Page 8 - aruba-today-20190701

A8 WORLD NEWS
Monday 1 July 2019

EU leaders caught in bind weighing candidates for top jobs

By LORNE COOK date or another possibly
MIKE CORDER has the best chance and it
BRUSSELS (AP) — European keeps shifting," he added.
Union leaders struggled French President Emman-
Sunday to narrow down a uel Macron called for a
list of candidates for key "spirit of compromise and
posts at the helm of the above all ambition" as the
28-nation bloc amid deep leaders look to name what
divisions over how to best he described as "the new
balance political, geo- Team Europe."
graphic and gender con- "There should be two men
siderations. and two women" candi-
Some five hours after lead- dates for four of the five
ers began arriving at EU posts up for grabs in com-
headquarters in Brussels, ing weeks, he said.
the full summit still had not Macron, like Rutte, de-
gotten underway. Leaders clined to say who he was
met in pairs or huddled in backing.
groups, looking for ways to The discussions about who
break an impasse in the se- should take over at the EU's
lection process. helm for the next five years
The summit was the third and beyond could go well
in just over a month aimed Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, center, speaks with the media as he arrives for an EU summit in into the night, if not through
at nailing down the ap- Brussels, Sunday, June 30, 2019. it, warned Tusk, who was
pointments to the EU's top Associated Press chairing the meeting.
jobs. They include picking He wants nominations to be
a replacement for Jean- Council. and the chief of the Euro- October. Asked about like- wrapped up soon, seeking
Claude Juncker as presi- Some leaders also dis- pean Central Bank, on the ly candidates for Juncker's to prevent further erosion
dent of the EU's powerful cussed the roster of up- sidelines of the Group of 20 job at the European Com- of public confidence in the
executive arm, the Euro- coming vacancies, which summit in Japan that con- mission, Dutch Prime Minis- EU amid Brexit uncertainty
pean Commission, and for will include the EU's top cluded Saturday. ter Mark Rutte said Sunday, and intra-bloc divisions
Donald Tusk as head of the diplomat, the president of Tusk and Juncker's man- "That's a moving picture." over managing migration.
agenda-setting European the European Parliament dates expire at the end of "You think that one candi- The task will not be easy.q

Turkey says 6 nationals held in Libya, vows to respond

Associated Press titude or attacks." LNA controls much of east-
ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey said His comments came after ern and southern Libya. In
Sunday that six of its nation- a spokesman for Hifter's April it launched an offen-
als were being held by a self-styled Libyan National sive against Tripoli, where a
Libyan force and vowed to Army called Turkish assets weak, U.N.-aligned govern-
respond to any attacks on in Libya "legitimate targets," ment is based.
its vessels or interests. accusing Turkey of helping Authorities in areas under
The Turkish Foreign Ministry rival militias allied with the Hifter's control asked Turk-
said in a statement it would U.N.-supported govern- ish nationals to leave the
consider Field Marshal ment. Hifter's forces have country.
Khalifa Hifter's "illegal mili- received aid from Egypt, Libya's parliament, which
tia forces" to be "legitimate the United Arab Emirates, is based in the east and
targets" if the Turks are not Russia and France. allied with Hifter's forces,
released. Akar said Turkey was in Libya barred all ministries, state
In this Wednesday, June 26, 2019 file photo, Turkish Defense Earlier, Turkish Defense Min- to support "regional peace institutions and banks from
Minister Hulusi Akar, center left, arrives to NATO headquarters ister Hulusi Akar said there and stability." His comments dealing with Turkish com-
in Brussels. would be "heavy" conse- were carried by the official panies and ordered a ban
Associated Press quences to any "hostile at- Anadolu news agency.The on Turkish exports.q