Friday, 20 November 2009EU leaders chose on 19 November Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy to be the first president of the European Union and Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton as new EU foreign policy chief, diplomats said.
The leaders of the EU's 27 countries met in Brussels to decide who would become the bloc's first president, RIA Novosti reported. The post is officially entitled Permanent President of the European Council.
The president will have the role of a figurehead, without executive powers. Under the Lisbon Treaty on EU reform, the president will "take on the work currently assigned to rotating Presidencies." He will also "facilitate cohesion and consensus within the European Council."
Van Rompuy, whose term runs for two-and-a-half years, was elected after Britain agreed to drop its demand that former prime minister Tony Blair should be given the job.
Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy will start his new job on 1 January 2010, a EU spokesman said.
Britain's Catherine Ashton, who, according to AFP, "vowed to continue her style of 'quiet diplomacy' and a determination 'to get things done," is expected to take office as early as 1 December.
Both posts have been introduced by the EU reform treaty, also known as the Lisbon Treaty, which comes into effect on 1 December after the long-delayed ratification by all 27 EU member countries. |
Friday, 20 November 2009
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