Spain reassures Van Rompuy over division of EU roles

(MADRID) - Spain Tuesday sought to reassure the European Union's new president, Herman Van Rompuy, that Madrid will bow to his authority when it takes over the EU presidency next month.

Spain assumes the six-month rotating presidency of the bloc from Sweden on January 1, just one month after Van Rompuy took office as the first ever president of the European Union under the new Lisbon reform treaty.

But some ambiguity and friction has arisen over the division of roles.

European leaders and Van Rompuy ceded to pressure from Madrid which insisted it preside over some prestigious EU summits involving third countries during its term, such at those with the United States and with Latin America.

But Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero Tuesday said Madrid would be there to help Van Rompuy and seek to boost the role of the new European president.

"You will have the rotating presidency at your disposal ... so that you can properly carry out the function of leadership, the political management of the European Council," said in a joint appearance before the press following talks between the two.

"My first objective during the six months is that there is institutional consolidation" and "clear visibility for the highest function that the Lisbon Treaty gives to the president of the European Council."

The 27 EU heads of state and government chose Van Rompuy for the top job at a summit in November, after rejecting a British bid to have ex-premier Tony Blair installed.

His post, the President of the European Council, is for a two-and-a-half year term renewable once.

The Lisbon Treaty, drawn up to replace the aborted EU constitution, is designed to boost the bloc's global standing and streamline the institutions which represent half a billion people.

"The great weakness of the Lisbon Treaty is that it maintains the rotating presidency of the EU," said Daniel Cohn-Bendit, co-leader of the Greens Party in the European Parliament.

"Van Rompuy is trying to go up against the rotating presidency, to take control," he told AFP in Strasbourg.

Van Rompuy, a former Belgian prime minister, said he was "happy that the first six months of my mandate" will take place "hand in hand with a country sincerely committed to the European cause."

He said his talks with Zapatero were "very useful on the plan for the coming months."

Both leaders said that their main goal would be economic recovery.

"We are determined to have an important and strong plan which will find consensus," Van Rompuy said, noting that an informal EU summit would be held in February to discuss the economy.