EU selects Van Rompuy and Ashton

Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy is to be president of the European Council and European Commissioner Catherine Ashton is to be high representative for foreign policy. The two appointments were agreed unanimously at a meeting of the EU’s national government leaders in Brussels yesterday evening.

Presenting Van Rompuy and Ashton at a press conference after the meeting, with European Commission President José Manuel Barroso on the platform, Fredrik Reinfeldt, the prime minister of Sweden, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, said: “This is the new leadership team of Europe.”

The choice of Van Rompuy was not a surprise – he had emerged as the leading candidate over the course of the last three weeks. But the elevation of Ashton, who has never been elected to public office, propels into the forefront of EU politics someone who is still relatively new to international affairs.

Ashton became the European commissioner for trade in October last year, replacing Peter Mandelson, who returned to British politics. She had previously been leader of the UK parliament’s upper house and before that a justice minister.

The deal struck has the virtue of gender and political balance. Van Rompuy is from the centre-right European People’s Party, while Ashton, 53, is the candidate of the Party of European Socialists. It also balances a small member state (Belgium) against a large (the UK).

Van Rompuy, 62, a Flemish Christian Democrat, has been prime minister of Belgium for less than a year, having taken office on 30 December after the resignation of Yves Leterme. He said that he had agreed with Reinfeldt that he would begin in his EU post on 1 January.

The national leaders also agreed to appoint Pierre de Boissieu as secretary-general of the Council of Ministers. The Frenchman has been deputy secretary-general since 1999.

To read a description of the President of European Council post, click here.

To read a description of the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy post / European External Action Service, click here.

To read the Lisbon Treaty, click here.

Source: www.europeanvoice.com