EU President and High Representative: habemus papam

Habemus papam. In fact we have two, plus a lady cardinal. Much was said about Barroso’s appointment. Contrary to many comments, I believe that Van Rompuy has the right profile for the job and may well prove to be a good choice. I always found dishonest the British inspired campaign for a “high profile” candidate, one that “would stop the traffic in foreign capitals”. No European leader, least of all the British, has until now given any sign of being willing to play second fiddler to a European figure on the world stage. The campaign was nothing else than a desperate attempt to promote the name of Tony Blair: not because he is “big”, but because it was seen as an opportunity to put the UK back at the centre of Europe. The Brits would be well advised to bring home the news that Blair didn’t lose because he was too “big”, but because he is Blair: a politician that at some point was the most popular figure in Europe and then managed to waste this capital by retreating on his pledge to bring the country into the euro, by being Bush’s strongest supporter in Irak and by failing to make an impact in his new job of special envoy to the middle east. The relatively low profile of Van Rompuy fits perfectly well with the wording of the Lisbon treaty, incidentally a job description that was strongly supported by none else than Prime Minister Blair at the time. It remains to be seen how he will be capable of working with Barroso.

• Primary Source

ISPI: Commentary: EU President and High Representative: habemus papam [PDF] http://www.ispionline.it/sites/default/files/pubblicazioni/commentary_perissich_20_nov_2009.pdf

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