FRANCE: President Jacques Chirac yesterday mocked opponents of the European constitutional treaty who claimed the text could be renegotiated if France voted No in a referendum nine days from today, writes Lara Marlowe in Paris
"Obviously there will be no renegotiation," Mr Chirac said at a press conference with the German chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, and Polish president Aleksander Kwasniewski in the eastern French city of Nancy.
"And our partners would be justified in saying: 'On what basis do you expect us to negotiate? The proposals of the National Front? Or those of the French Communist Party? Or a cocktail of the two?'" Chancellor Schröder supported Mr Chirac, asking the French "not to leave other Europeans in the lurch".
The three leaders were in Nancy for a summit of the "Weimar Triangle", named after the city where the first trilateral French-German-Polish meeting took place in 1991. The idea was to use Franco-German reconciliation as a model for improving German-Polish ties.
In a speech inaugurating the restoration of the 250-year-old Place Stanislas, Mr Chirac made a short but impassioned plea for the treaty. He said he wanted to remind the French "that what is at stake is essential; it is the future of our country and that of our children, and France must have the ambition of remaining one of the engines of European construction".
The French will make a historic choice on May 29th, the president continued. "Let us not give in to the temptation to retreat. Let us choose the influence of France. Let us hold high French interests. Let us choose a just and powerful Europe."
The three leaders discussed upcoming negotiations for the 2007-2013 European budget, which promise to be difficult. Mr Chirac announced they had agreed on the need for "fairer financing of the European budget" involving "budget discipline" and reconsideration of "the British cheque".
The story of the cheque began at the November 1979 Dublin summit, when Margaret Thatcher told a press conference, "I want my money back", arguing that Britain contributed much more to the European budget than it received. A rebate arrangement was reached in 1984. Mr Chirac has repeatedly created friction with Tony Blair's government by suggesting this be reviewed. This week, Holland and Italy complained about their contributions to the EU budget.
Opponents of the treaty claim the EU's inability to stop cheap Chinese textiles flooding the European market shows the constitution will weaken Europe's economy. Advocates say France alone could not confront China over the issue, as Peter Mandelson, the commissioner for trade, did this week.
Mr Chirac said EU threats to restrict imports of T-shirts and flax yarn from China were "significant but not sufficient". European imports of these items increased 187 per cent and 56 per cent in the first four months of this year, after quotas were dropped. The jobs of thousands of European workers were at stake. "We cannot accept this without doing anything," Mr Chirac said.