Europeans to quiz Wolfowitz on World Bank vision

European ministers will quiz US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on his vision for development and aid on Wednesday, but there are no plans for a last-minute stand against his nomination to head the World Bank. Some European governments have quiet misgivings about the prospect of Wolfowitz, an architect of the US-led war in Iraq, leading an institution whose main mission is fighting poverty.
But none has spoken out openly against Washington's nominee, and EU diplomats said they are not expected to oppose him when the bank's board meets on Thursday.
Diplomats said Wolfowitz would meet in Brussels with Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, current president of the European Union, and ministers of either finance or in most cases development from the 25-nation bloc.
The one attendee who has uttered public scepticism about the nomination is German Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul, who said enthusiasm in Europe was not exactly overflowing.
Her spokesman declined to say if she had changed her view but Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said last week Berlin would not oppose Wolfowitz and did not expect Europe to block him.
The arrangements have been shrouded in unusual secrecy. No news conference or statement is planned after the informal morning meeting, an EU official said.
The French daily Le Monde said Paris wanted to place a Frenchman in a senior position at the World Bank alongside Wolfowitz, just as the European managing director of the International Monetary Fund had a US deputy.
But an EU official said this was not an attempt to sideline China's Shengman Zhang, the managing director who is effectively number two at the bank. There were several senior positions available at the bank, he said.
EU Development Commissioner Louis Michel, who originally invited Wolfowitz to Brussels, will miss Wednesday's meeting because he is visiting Caribbean partners of the EU.
Diplomats said it would have been hard for the Europeans to oppose President George W. Bush's choice at a time when they are trying to rebuild strained transatlantic relations, and looking for US support for former EU trade commissioner Pascal Lamy to head the World Trade Organisation.