Costa, the 63-year-old former Portuguese prime minister, landed the job of president of the European Council following this summer’s European election thanks to his reputation for forging compromises away from the spotlight. That implied competence contrasts sharply with the failure of Costa’s predecessor, Charles Michel, to win respect from leaders who complained he didn’t even prepare meetings properly.
But while Costa chairs summits and looks to broker deals among leaders who may have incompatible priorities, he can only advance the EU’s agenda so far without the support of powerful national champions.
That’s why the faltering Franco-German dynamo is a problem. Paris is in political crisis, leaving President Emmanuel Macron weakened on his visits to Brussels. Berlin, too, is distracted by an upcoming early election — and given that Germany is Europe’s largest economy and still largely its paymaster, the bloc can’t decide anything money-related until a new government is in the saddle.
Meanwhile, Hungary’s Russia-friendly Prime Minister Viktor Orbán remains an obstacle to most decisions in support of Kyiv.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will discuss the state of Russia’s war on his country with European leaders, and is likely to plead yet again for more military and financial support.
“The situation in Ukraine will be at the forefront of our discussions,” Costa said in his letter to European leaders ahead of the summit.