BRUSSELS - A meeting this week between the US candidate to head the World Bank, Paul Wolfowitz, and EU ministers is set to be low key but various sources agree that the European Union wants a strengthened voice in the world body.
The informal meeting due to be held here by the end of the week between Wolfowitz and European governors of the World Bank, who in general are finance ministers, is to be off-limits to the press, a source close to the current Luxembourg presidency of European Union ministerial meetings said.
One European source said that the meeting might be held on Wednesday afternoon before a vote of all administrators of the World Bank to be held in Washington on Thursday.
The current number two at the bank is Shengman Zhang of China.
At an EU summit here a week ago, European leaders signalled that they were resigned to the nomination of Wolfowitz by Washington to head the World Bank, which concentrates on long-term development projects, support and advice for developing countries.
There has been widespread criticism of the nomination because Wolfowitz, who is currently US deputy secretary for defense, was one of the main people behind the war in Iraq.
However, the Europeans could make use of the meeting with this so-called "neo-conservative" figure to obtain increased representation within the World Bank.
The newspaper the Financial Times reported on Monday that European finance ministers wanted a "counterweight" to Wolfowitz and that "France wants a strong new European deputy, mirroring the division of jobs at the International Monetary Fund".
Traditionally, Europe chooses the managing director of the IMF and the United States appoints the head of the World Bank. The informal rule has never been broken since the two institutions were set up in the wake of World War II.
The newspaper said that European finance ministers had discussed at their meeting last weekend "the need for a similar arrangement at the bank".
Germany reportedly took the view that Wolfowitz could himself appoint a European to head his team but that Britain was sceptical about any deal that excluded developing countries.
Wolfowitz has appeared receptive to this line of thinking. He told the Washington Post newspaper on Sunday that that he did not see a problem in appointing a European to an important position within the bank.
Last week Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders also suggested that one of the posts of vice president at the bank be filled by a European.
03/28/2005 12:29 GMT