Italy welcomes Costa’s proposal for a European Council in the capital, though member states must still approve the move.Rome is set to host a European Council summit in March 2027 to mark the 70th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome, with preparations in motion and a formal decision expected in Brussels in the coming weeks.  A senior EU official told news agency ANSA that the process for holding the March summit in the Italian capital is “under way”. Another EU official, speaking anonymously to Euronews, said European Council president António Costa had put forward the idea of a formal summit in Rome. EU leaders normally meet in Brussels. The president may propose another venue in exceptional circumstances, but only with the unanimous agreement of all 27 member states.Italian government sources said it would be the first European Council held outside Brussels since 2003, as set out in the Treaty of Nice. They said the meeting would bring EU leaders back to the city where the founding treaties were signed.Costa raised the proposal with Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever in September, during a tour of EU capitals. Belgium was approached first because Brussels is the usual host. According to an EU official cited by Euronews, De Wever said he would not oppose a one-off exception. ANSA reported that he also gave his approval on the sidelines of this week’s Brussels summit. Rome welcomes the plan Palazzo Chigi welcomed the proposal. Rome mayor Roberto Gualtieri said hosting the summit would be a source of pride and a choice of strong symbolic and political value. He said it would offer a chance to relaunch the European project, adding that Rome was ready to welcome the leaders. The Treaties of Rome were signed on 25 March 1957. They created the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community, laying the foundations of today’s European Union. Political backdrop According to Italian newspaper La Stampa, which first reported the news, the summit would give prime minister Giorgia Meloni a prominent international platform shortly before the next general election.   The vote is due by the end of 2027, but an early election in spring is under open discussion, with April and May cited most often as possible dates. Costa’s current term as European Council president ends on 31 May 2027. He is expected to seek a second term of two and a half years, as his predecessors did. Re-election requires the backing of a qualified majority of member states.   Photo credit: Fabrizio Maffei / Shutterstock.com