Snow delays summit

Gathering of EU leaders will start at mid-day, with Greece’s financial crisis the centre of attention.

A summit of EU leaders set to discuss how to rescue the Greek economy and shore up the market’s confidence in the eurozone had to be delayed this morning because snow has complicated travel to Brussels.

The summit will now start at 12:00.

EU leaders had been due to discuss this morning a ten-year plan to promote economic growth (known as Europe 2020) that is currently being prepared by the European Commission.

Diplomats said that there were no plans at this stage to scale down the range of issues to be addressed at the summit, and that the economic plan will still be the first item on the agenda. This will be followed by a discussion over lunch on the current economic situation and how to help Greece. In the afternoon leaders will discuss the Haiti earthquake and climate change.

The summit is a focal point of attention for the global financial markets, which want information on the kinds of support that governments are prepared to offer Greece to help the country repair its battered public finances. Widespread concern on the markets about the state of the Greek economy has in recent weeks promoted sharp spikes in the interest charged on Greek bonds, as well as on bonds issued by Spain and Portugal, whose economies are also perceived to be vulnerable. There has also been a sharp drop in the value of the euro. Markets have, however, rebounded, over the last 36 hours in the hope of positive new from today’s meeting

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Eurozone finance ministers yesterday held their first-ever teleconference to discuss financial support measures for Greece.

It is unclear at this stage how much detail leaders will be able to offer after the summit, with one possibility being that they will offer only a commitment to support Greece through its struggles. Further details would then be further thrashed out by national capitals over the coming days. Officials have confirmed that Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, and Angela Merkel, Germany’s chancellor, will make a joint statement after the summit.