Herman Van Rompuy

...and it took Belgium's monarch 90 minutes to persuade him. Mr Van Rompuy remained almost completely unknown outside Belgium's frontiers until he was anointed as a candidate for President of the Council by Angela Merkel, Germany's chancellor...

In this article: European Union, Europe, Belgium, Tax, Reuters, Eric Van Rompuy, and Steven Spielberg

...refused to back the ex-PM at a crunch meeting. Mr Blair's hopes were left in tatters when French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel both backed Rompuy. She will now control the EU's GBP7billion overseas aid...

In this article: Tony Blair, EU, Europe, Baroness Ashton, Labour, David Cameron, Gordon Brown, Brussels, and Democracy

...a perceived Franco-German stitch up," said a diplomat. Eyebrows were raised at the Oct 29 summit when President Sarkozy held a private 15-minute long "interview" with Mr Van Rompuy. Later that evening, Chancellor Merkel made a beeline...

In this article: European Union, Tax, Brussels, Tony Blair, Nicolas Sarkozy, Bilderberg Group, Henry Kissinger, and Angela Merkel

...Mandelson rejoined Mr Brown's Cabinet in London. Side-by-side: French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, pictured in Brussels today, both backed Mr Van Rompuy With Mr Blair out of the way, although he never...

In this article: EU, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Jose Manuel Barroso, Europe, and Baroness Ashton

...6:31PM GMT 18 Nov 2009 Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy were revealed to have made a pact to railroad Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium's Prime Minister, into the powerful Brussels job created by the Lisbon Treaty. The attempted "stitch-up"...

In this article: EU, Tony Blair, Germany, Angela Merkel, Brussels, Britain, France, Europe, and Berlin

...they would back from the field of possibilities. The process of elimination that led to Van Rompuy's appointment represents all that is institutionally wrong with the European Union. "Saharawi Gandhi" was expelled from the Western...

In this article: European Union, Europe, China, Treaty of Lisbon, Tony Blair, Barack Obama, and Belgium

...of the fall of the Berlin Wall. According to Le Soir, a Belgian newspaper, Nicholas Sarkozy of France and Angela Merkel of Germany told Mr Van Rompuy last week they were thinking of backing him. Mr Sarkozy has said Paris and Berlin...

In this article: David Miliband, EU, Nicholas Sarkozy, Berlin, Reuters, Tony Blair, Angela Merkel, Gordon Brown, and Downing Street

...Merkel to Turkey joining the EU. In a debate in the Belgian parliament five years ago, Van Rompuy made plain that he viewed the EU as a Christian club with no room for a large Muslim country such as Turkey. "Turkey is not a part of Europe...

In this article: EU, Angela Merkel, Europe, Gordon Brown, Turkey, Nicolas Sarkozy, Brussels, and Germany