Brussels, 05/02/2008 (Agence Europe) - The French Presidency will have the job of ensuring continuity in the functioning of the EU ahead of the introduction of the new Lisbon Treaty on 1 January 2009, explained France's Permanent Representative to the EU, Pierre Sellal, on 29 January 2008 in an address to French parliamentarians on the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs Committee. Several measures will have to be taken independently of ratification, the most symbolic of which will be to appoint a new President of the European Council. Against this backdrop, France's first objective will be to ensure the entire Reform Treaty comes into force and the EU's institutions continue to function smoothly. The second aim will be to have a strong President of the European Council, a strong President of the European Commission and a strong President of the European Parliament, explained Sellal. France is therefore turning its back, he said, on the image associated with it in the past of wanting a strong EU with weak institutions by playing the game of mutual neutrality. The EU's presidential system will not be totally united, he added, because only the European Council, the Foreign Affairs Council and Eurogroup will escape from the rotating presidency system. This complex system will require the bodies preparing each rotation to work well with each of the various combinations of EU Commissioners making up the various Council formations. Questions remain to be settled - like the authority of the President of the European Council over some of the services currently provided at the disposal of the rotating presidency through the Council Secretariat General. The French Presidency feels that the clock is already ticking and time is of an essence, said Sellal, recognising that a six-month presidency passes quickly, particularly a presidency in the second half of the year, which only lasts four and a half months in reality. (A.B.)