Brussels, 16/10/2003 (Agence Europe) - According to recently established custom, the European Council in Brussels on 16 and 17 October was preceded, on Wednesday, by an interinstitutional summit between European Council President Silvio Berlusconi, European Parliament President Pat Cox and European Commission President Romano Prodi. During this meeting, the Italian Prime Minister suggested holding a brief additional summit lasting half a day in order to prepare the IGC meeting of foreign ministers on 28 and 29 November in Rome. According to Italian Presidency sources, the presidents of the Parliament and Commission welcomed this idea.
Romano Prodi, moreover, sketched out the Commission priorities for the summit in his letter to Silvio Berlusconi. On the subject of the IGC, he mainly said: "we encourage the Presidency to present compromise proposals as soon as possible". The letter also speaks of the Commission's expectations on economic growth and immigration as presented by President Prodi during his press conference on Wednesday (see yesterday's EUROPE, p.5).