Solana op koers om eerste Minister van Buitenlandse Zaken van de EU te worden (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU leaders will today try and pave the way for Javier Solana to become the EU's foreign minister once the Constitution is in place.

Mr Solana, who is currently the EU's high representative for foreign policy, is expected to have his position renewed by member states at an extraordinary summit today to nominate the next Commission President.

However, plans are underway to make a declaration to suggest that once the Constitution is in place - thought to be in 2007 assuming all 25 states ratify the text - Mr Solana will automatically become Europe's foreign minister.

"These arrangements are to be discussed", a diplomatic source told the EUobserver.

As foreign minister, the Spaniard will be vice-president of the European Commission, will be backed up by his own diplomatic service and will conduct the EU's foreign policy.

The new post combines Mr Solana's current position with that of the external relations commissioner position - currently held by Chris Patten. Mr Patten's position, which does not have as much diplomatic weight as Mr Solana's, has a far bigger budget.

Next Spanish commissioner

Should leaders confirm Mr Solana today as the next foreign minister, it will have implications for the next Spanish commissioner starting in November.

Currently, the Spanish commissioner is Joaquin Almunia, responsible for monetary affairs.

But as member states will only be allowed to have one commissioner each in the next commission, the Spanish commissioner will have to step down in 2007 when Mr Solana becomes vice president of the Brussels executive and EU foreign minister.

Mr Solana (61) has been the EU's High Representative for foreign policy since 1999, and this deal is thought to have been discussed with Portuguese prime minister José Manuel Durao Barroso, the person expected to be nominated as next head of the commission.

EU leaders are also expected to agree that the deputy secretary general of the Council, Pierre de Boissieu, will continue at this influential post.