? High profile player or back office manager? On the eve of the informal summit of European Union leaders in Brussels, there is no end of speculation on the identity of the future.

President of the European Council and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security. On Thursday, heads of state and government leaders will sit down "to an official dinner and a comprehensive menu of dignitaries in line for the two most powerful jobs in the EU," reports Jurnalul National, which further avers that "hot lines between European capitals must have been busy with endless bargaining to establish an appropriate compromise" on the two posts.

However in Madrid, El País notes that "the process of electing an EU President has been so chaotic that many observers in Brussels doubt that the summit will produce results." If that is the case, De Standard is convinced that "Sweden, the current holder of the EU presidency," ought to be held to blame. The Belgian daily further insists that the Swedes "neglected to take advantage of a historic opportunity, where they could have put in place the first piece of the puzzle" when European leaders met in Berlin on 9 November. Then on 16 November, Sweden's Minister for Foreign affairs, Carl Bildt, refused to touch on the burning issue when he simply stated that the summit was still three days away, which amounted to "an eternity in politics." On this basis, De Standard takes the view that the selection procedure will be as unpredictable as "a game of pinball."

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU commissioner hopefuls will not win the approval of centre-right MEPs if they are considered to have collaborated with repressive Communist regimes or with governments 'tainted by corruption,' the largest group in the European Parliament has indicated.

"The candidate commissioners must under no circumstances have been associated with oppressive regimes and must not have participated in non-democratic governments or political movements, or governments or movements that have been tainted by corruption," a checklist drafted by the European People's Party (EPP) reads.

The EPP will only give a green light to commissioners who have not collaborated with oppressive regimes

The EPP holds the largest number of seats in the EU legislature, 288 out of 736.

It is important to know what the positions of commissioner candidates were in the past, when dissidents were put in prison or killed, the conservative deputies believe. "We don't want to reward perpetrators of the Communist regimes," German MEP Manfred Weber said on Wednesday (18 November) at a press briefing.

A conference at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) presented a number of policy priorities for the incoming European Commission, but above all underlined the importance for the EU of speedily getting to grips with the many unanswered questions concerning the set-up of the European institutions in the Lisbon Treaty era. 

As EU leaders meet in Brussels today to decide on a first permanent president of the European Council and a new souped-up foreign minister, the CEPS experts cautioned that while a media frenzy continues to rage over the potential candidates for these positions, the EU must get its house in order if, as it hopes, the new treaty and positions will finally allow the 27-member bloc to become a key player on the global stage. 

"The grand strategic question," notes CEPS senior fellow Michael Emerson, "is what the EU is going to do on the global level". The goal, he argued, should be for the EU to become "the leading proponent of normative foreign policy in the world". 

Herman Van Rompuy, the centre-right Belgian prime minister, is set to become the first president of the European Council as Tony Blair was forced to admit defeat in his long-running campaign for the job. But Britain is to be rewarded with the key post of high representative for foreign policy, going to the former Labour cabinet minister Lady Ashton.

Tony Blair bowed out when it became clear that centre-right leaders, who dominate the EU, are determined that the post, created by the Lisbon treaty, should go to their group.

Gordon Brown moved onto "Plan B" after making a final push for Blair at a meeting of centre-left leaders in Brussels shortly before the summit. To nobody's surprise, it became clear that Blair enjoyed no support in the group. At the meeting Brown pulled the Blair nomination off the table and proposed Ashton, a former leader of the Lords, for high commissioner instead.

To be handed in today, a Europe-wide online petition succeeded in spurring opposition to Tony Blair's now-failing bid for the presidency of the European Council.

[ Paris, 19 November 2009 ]  With more than 45,000 signatures, the Stop Blair! petition (http://stopblair.eu) will be handed in today, in advance of this evening's summit slated to discuss candidates for the post of President of the European Council. Once tipped as hot favourite, Tony Blair is now understood to have little chance of securing the presidential job.

A volunteer effort with no budget and no advertising, the Stop Blair! petition has nonetheless shown that Mr Blair would not be a popular choice for the post wrongly billed as "EU President".

"It was always our analysis that the smaller EU member states and Germany were not in favour of the 'big' presidency Tony Blair would bring," said John Evans, Stop Blair! coordinator at European Tribune (http://www.eurotrib.com), which organized the petition. "But, when those countries were silent while Blair's communications machine was running full tilt, we were the only ones to stand up and say no. We spoke out early and clearly, and we were heard."

Barring last-minute arm-twisting in the corridors of power, Blair's candidature seems most unlikely to be accepted by the European Council.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU leaders have chosen Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy to be the first president of the European Council, while UK trade commissioner Catherine Ashton will become the bloc's foreign policy chief.

Mr Van-Rompuy, from the centre-right political family, is a trained economist and has been running Belgium for less than a year. He writes Haiku (Japanese verse) and is known for his low-key style, which includes a line in self-deprecatory humour and caravan holidays.

The decision came much faster than expected

He came to prominence after Germany and France a few weeks ago agreed between themselves to promote him. Several diplomats subsequently suggested that his short term in office stood to his advantage as he has had no time to make enemies among other EU leaders.

The presidency decision - nominating a person from a small country with no international profile - confirms the speculation of recent weeks that the majority of member states wanted to choose a person whose main role will be that of an internal fixer, rather than someone who can open doors in Washington and Moscow.

Brown sacrifices support for Blair to win foreign minister role for UK

Britain last night secured the job of the EU's first "foreign minister" for Baroness Ashton of Upholland after Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy was crowned as the first "President of Europe", quashing any hopes Tony Blair might have still been harbouring of assuming the role.

Following a trade-off that managed to juggle the competing demands from Europe's left and right political blocs, from the region's big and small states and from those calling for a gender-balanced ticket, the victorious couple were formally anointed at a dinner of the European Union's 27 leaders.

Lady Ashton - the Labour peer who was first identified as a candidate by The Independent last month - won a spectacular promotion from Trade Commissioner to become the most powerful woman ever to serve on the European Commission. She shrugged off immediate criticism that she had never been elected to office, lacked experience in foreign affairs and had been chosen because she was a woman.

After weeks of backroom dealings, Belgian PM Herman Van Rompuy was named the EU's first president while Briton Catherine Ashton was selected the 27-nation bloc's first foreign affairs chief.

REUTERS - European Union leaders named Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy, who is little known outside his own country, as the bloc's first president on Thursday to lead efforts to make it more influential on the world stage.

They also chose Baroness Catherine Ashton, a Briton little known even in her own country, as EU foreign affairs chief under a deal that kept out more established figures such as Tony Blair, and raised questions about how the bloc plans to lift its profile.

20/11/2009 - PROFILE The new face of European diplomacy: Baroness Catherine Ashton 19/11/2009 - Christopher Robeet "This is a balanced consensus ticket, but the question is: are they the best candidates?" 19/11/2009 - Hernan Van Rompuy "I did not seek this position, but from tonight, I take on this task with conviction and enthusiasm" 19/11/2009 - Catherine Ashton "I will endeavour to do in my own way the best that I can for Europe"

The appointments are intended to bolster the EU's standing and help it to match the rise of emerging powers such as China following the global economic crisis, but neither Ashton nor Van Rompuy is a familiar figure outside Europe.

A Belgian federalist and a former chairwoman of Hertfordshire Health Authority were ushered into Europe's two grandest jobs last night as it stumbled on to the world stage.

The European Union's 27 leaders balked at the chance to have Tony Blair as their president, preferring not to be overshadowed. In a stitch-up between the two big blocs of the EU, the Centre Right fell in behind Herman Van Rompuy, the Belgian Prime Minister, to take that job.

The centre-left Socialist leaders backed Baroness Ashton of Upholland, Britain's Trade Commissioner, to be the first High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, as well as vice-president for external affairs.

The deal went through swiftly at a dinner of EU heads and the expected marathon session never materialised. The deadlock was broken when Gordon Brown abandoned his support for Mr Blair at a meeting of Socialist leaders before the summit.

"This is a breakthrough," said Martin Schulz, a German legislator who heads the Socialist grouping in the European Parliament.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, who chaired the meeting, said it took time to consult with all of his other 26 EU colleagues.

"But it's very important to show that everyone has a say, that this is the Europe of 27, that everyone was actually in on this decision, and this also showed tonight when we unanimously could support both of these candidates," Reinfeldt said.

Agreement reached

Differences over political affiliations, geographical considerations and even gender have been a severe strain on the selection process over the last several weeks. There has even been frequent bickering over what role exactly the president should play as the top representative of the European Union.

 

Earlier Thursday, the Dutch premier Jan Peter Balkenende, a conservative, ruled himself out of the presidency, while Europe's Socialists publically threw their support behind Britain's Catherine Ashton as the new foreign policy chief.

 

The ultimate breakthrough apparently came when the move was backed by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who then said that London would drop its support for Tony Blair as a candidate for the presidency.

Tony Blair was left looking like the big loser last night despite never having formally applied for the job of European president.

As the EU's 27 leaders picked two virtual unknowns for its top jobs, the man everyone said would "stop the traffic" in Washington, Beijing or even Brussels was left back in London wondering what might have been.

Gordon Brown called Mr Blair shortly before the summit got under way to explain that he had had one final try in front of the European socialist leaders, whom he had told three weeks ago to "get real" and choose his predecessor as their nominee for the top post.

In fact, both men knew that it was almost certainly all over before Mr Brown left for Brussels yesterday.

BRUSSELS -- Leaders of the 27 countries of the European Union on Thursday night chose Herman Van Rompuy, the Belgian prime minister, as the European Union's first president, and Catherine Ashton of Britain, currently the bloc's trade commissioner, as its high representative for foreign policy. The vote was unanimous.

Both officials are highly respected but little known outside their own countries. After the European Union's eight-year battle to rewrite its internal rules and to pass the Lisbon Treaty that created these two new jobs, the selection of such low-profile figures seemed to highlight Europe's problems instead of its readiness to take a more united and forceful place in world affairs.

In a sense, Europe seemed to be living down to expectations. Earlier, the foreign minister of Sweden, Carl Bildt, warned against a "minimalist solution" that would reduce the union's "opportunity to have a clear voice in the world."

"It is quite astounding," said Olivier Ferrand, president of Terra Nova, a center-left research institute in France. "It is jaw-dropping. It is the end of ambition for the E.U. -- really disappointing."

Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium's prime minister, has become the first president of the European Council.

Van Rompuy, largely unknown outside his native Belgium, was named after a consensus was reached at a meeting of the leaders of the 27-member European Union on Thursday.

"I did not seek this high position, I didn't make any steps to achieve it, but from tonight I take on this task with conviction and enthusiasm," Van Rompuy told a news conference.

The meeting also agreed to back the candidacy of Catherine Ashton, the British EU trade commissioner, for the foreign policy role.

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"I would consider it [the UK] one of the winners of these negotiations as they have got perhaps the most important position with the foreign minister."  

The US has welcomed the appointment of the first permanent EU president and foreign representative.

Belgian PM Herman van Rompuy was named President of the European Council, while Briton Baroness Catherine Ashton was made EU foreign affairs supremo.

The US said the appointments would strengthen the EU and Europe's relationship with Washington.

But some in Brussels have criticised the appointments, saying the pair have too low an international profile.

British newspapers said the choices would not help the EU to achieve a greater global impact and questioned whether Baroness Ashton would carry much weight in her role.

Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy has been chosen as the EU's first permanent president at a summit in Brussels.

The centre-right leader has a reputation as a good negotiator with a self-deprecating sense of humour, which has helped him to hold together a fractious coalition government.

But his appointment may be bad news for the troubled coalition of Dutch- and French-speaking parties, which could fall apart without his careful stewardship.

In linguistically divided Belgium, he is seen as a unifying force, taking an even-handed approach to resolving conflicts - a skill that is expected to serve him well in Europe's top job.

But Mr Van Rompuy, 62, is little known outside Belgium and has attended only two European summits.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland has been appointed high representative for foreign and security policy on Thursday. But what will she actually do?

The appointment of Europe's foreign minister will quickly lead to the European Union becoming a non-voting member of the UN alongside nation states.

The post of foreign minister was resurrected from the old EU Constitution with a name change - to High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The European Union on Thursday evening (19 November) said it had solved the long-standing question of whom the US secretary of state should call with foreign policy problems, but admitted the situation may not be so clear in other areas.

"The Secretary of State of the United States [Hillary Clinton] should call Cathy Ashton," said European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso referring to the newly-appointed EU foreign policy chief.

Catherine Ashton still has to go through a parliamentary hearing

"She is our foreign minister," he added noting that at this level "the so-called Kissinger issue is solved."

Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger is reported to have once asked whom he should call if he wants to talk to someone in Europe.

Supposedly asked in the 1970s - although there are doubts it was ever posed - the question has been used by Europeans ever since as a touchstone for EU foreign policy and external unity.

European leaders have decided to give the Belgian Prime Minister, Herman Van Rompoi the union's top job as the first permanent president.

European leaders have decided to give the Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompoi the Union's top job, appointing him as the first permanent president.

Considered a low-key figure, he emerged as the favorite over prominent figures such as former British PM Tony Blair.

Belgian Prime Minister elected first EU president - RT Top Stories

"The European Union is not a super-state. It's a group of countries, which got together and decided to share part of their sovereignty - not all. And therefore you will not see in the foreseeable future a European army marching down a highway under the European flag. We are not going for that. We are going only for crisis management."

Europe's leaders are relieved that the wrangling over the EU's new positions of president and foreign minister is finally over. But they have no reason to be proud. Once again, the EU has missed an opportunity to boost its standing on the global stage.

The relief among the 27 leaders of the European Union following the decision about the bloc's two new top jobs was visible. Right up until just before the special summit on Thursday evening, it had looked as if it would be a long night, given how far apart the member states' respective positions were. The appointment of the EU's first full-time president of the European Council and its first foreign minister appeared to be subjecting the bloc to yet another stress test.

But then things took a surprise turn. In the end, the decisions happened very quickly.

During the preparatory meeting of center-left EU leaders in the afternoon, it was decided that Britain's Catherine Ashton should be foreign minister. And the decision to appoint Belgium's Herman Van Rompuy as EU president was already made during the leaders' "working dinner" on Thursday evening. The decision was even unanimous, no less. Afterward, the leaders patted each other on the shoulder and praised one another for their ability to take action.

Europe hopes the creation of the new posts, set to come into being in January, might answer the ex US secretary of state Henry Kissinger's famous question; who to call when you want to speak to Europe?

But it doesn't seem to have done so yet.

"I'm waiting anxiously for the first call," Van Rompuy told a press conference after he secured the post.

However Barroso, sharing the press platform with both new appointees, said after an embarrassing silence: "The Kissinger issue is now solved."

As Kissinger had been US secretary of state, Barroso said, "the secretary of state should call Cathy Ashton, she is our foreign minister."

This used to be a lot easier - before Lisbon a single person (Javier Solana) was both Council Secretary General as well as High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy.

En un viejo país ineficiente, algo así como España entre dos guerras civiles, poseer una casa y poca hacienda y memoria ninguna. -- Gil de Biedma