EUROPEAN COUNCIL president Herman Van Rompuy is set to receive a second mandate next week when EU leaders gather in Brussels for a summit on the debt crisis.
With no other candidate in the running, and with resolute support from Germany and France, diplomatic sources say the nomination of the former Belgian prime minister for another 2½ years is likely to be passed “on the nod”.
Preparations for the reappointment come amid increasing signals from Berlin that Germany will not yield at the summit to pressure to expand the firepower of Europe’s new bailout fund.
This has prompted anxiety in official and diplomatic circles that the momentum gained since Greece’s second EU-IMF bailout was agreed on Monday could fade.
Although EU leaders pledged to review the €500 billion lending capacity of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) permanent fund next month, Germany insists there is no need to top it up. Europe wants the global powers to strengthen the International Monetary Fund – but they say EU leaders should move first on the ESM, which critics say is too small to deal with the crisis.
The IMF itself has applied pressure on Europe by not saying how much money it will provide to Greece.
Even if the ESM is not enlarged, European officials believe the IMF will make a contribution to the rescue because markets would take fright if it does not.
Concern about a renewed bout of contagion has led to speculation that Mr Van Rompuy may recall the leaders to Brussels for a special summit if turmoil returns.
His first term expires in May, necessitating a decision next week because the next scheduled summit does not take place until June. Mr Van Rompuy was appointed in autumn 2009 to take charge full-time of the Council of EU leaders, a task previously done on a part-time basis by the leader of the country in the six-month rotating presidency of the EU.
His work has been dominated by the debt crisis, with summits every few weeks for two years as authorities grapple with the threat to the euro.
Informal discussions on his new mandate, regarded as a done deal already in Brussels, are being managed by Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, whose country holds the rotating presidency. EU leaders are also expected to give Mr Van Rompuy a second role of presiding over summits of euro zone heads of state and government.