26 October 2009: Financial Times
By George Parker in London
David Miliband warned Europe against choosing a political lightweight as its president, insisting that a big hitter such as Tony Blair was needed to put the EU on an equal footing with the US and China.
The British foreign secretary has in recent days become increasingly vocal in his support for Mr Blair, the former prime minister, to become the EU’s first president, and on Monday urged the leaders of the union’s 27 states to make a bold choice.
Gordon Brown, the UK prime minister, has also been making the case for Mr Blair in private phone calls to European leaders ahead of the EU summit in Brussels this week.
Mr Miliband told the BBC that Mr Blair was not a formally declared candidate, but was waiting to see what sort of person Europe wanted as its new full-time president.
“Does it want someone who is just going to tick off the items on the agenda?” he said. “Or does it want someone who is going to be a persuasive advocate, a coalition-builder, a strategic leader of Europe’s relationships around the world?”
Mr Miliband’s comments drew scorn from the Conservatives, who argued that Mr Blair was not a particularly successful builder of coalitions in the run-up to the Iraq war.
The foreign secretary admitted that Mr Blair divided opinion in Europe, but urged EU leaders to consider the broader geopolitical picture.
In a speech to the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, Mr Miliband said: “The choice for Europe is simple: get our act together and make the EU a leader on the world stage or become spectators in a G2 world shaped by the US and China.”
Mr Miliband said the EU’s foreign policy was blighted by confused messages, patchy co-ordination and relationships with global powers that lacked “clarity, strategy or purpose”.
His claim that Mr Blair could help to fashion a strong EU foreign policy is not shared by the Tories or in many European capitals, where the former prime minister is still remembered as a divisive figure.
But Mr Miliband believes the EU risks becoming marginalised if it opts for a lesser-known leader – such as Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch prime minister, or Jean-Claude Juncker, the Luxembourg premier.
Until now, politicians have been reluctant to make the case for Mr Blair before the EU president’s post has been created: the Lisbon treaty still awaits the signature of Vaclav Klaus, the Czech president. But Mr Miliband and Mr Brown are now making the case more forcefully, knowing that the appointment could be made within weeks.
Mark Francois, the Conservative party’s Europe spokesman, repeated his opposition to Mr Blair becoming president of the European Council. “Now Labour are reduced to begging for bolt holes in Brussels for their politicians before the general election comes,” he said.
