SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: The European Union's new diplomatic service is still months from completion. But already, Germany is worried that the bloc's new foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, is handing over too many top slots to Britons.
At least the European Union's new diplomatic service has a name: The European External Action Service. Beyond that, however, just what the service might look like remains a matter of conjecture. There is no clear leadership framework, nor is there a budget. Nevertheless, the service has become the subject of intense debate in capital cities throughout the 27-member bloc.
Diplomats from Germany and France are displeased with the personnel preferences being shown by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, according to an article in the Guardian. Citing anonymous sources, the paper says there is concern that four of the 12 positions in her Brussels office have been given to Britons and that several important jobs in the new EU diplomatic service have gone to UK diplomats.
Ashton has occupied her new position, created when the Lisbon Treaty entered into force last December, for three months. More time will pass before she submits her official proposal for how the EU's new foreign policy apparatus should look. Ultimately, it will likely include some 130 European Union ambassadors and 7,000 diplomats -- and discussions on how those positions might be divvied up are underway among Europe's 27 foreign ministers. Already, though, the first governments are sounding the alarm. >>> Matthias Gebauer and Carsten Volkery | Tuesday, March 02, 2010
