Merkel eyes IMF's Lagarde for EU Commission President | EurActiv
They said Merkel, Europe's most powerful political leader, made the
inquiry in a private conversation with French President François
Hollande after European Parliament elections characterised by widespread
anti-EU protest votes.
EurActiv has reported about such a "political momentum" before the EU elections took place [read more].
"Merkel raised it privately with Hollande, who did not take a final
position but said he did not think it would be a good idea for Europe to
lose the IMF post," one source said. In Berlin, German government
spokesman Steffen Seibert said the Reuters report was wrong. Merkel had
reaffirmed on Monday her support for former Luxembourg Prime Minister
Jean-Claude Juncker, who led the center-right European People's Party
slate in the parliamentary elections, he said. The center-right topped
the poll but fell well short of an overall majority.
Emerging nations have said they want to break a long-standing
arrangement under which a European gets the top IMF job and an American
heads the World Bank.
German
Chancellor Angela Merkel has asked France whether it would be willing
to put forward International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde as
president of the European Commission, two French sources briefed on the
exchanges said.
