WORLD The appointment of Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium’s prime minister, as president of the European Council and Lady Ashton of the UK as European Union “high representative” for foreign affairs is certain to be seen by many as a demonstration of Europe’s inability to punch its weight on the global stage.
Neither is a big political figure with an international reputation. Both are classic consensus-building figures, unthreatening to national European leaders, and unlikely to steal the limelight from their rivals.
