The anniversary falls on 25 March. The leaders’ summit is meant to fall somewhere else on the calendar and, if Belgium’s government has its way, somewhere else on the map: Rome rather than Brussels.
On Thursday, 15 October 2026, an unnamed person close to the matter told the Belga news agency that Belgium has agreed to let the March 2027 gathering of EU leaders shift to the Italian capital. The occasion is the 70th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome. Belgian government sources confirmed the country had approved the request, Anadolu Agency reported.
Who asked, and when
The accounts differ slightly on where the idea started. According to Anadolu and News.az, European Council President Antonio Costa put the proposal to Belgium’s premier, Bart De Wever, while touring European capitals earlier this autumn. Rapporteur, the Brussels outlet formerly known as EurActiv, reported that it followed an ask from Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister, first reported by the Italian newspaper La Stampa. Officials told Rapporteur that Costa raised it informally with De Wever and asked whether Belgium would make an exception. De Wever did not oppose it.
Timing matters to Meloni. Italy’s next election has not been scheduled, but Rapporteur said reports suggest it could come as early as April or May. A summit in Rome would put EU leaders on her home ground shortly before voters go to the polls.
An exception to the rules
Moving the meeting is not a formality. Under European Council rules, each six-month period must include two formal leaders’ summits, and both are held in Brussels. The council president may convene one elsewhere only in exceptional circumstances, and only if every member state agrees. That gives each of the 27 countries a veto.
The date is also not settled across the reports. Anadolu said the summit is expected on 25 March 2027, which would be precisely 70 years to the day after the signing. Rapporteur wrote that the meeting is currently scheduled for 18 March and should keep that date. Whichever day is chosen, it would count as a full European Council meeting and end with the usual conclusions.
What was signed in 1957
Six countries signed two treaties in Rome on 25 March 1957: France, Italy, West Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. One created the European Economic Community and a common market among the six. The other set up Euratom, the European Atomic Energy Community. Those agreements were the first steps in the economic cooperation that grew into today’s Union.
Sources
- Belgium agrees to move EU summit to Rome for Treaty of Rome anniversary (Anadolu)
- Why the EU plans to move its March 2027 summit to Rome (News.az)
- Meloni Eyes Rome For EU Summit As Elections Loom (Eurasia Review / Rapporteur)
