Brussels, 07/09/2006 (Agence Europe) -Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker and French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy were invited to the meeting with German ambassadors in Berlin on 4 September by German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Steinmeier said the partners have great hopes in the German EU Council Presidency during the first half of 2007, saying that they hope to relaunch the debate on the Constitution. “We need that Constitution” as “without it, deeper integration is threatened”, he added, asking Mr Juncker whether he could show them the “pathway to success”.
Mr Juncker said they thought they had found that path in May 1999 under German Presidency when Joschka Fischer had brought up the idea of a European Convention. At the time it was thought that “if things were done in a different way everything would be all right (…) but things don't work like that” and the Convention was not as successful as it set out to be, he said. Since the French no-vote to the referendum on the Constitution, they have been in a crisis, he said, addressing Mr Douste-Blazy. Luxembourg's Prime Minister agrees that relaunching the debate on the Constitution should be the focus of the German Presidency (“which will be a total success”). He also notes that a great deal has happened since the last days of the last German presidency at the end of the last century. At that time, for example, there were no German soldiers, or European soldiers, present in Europe's name in regions undergoing crisis, and this is an enormous qualitative leap for German policy and diplomacy, he commented.
According to Mr Juncker, the debate on the Constitution can only move forward if they are ready for tough confrontation with those who are against it and if certain fundamental problems are tackled, with enlargement first of all. Mr Juncker said he finds it hard to imagine that a Europe with 35 or more members could work without a Constitution or without review of the whole overall construction. He says the Union's absorption capacity is not unlimited and that there should therefore be a sort of proportionality in relations with certain countries that want to become members. There should be concentric circles around the European Union with countries that cannot allow themselves to become full members. Mr Juncker defends this position while saying he is “allergic” to any idea of “pioneers” or “hard cores”. However, he went on, “in the history of mankind”, there have been pioneers who did not know where they were going, although in politics it is useful to know where one wants to go and “not leave it up to others to try and guess where we have finally got to”. There must therefore be respect for the pioneers but also trust in the “elementary qualities of a good compass that shows the way”.