04/08/2003 (Agence Europe) - The acting President of the General Affairs and External Relations Council, Franco Frattini, noted in an interview in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera on 2 August that the Italian Presidency would be throwing its weight behind the outcome of the European Convention at the Intergovernmental Conference (due to start in Rome on 4 October). He said it would give Europeans a serious signal of scepticism and lack of confidence if they were invited to vote in the European elections in June 2004 without a Constitution. The Italian foreign minister said he felt broad political agreement could be expected by the end of the year. In an interview with the BBC, the Irish European Affairs Minister, Dirk Roche, said it could not be ruled out that the ICG would not end until the Irish Presidency begins in January 2004. Another Italian priority areas is the Middle East. Frattini said the EU was asking its US friends to reassess the EU's role in monitoring the peace process. He confirmed that the Palestinian prime minister, Abou Mazen, will be visiting Rome on 25 August. Asked about the indictment of Silvio Berlusconi in the latest issue of The Economist, Frattini said it was old material that was already known about, and demonstrated a strategy of wanting to create a negative image of the Italian prime minister. Berlusconi's lawyers would be considering “initiatives” to be taken, said Frattini, saying they wanted to be judged by the facts and the outcome of the Italian Presidency.