Moderate at helm in drastic times

As president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, will need to use all his negotiating skills to pull together an increasingly fractious eurozone at a time when the very future of the euro is threatened, writes Kyran Fitzgerald.

THOSE of acertain age will recall a young Belgian of modest proportions by the name of Tintin.

The tousled-haired hero performed heroic acts, foiling exotic villains. Tintin was Belgian, as was his creator, Herge.