European leaders have failed to agree on a package of senior nominations on the team that will guide the EU for the next five years. Divisions were still too deep for compromise on Friday. The heads of government are due back in Brussels on June 30th to try again. Mariam Zaidi has more.

A special EU summit convened to decide who gets the nod for an EU top job. Up for grabs - the Presidencies of the European Council, Commission, European Central Bank and the EU Foreign Affairs chief.

LEO VARADKAR IRISH PRIME MINISTER "But the sense I have is that we won't be in a position to elect a new commission president or a new council president today. And the likelihood is that we have to have another summit by the end of June or early July. That's not at all unusual in the European political process. Sometimes it takes a few rounds. It's quicker to elect a pope very often than it is to fill these particular positions."

Talks went familiarly into the wee hours of the morning. And when they finally emerged for a 7 minutes press conference after 2 am on Friday, all they said was that they didn't agree. But did agree that the pack of candidates must be diverse.  

But three people not ticking all the boxes for the EU Commission Presidency were the three EU parliament lead candidates from the European People's Party, Socialists and Liberals. Not only could they not even muster the support of a qualified majority of EU leaders, the lead candidate system itself seemed dead as a dodo.

EMMANUEL MACRON FRENCH PRESIDENT "The treaties are clear on that topic. It's the Council that proposes candidates by discussion and taking account of political landscape of parliament and then the EP votes. We have never said that there are candidates imposed by the European elections."

With tense discussions on potential successors, the halls of the EU Council were awash with rumours of names being added to an ever growing list. But one person not amused by her name thrown into the ring- the Queen of Europe herself. Cue a ticking off.

ANGELA MERKEL GERMAN CHANCELLOR "I still say no. And allow me to add this because this is a question that keeps coming up. I am a little bit sad that my word and what I have said repeatedly is not respected."

But perhaps the biggest own goal of them all at the summit failure to commit to making the continent climate neutral by 2050. The bloc now risks showing up at a United Nations climate summit in New York in September without a common position, and seriously denting their climate action credentials.

MARIAM ZAIDI BRUSSELS "This summit produced few results especially on EU top jobs. But to use the words of Dutch PM Mark Rutte this was 'only a half time score' because EU leaders will reconvene on June 30th for yet another summit. MZA, CGTN, BRUSSELS."