Bulgaria PM Joins First Post-Lisbon European Council Summit

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown (R) and French President Nicolas Sarkozy (L) will try on Thursday to end tension over the appointment of a Frenchman to oversee a shake-up of European banking. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov will take part n the European Council in Brussels on December 10 and 11, which is the first summit of the EU leaders after the Lisbon treaty came into force.

At their two-day summit, EU leaders will approve the creation of three European watchdogs to police banks and financial services, following an agreement on the new bodies by the bloc's finance ministers last week.

They will also discuss climate change, with some countries seeking agreement on a figure for financing to help developing countries tackle global warming in the three years before any deal agreed at international talks in Copenhagen takes effect.

EU leaders meeting in Brussels are under pressure to give the UN climate talks in Copenhagen a firm signal of their commitment to tackling global warming.

The EU sees itself as a world leader in this area, having pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020, compared with 1990 levels.

A higher target of 30% has been suggested - but only if similar pledges are made by other industrialised powers.

Sweden, chairing its last EU summit, has dismissed speculation that the EU could offer 30% as an incentive to get a really ambitious global deal at Copenhagen.

In the current turbulent economic conditions the 30% figure is widely seen as over-optimistic.

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