France, Germany and Britain sought to allay fears that their leaders' summit today was a step towards forming a "Big Three" alliance to dominate the European Union.
French President Jacques Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and British Prime Minister Tony Blair
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair are discussing ways of improving competitiveness in Europe, with an agenda covering labour markets, social policy and innovation.
But the symbolism of the 4 p.m. (3 p.m. Irish time) meeting, which brings the EU's three most powerful leaders together for the third time in six months, has created unease elsewhere in the Union and sparked loud objections from Italy in particular.
British Foreign Minister Jack Straw said he had called his Italian, Spanish and Polish counterparts to reassure them about the purpose of the summit after a series of critical comments from countries left out.
"More Europe - and a more united Europe - is what is needed, not a multitrack Europe moving along different paths," Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini wrote in a column in the Financial Times today.
"The leaders meeting at a trilateral summit between France, Germany and Britain in Berlin today should recognise that."
The comments, with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi saying yesterday the "Big Three" risked creating a "big mess", underlined concerns in medium-sized EU states that they will be relegated to a second division as the 15-state bloc expands to include 10 new mainly eastern members on May 1st.
"I understand his concerns but by the end (of our talk, Frattini) was reassured about the purpose of the meeting," Mr Straw told reporters.
German rejected criticism of the summit, saying there was nothing untoward about the meeting and it was not a clique.
"Three leaders, whose economies have comparable structures in part and who have a particular interest in the reform process, are meeting here, so criticism is unjustified," German government spokesman Mr Bela Anda said.
Officials involved with the summit say the main focus will be on the EU's "Lisbon agenda" drawn up in 2000, a long-term programme to create jobs, stimulate economic growth and close the gap in competitiveness between Europe and the United States.
For the leaders attending the summit, the meeting will provide another occasion to put last year's divisions over the US-led war in Iraq behind them and will build on defence cooperation plans proposed earlier this month.
Mr Schroeder, Mr Chirac and Mr Blair, who will all be accompanied at the summit by large teams of ministers, are due to hold a joint news conference at 6.15 p.m. (5.15 p.m. Irish time).