International Politics

Draghi meets European industry leaders. Rumours: possible candidate for EU Council President

The meeting is part of the preparatory work for the report on European competitiveness, for which Draghi is entrusted by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Meanwhile, the Financial Times points to Draghi as a possible candidate for EU Council president after the early resignation of Charles Michel

9 January 2024

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Mario Draghi upon his arrival at Chigi Palace for the handover between outgoing and incoming Prime Minister, with new Italian Premier, Giorgia Meloni (not pictured), Rome, Italy, 23 October 2022. ANSA/FABIO CIMAGLIA

3' min read

Key points

Ftf: Draghi possible candidate for EU Council
Fears for the Viktor Orbán option
The balance in the field

3' min read

A closed-door meeting early Wednesday afternoon in Milan between former prime minister and former ECB president Mario Draghi and the European round table (Ert) for Industry, a Brussels-based forum that brings together CEOs and presidents of some 60 of Europe's largest industrial and technology companies 'who share the values of freedom, tolerance, equality and openness', as the website states.

The meeting will be held in the Milan headquarters of the Bank of Italy and is part of the preparatory work of the Report on Competitiveness, the preparation of which Draghi has been commissioned by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen . Maximum confidentiality on the list of participants.

In the Ert - which is joined by invitation on a personal, not corporate, basis - appear for Italy Rodolfo De Benedetti of Cir, Claudio Descalzi of Eni, Gianfelice Rocca of Techint, but it is not known whether they will actually attend the meeting.

The delegation of European industry leaders - The European Round Table for Industry (Ert) - that will meet Mario Draghi ahead of the former Italian prime minister's report on EU competitiveness will include Ert chairman and president of the Vodafone Group, Jean-Francois van Boxmeer, the executive director of Syensqo Ilham Kadri , Titan chairman Dimitri Papalexopoulos, Siemens president Jim Hagemann Snabe, Ab Investors chairman Jacob Wallemberg. The meeting will focus on the priority of boosting European competitiveness in the long term. In fact, last September Draghi was asked by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to draw up a report on this very dossier.

Ft: Draghi possible candidate for EU Council

Meanwhile, the announcement of Charles Michel's candidature for the European elections and his early resignation as EU Council president has kick-started negotiations on top positions in Brussels, where former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi is indicated by some as one of the main contenders.

The 76-year-old former European Central Bank president credited with saving the single currency is seen as a possible option to succeed the former Belgian premier, according to European officials and diplomats cited by the Financial Times. Other possible candidates for the role now held by Michel are also likely to emerge, and it is difficult to predict the sequence of negotiations and subsequent agreements on EU top posts, which are also linked to the outcome of the June elections, the sources quoted by the newspaper point out.

On the other hand, they continue, sources close to Draghi imply that the former prime minister is not working to get himself appointed to any leadership position in Brussels. But the inferences about him, the newspaper continues, based on the history, experience and stature of one of the most important figures in the EU, underline the desire in many capitals to arrive at the choice of a successor to Michel well before his likely departure in mid-July.

Fears for the Viktor Orbán option

The urgency is partly motivated by EU rules that would allow the Eurosceptic Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán to take office if no candidate is chosen before the resignation of the President of the European Council: Hungary will hold the six-month rotating presidency of the EU as of 1 July. The newly elected members of the European Parliament will take office by mid-July, the latest date after which Michel could not remain president.

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The EU leaders also have the option of installing an interim candidate to exclude Orbán. Draghi, however, is unlikely to accept this role on an interim basis, comments an official quoted by the Financial Times. Other names considered possible for the post include the current Spanish prime ministers Pedro Sánchez and Danish Mette Frederiksen. Unlike Draghi, both leaders are affiliated with major European political parties, an important factor in EU appointments.

Mario Draghi, un anno fa la fine del suo governo. Storia per immagini
Photogallery13 foto

The balance on the field

Draghi's non-party affiliation 'will hinder him', according to a diplomat quoted by the Financial Times. Central and Eastern European member states have also long complained that top posts are too often given to citizens of Western European countries. Draghi's outspoken views on policies including fiscal integration could eventually irritate countries like Germany that traditionally have a different view, according to an EU official briefed on the ongoing 'discussions'.