Exit Blair as France, Germany unite on top EU job

(BRUSSELS) - European Union powerhouses France and Germany will join forces to choose a new-look EU's first president, French President Nicolas Sarkozy indicated Friday, sweeping Tony Blair towards the Brussels exit.

Sarkozy said that he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had agreed to back "the same candidate," adding that the pair shared the same "vision" over the two top jobs, which the bloc's Lisbon Treaty will create, and their favoured runners.

Berlin and Paris raised their heads above the parapet at an EU summit a day after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown campaigned personally -- but unsuccessfully, even with fellow European socialists -- on behalf of Blair.

An intriguing twist in the tale could see Brown's Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, emerge as favourite for the second new post to be created under the reforming Lisbon Treaty, that of foreign affairs supremo.

The Swedish EU presidency would "open consultations" on nominations "the day after the Czech president signs" the treaty, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker said.

The race for the top jobs began in earnest with summit approval to give Czech President Vaclav Klaus the exemption, from a rights charter, he made a condition of his signing the treaty, which Sarkozy said could now enter force as early as December 1.

Sarkozy would not reveal the identity of his and Merkel's preferred choice, but said Europe's George Washington, in reference to the founding US father, would need to be both "charismatic" and a "consensus-builder."

Without naming Blair, Sarkozy hinted at problems with the Briton's mooted but never declared candidacy from the beginning.

"The names in the first wave (of speculation) are not necessarily the winners in the end," he said.

Ironically, Sarkozy was the first to suggest Blair could be a contender -- although he backtracked a couple of weeks ago citing a "problem" over Britain's traditional lack of engagement with innovative EU policies.

In defiance of Brown, Europe's socialists are pursuing the beefed-up foreign policy post, with Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn also warning of "a link for the coming generation between George W. Bush and Tony Blair."

"If (Blair) cannot get the backing of the socialist group, being a Labour man himself, it's a very difficult situation," added Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller.

Less than a third of Britons even want their former prime minister Blair -- remembered for his unpopular backing for then US president George W. Bush on the Iraq war -- to assume the role, a poll showed Friday.

While Miliband has ruled himself out running for the second job, insiders say the door is now wide open for him.

Recent remarks querying the role Europe "wants to play in the world" have been interpreted by observers as a sign that, while he would not play traitor to Brown's general election cause, the position holds genuine appeal.

Dutch leader Jan Peter Balkenende said he is not a candidate on Friday, but suggested things could subsequently change. Former Latvian head of state Vaira Vike-Freiberga and ex-Irish leader John Bruton are declared runners.

The other name to have entered the ring, Juncker, was said by one diplomat in Brussels to have launched the political equivalent of a "suicide pact" in going up against Blair -- done so in order to boot Blair out of the frame.

By shifting away from Blair, the leaders appear to endorse the long-held view that control over EU affairs should remain firmly in the hands of the nations -- and especially the big ones at the heart the European enterprise.

The approach also confirms a tradition in Brussels, seen also at the NATO military alliance, of choosing consensus candidates from nations like Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries, Portugal and Spain.