Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy is one favourite for EU presidency. Photo: Luc Van Braekel/Wikipedia

European Union leaders will gather in Brussels today to select their first full-time president and foreign affairs high representative, the BBC reports.

The heads of the 27 EU member nations are divided over which candidates to choose, and after-dinner negotiations are expected to last into the night.

Former UK prime minister Tony Blair had been an early favourite for president, but France and Germany look set to back a less prominent figure, the Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy.

The EU leaders are widely expected to strive for a balance in the two posts, with one likely to be filled by a candidate from one of the bigger EU states, the other from a smaller country.

Similarly, the presidency is expected to go to a centre-right politician and the post of foreign affairs chief to the centre-left.

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