EU leaders reconvene on Tuesday to agree on top jobs

BRUSSELS

Following an 18-hour summit, EU leaders have been unable to decide who should take over the bloc’s top jobs, an official said on Monday.

Preben Aamann, spokesman for European Council President Donald Tusk, said on Twitter that Tusk suspended the meeting and will reconvene it on Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. local time (0900GMT).

Since Sunday evening, the leaders of the EU’s 28 member states have been negotiating over who will get the top jobs at the EU Commission, European Council, European Parliament, and European Central Bank, as well as the high representative for foreign affairs and security policy post.

Speaking to reporters after the summit, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke of difficulties at the summit, saying they could not agree over who should fill the top positions.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said there was no consensus on designating a candidate for the EU Commission presidency, but there was a chance the issue could be solved.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte also said that the informal Spitzenkandidat (lead candidate) system, in which the presidency goes to the party with the most seats in the European Parliament, cannot be the only solution to selecting an EU Commission president.

* Contribution by Senhan Bolelli from Madrid, Yusuf Ozcan from Paris, and Cuneyt Karadag from Berlin, writing by Fatih Hafiz Mehmet in Ankara.