Berlin : European leaders have appointed Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk as the next EU president amid escalating tension with Russia over Ukraine. The 28-nation bloc also appointed Italy’s foreign minister Federica Mogherini as its foreign policy chief. The heads of state and government of the EU reached an agreement on the two top posts at the start of a special summit in Brussels, which was dominated by the latest escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. Tusk, who has been Poland’s Prime Minister since 2007, is scheduled to succeed the incumbent Herman Van Rompuy on December 1. He will in future organise and chair the EU summits and will seek compromises among the member nations. In spite of his long experience as a head of government, many in the EU found Tusk, 57, unsuitable for the post of the president of the European Council. He was backed by German chancellor Angela Merkel and other conservative leaders in the EU.
K Mammen Mathew