Herman Van Rompuy, the Belgian prime minister who is the frontrunner to be the European Union’s first full-time president, is a firm opponent of Turkey’s EU membership bid, according to a speech he made in 2004.
The disclosure appears unlikely to torpedo Mr Van Rompuy’s candidacy, but it might matter much more if he won the presidency, because the EU has been conducting accession talks with Turkey since 2005 and is officially committed to embracing the nation as a full member.
