European leaders meet in Brussels on Friday facing a damaging row over Jean-Claude Juncker’s likely nomination as European Commission president which has left Britain isolated and angry.
Although Juncker’s appointment is expected to be confirmed at the summit, Prime Minister David Cameron will force an unprecedented vote on the issue, playing out in public major disagreements about the EU’s future.
While leaders could try and appease Cameron by offering London a top job in Brussels, the dispute threatens to fuel eurosceptic sentiment in Britain before a referendum on leaving the EU slated for 2017.
Leaders are clearly expecting to be able to announce a decision on Friday.
A draft of the summit conclusions obtained by AFP and dated Wednesday contains the paragraph: “The European Council adopted the decision proposing to the European Parliament X for the President of the European Commission.”
But Cameron could “retaliate” against Juncker’s nomination by refusing to sign the conclusions, according to the EU Observer website.
The disagreement comes a month after anti-EU parties made sweeping gains in European elections, with outright victories for the UK Independence Party in Britain and the National Front in France.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Europe’s most powerful leader, on Thursday urged EU colleagues to “compromise” with Britain to defuse tensions.
“I think we can find compromises here and make a step towards Great Britain,” she said.
“I repeatedly spoke of a European spirit which is needed and which will help us to find good solutions.”
Her comments came shortly before EU leaders gathered in the Belgian town of Ypres, among World War I’s bloodiest battlefields, to mark 100 years since the conflict started.
Facing a rising tide of euroscepticism at home, Cameron has vowed to keep fighting for EU reforms including the repatriation of powers ahead of a likely referendum despite his campaign against Juncker being abandoned by allies like the Netherlands and Sweden.
