PM stresses Greek support for EU treaty

Aligns Greece with Europhile states

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis (l) speaks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Brussels yesterday at the start of an EU summit where leaders aim to draft a blueprint for how to govern the expanded bloc. On the right, Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis is pictured with her German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

As European leaders convened in Brussels yesterday to agree on a road map for a new treaty, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis stressed Greece’s support for an institutionally and politically stronger EU despite misgivings by some member states, including Britain.

“Even if no agreement is reached, we are ready to advance along with those countries who want more Europe,” Karamanlis said, referring to the 18 member states who ratified a proposed European constitution in 2004.

Speaking shortly before the launch of the summit, Karamanlis echoed the stance taken by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country holds the EU’s rotating presidency, stressing the need for compromise from all sides. “Who said the 18 of us who ratified the (2004) constitution were entirely satisfied with the text we finalized?” Karamanlis remarked.

France and the Netherlands, whose citizens rejected the prospect of a European constitution, should be appeased with “some small changes which should not change the essence (of the treaty),” the PM added.

Speaking from Brussels late yesterday during a break in negotiations, Deputy Foreign Minister Yiannis Valinakis told Skai Television, “Most member states appear to be in agreement.”

However, tensions were reportedly high at the summit, scheduled to end today but expected to drag into the weekend. Outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he expected talks to be “very tough” and stressed that Britain would not cede national control in key areas including foreign policy and policing. Britain, Poland, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands have threatened to block parts of the pact, such as a proposed voting system.

The proposed “reform treaty” avoids mention of a EU anthem or flag and drops the controversial term “constitution” in an attempt to assuage Euroskeptics.