THE EU: Less than a week after EU talks on a new constitution collapsed, the French Foreign Minister, Mr Dominique de Villepin, urged Europe to move beyond the failure and get down to work again in the new year.
"Without giving into disenchantment, Europeans must get back to work," he wrote in an article published in the Italian La Stampa and the French Le Monde.
"There is an increasingly prevalent feeling that Europe is moving forward without a precise path and enlarging indefinitely, incapable of finishing a preliminary and vital work of consolidation," he said.
A European Union summit on the landmark constitution for the EU as it expands from 15 to 25 members next year collapsed last weekend due to a dispute over member-states' voting rights that pitted France and Germany against Spain and Poland.
The Italian Foreign Minister, Mr Franco Frattini, told the French Les Échos that his country, which presides over EU affairs until the end of the month, could still submit a new proposal on the constitution before surrendering the EU Presidency.
"I don't exclude, as outgoing president, taking an initiative between now and January," Mr Frattini was quoted as saying, although he did not elaborate.
"It will be very difficult to reach agreement by the spring, but we can still set ourselves an objective of reaching a definitive solution within 12 months. Otherwise, we will have to give up on it," he said.
Ireland takes over the rotating EU Presidency from Italy on January 1st, but many EU leaders want a cooling off period before reopening the dossier.
"Dublin authorities would probably want to give some time for reflection, which I think seems wise. The March deadline of the next European Council would probably be the occasion for EU politicians to take stock of the situation," Mr de Villepin said.
"Even if the Brussels summit doesn't signal the end of the road, it is nonetheless a solemn warning for all of us."
France and Germany, blocked in their attempt to wrest voting power from Spain and Poland, threatened last weekend to lead "pioneer groups" of like-minded countries towards closer integration, raising the prospect of a two-speed Europe. - (Reuters)