Brussels, 13/01/2006 (Agence Europe) - French interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy suggested on Thursday reducing the draft Constitution to a shorter version on the first part of the treaty looking at how the EU is organised. At an appropriate time, Sarkozy says this could be ratified by the French National Assembly (parliament) without holding a new referendum. He wants a fact-finding mission to tour European capitals to consult governments, parliaments, political parties and representatives of civil society and draw up a brief, consensual text (see other article). Until the EU has new institutions, it should not consider enlarging beyond Bulgaria and Romania in 2007 or 2008, added Sarkozy (see EUROPE 9108), with 'strategic partner' status being granted to neighbouring countries that won't be joining the EU. Sarkozy, who may stand in the French presidential elections in 2007, said that his wish-list for 2006 included big EU countries like France, Germany, the UK, Spain, Italy and Poland (which account for 75% of the EU population) to act as a genuine engine for the European Union, facing up to their responsibilities (which they are currently shirking to an extent). He said the EU25 needed a six cylinder engine rather than a two-cylinder engine (meaning France and Germany). Small countries should be able to join all the initiatives taken by the big countries but should not be able to stop the big ones from acting, he said. His idea is not to create a presidium of big countries but at the same time, he said, it was important to stop acting as if small countries really had as much weight as big ones. Sarkozy said it was a mistake to see a European country with half a million inhabitants as having the same impact on the economy as a country with 82 million inhabitants. If we keep on saying that all are equal, we will end up with a rubbish system, he said, adding that it was not an insult to Estonia to say that it is not quite as important as Germany. Sarkozy rejects the idea of Member States being equal when it comes to the European Commission, and also rejects the idea foreseen in the Nice Treaty of a smaller College of Commissioners once the EU has 27 Member States with a fair rotation among countries which could lead to a Commission with three Baltic States represented on it but not France or Germany.