BRUSSELS, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The European Union's top jobs remained in doubt on Tuesday, only two days ahead of a special summit designed to announce the appointments.

    Nearly a hundred ministers of foreign and EU affairs from 27 EU member states failed at a meeting on Monday to decide on the appointments of a permanent EU president, a foreign affairs representative and secretary general of the EU Council.

    The situation could drag out the summit, which is planned to last a few hours on Thursday over a working dinner, to days, according to the current Swedish EU presidency.

    "There are still some days to go," Swedish Minister for EU affairs Cecilia Malmstrom said after the Monday meeting. "I wouldn't say it's a complete mess, but there's no agreement still."

    "If the situation should appear that there is no decision on Thursday, it is up to the presidency to evaluate the situation," Malmstrom said in reply to a question on whether the summit could be extended until Friday afternoon.

    "There's Friday and there's Saturday and Sunday. Or (we could) take a break and reconvene. But the aim is to reach a conclusion on Thursday night," she added.

    Swedish Prime Minister Frederik Reinfeldt on Tuesday will continue his effort for a consensus on the issue by phoning other EU leaders for consultation.

    The three top posts are created by the Lisbon Treaty, aimed at streamlining EU institutions and boosting the competitiveness of the bloc.

    The appointments will be formalized by member states' ambassadors to the EU on Dec. 1 when the treaty is expected to go into force.

    Several candidates are eyeing the post of the permanent president, who will preside over all the EU summits and represent its 27 member states on the international stage.

    Former British prime minister Tony Blair has been strongly backed by his country, though many are opposed to his appointment, citing his lack of solidarity with the EU.

    Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy is said to have received the support of EU heavyweights Germany and France, but some others said he lacked experience to lead the bloc.

    Estonian President Toomas Ilves and former Latvian head of state Vaira Vika-Freiberga are also bidding for the job.

    Candidates for the future top foreign policy post include British foreign secretary David Miliband, who insists he is not available, former Italian prime minister Massimo D'Alema, Greek education minister Anna Diamantopoulou and Ilves.

    The future EU top diplomat will face a grilling in the European Parliament along with other EU commissioners in early January.

    So far, there is only one candidate for the post of secretary general, who will be in charge of the EU Council, the Brussels-based institution preparing the day-to-day meetings of EU ministers and diplomats.

    Reports say the current deputy secretary general of the Council, Pierre de Boissieu of France, will grab the job when the other two posts are decided.

    Malmstrom said there were very few women candidates discussed for the posts in spite of appeals from some female commissioners.

    Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt insisted on Monday that an issue of "competence that should not be entirely forgotten" aside from the political, geographical and gender balance.

    Terming it a "defining period for Europe in the world", Bildt warned that any delays on the appointments of the posts and the other reforms envisaged by the Lisbon Treaty would hurt the reputation of the EU.