Dark Cardinal Selmayr headed for the Vatican

Brussels is keeping the “Monster of the Berlaymont” at bay — and far away from the Berlaymont.

Martin Selmayr, notorious for an abrasive leadership style that led to the above nickname, will be exiled to Rome as EU ambassador to the Vatican, the Order of Malta, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, according to four EU officials.

Asked for comment, a senior EU official with knowledge of the process said that while the decision had not yet been greenlit by the College of Commissioners, Selmayr was indeed “in the shortlist” for Rome.

Selmayr did not respond to a request for comment.

Once considered the high priest of EU politics in Brussels, Selmayr received a fast-track promotion in 2018, from then-Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s chief of staff to secretary-general of the European Commission.

It was seen as a Machiavellian power move to concentrate Selmayr’s power, and the European Ombudsman said the appointment “did not follow the Commission’s own rules,” while the European Parliament later called for his resignation.

In 2019, Selmayr avoided excommunication by resigning from his post when Commission President Ursula von der Leyen secured her nomination, a concession to critics pointing to too many German officials in the Commission’s top jobs.  He was sent to Vienna as EU ambassador to Austria.

In Vienna, Selmayr made a name for himself by preaching to Austrians about their dependency on Russian gas and accusing the country of paying “blood money” to Moscow. It was a miraculous transformation from his previous role in which he helped cement Europe’s reliance on Russian gas with a push for the EU to greenlight the NordStream 2 pipeline.

A spokesman for the EU executive characterized the “blood money” remarks as “not only unnecessary, but also inappropriate.”

In December, POLITICO reported that Selmayr was interviewed to become the next EU ambassador to Switzerland.

Now there’s White Smoke for Selmayr to continue his career in the capital of shadowy conclaves and divine truths.