Vienna, 24/03/2004 (Agence Europe) - "I think it will be possible to get the dossier [on the Constitution] moving again in Brussels tomorrow", said Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs, at the EPP-ED's workshop in Vienna. Following a meeting with her counterparts from several countries of the region on Monday, Ms Ferrera-Waldner noted the Polish Minister's favourable disposition to compromise, even it no substantial proposal had been made. "The French have a positive attitude", she said. However, Poland's ambassador to Austria, Irena Ewa Lipowicz took her country's traditional line, saying that a system based on "50%-60%" of votes in Council (of States and population) would lead to a "Union of citizens, but not of States". Poland does not understand why "we can't wait for a while to see how Nice works out", she reiterated. During the debate, the MEP Concepcion Ferrer expressed concern at the Polish position (as I was for my own country, she admitted), because this is a "system for blocking decisions, and not a system for moving forward". This position was supported by Pierre Lequiller, President of the delegation for the EU to the French Assemblée Nationale and former Convention member, who called for an agreement on the Constitution before the European elections.
Elmar Brok hopes extraordinary Council will adopt Constitution on 9 May
In Vienna, Elmar Brok (one of the EP's representatives to the IGC, with Klaus Hänsch), said that "Ireland will go down in history if it bravely takes charge" of the movement towards the European Constitution. The CDU MEP feels that the Summit on Thursday and Friday will decide to convene an extraordinary European Council, to approve the Constitution on 9 May, the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration (of 1950). He added: "if, on 1 May, televisions broadcast images of the accession of ten new Member States and of the signing of the Constitution on 9 May, we will have two major European themes for the electoral campaign" for the European elections in June He believes that all Member States should now be able to accept double majority in the Council, with a possible revision clause. "We must find a face-saving solution", he said.