Barroso then and now

17/06/09 20:01 CET

europa

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The President of the European Union’s executive body is expected to remain in the job. Though critics say he has placed free markets ahead of Europe’s social needs, Jose Manuel Durao Barroso calls himself a reformist.

He was a Maoist party member after the 1974 revolution in his native Portugal which did away with the dictatorship. His international academic qualifications include law and economic and social sciences. In 1980, Barroso joined what was to become the Social Democratic Party — conservative. He would hold several posts in government, rising to minister of foreign affairs, and then prime minister. He backed the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, hosting a Bush-Blair Atlantic alliance summit in the Azores. Blair supported his candidature to become President of the Commission in 2004, when better-known figures dropped out of the race. He steered EU policy priorities to mixed reviews. Major enlargement happened on his watch, yet it was marred by the constitution failure. Ultimately, his supporters credit Barroso for his diplomatic success and for nudging governments away from unbridled protectionism as Europe was caught up in the global recession.More about: EU Commission, EU Summit, José Manuel Barroso

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Mali: Rebel groups agree to creation of Islamic state

Two Rebel groups have agreed to merge and create an independent Islamic state in Northern Mali. After seizing Azawad – an area larger than France – two months ago, the groups had initially disagreed, with the secular Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA)…