EU asks Wolfowitz for meeting on job

EU: EU leaders have made clear that they will not stand in the way of Paul Wolfowitz becoming the next head of the World Bank but have asked him to come to Brussels next week to discuss his plans for the job.

A number of EU governments are suspicious of the US deputy defence secretary on account of his role in the Iraq war but Minister for Finance Brian Cowen said there was now a broad acceptance that Mr Wolfowitz would get the job.

"The realpolitik of the situation is in all likelihood he will be appointed chairman of the bank. One should seek to influence the situation, sit down with him and deal with the issues and the perspectives in an open and frank and honest way," he said.

German chancellor Gerhard Schröder said he had told President George Bush that Germany would not oppose the appointment. "I told him that I believed Europe's enthusiasm would be limited but that the appointment would not fail because of Germany.

"My impression is that is also the case for others in Europe," the chancellor said.

Mr Wolfowitz meanwhile has been trying to improve on his image in Europe, telling the French newspaper Le Monde that, if confirmed as head of the bank, he would like to make an early trip to Africa.

"If my nomination is approved, one of the first places I would like to go to for a big trip is Africa. It does not mean Africa rather than Brussels or Europe.

"But I repeat that Africa should be my main concern if I become president," he told the newspaper.

Traditionally, Washington gets to name the head of the World Bank, while Europe gets to appoint the head of the International Monetary Fund, but both sides like to have a say on the two posts.

Some foreign governments and non-profit advocates of poverty reduction fear that Mr Wolfowitz, a renowned neo-conservative in US political terms, could impose American foreign policy on the bank.

Mr Wolfowitz told Le Monde that the World Bank had to use its resources to promote development and reduce poverty in the most efficient ways.