Poland, Germany urge French Oui to EU charter

The German and Polish leaders rallied behind President Jacques Chirac by urging French voters to back the European Union Constitution, saying it was their duty to set an example for other EU states.

After talks in the historic eastern city of Nancy, they ruled out renegotiating the EU charter if French voters reject it in a referendum on May 29.

The latest opinion polls give the anti-treaty campaign a slender lead and rejection by founder member France could in theory torpedo the Constitution because it requires the approval of all 25 member states to go into force.

"France assumes a big responsibility, the responsibility not to let down us other Europeans over the Constitution," German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder told a news conference beside Mr Chirac and Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski.

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said before the talks in Nancy that a French "No" would encourage other member states to follow suit in similar ballots.

Economists say defeat of the treaty, which aims to make EU decision-making easier following its expansion last year to 25 members, could also send ripples through financial markets.

Mr Kwasniewski said a French Oui would light the path for Poland, which he said could hold its own referendum this autumn.

"I wish for myself, for France and for all of us, that this constitutional treaty will be adopted here on May 29. That will be a very important sign for the Polish referendum," he said.

EU Commission President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso said on Wednesday rejection of the treaty would have dire political and economic consequences, and EU economic and monetary affairs chief Joaquin Almunia said it would damage a pick up in growth.

But with 10 days until polling, EU leaders' appeals have so far failed to have any noticeable impact on voter intentions and the last four polls indicate voters plan to reject the text.

Polls suggest Dutch voters could oppose the Constitution in a June 1 referendum. Concerns about Turkey's EU entry bid and anger at recent official admissions the guilder was undervalued at the euro's launch have fuelled support for the "No" vote.

Seeking to ramp up what has been criticised as a lacklustre government campaign, Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot and other cabinet members handed out leaflets in a central square in the Hague on Thursday lobbying people to vote "Yes".

Leftwing anti-treaty campaigners have urged voters to reject the charter to punish Mr Chirac's economic policies and the EU's perceived failure to prevent the loss of jobs to low-wage economies such as China. A renegotiated treaty would take better account of social concerns, they say.

But Mr Chirac and Mr Schroeder slapped down any talk of resuming laborious negotiations, the German leader telling reporters: "Believe me, I say this clearly, it's a pure illusion. There is not the slightest chance of reopening the constitutional process."

Belgium's Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt told his parliament attempts to cherry pick the treaty would "shatter the painfully crafted balance" between small and large states, old and new members, liberal and conservative governments, and states that preferred cooperation between governments to a community-based approach.

Belgium's lower house approved the EU Constitution late on Thursday, leaving the kingdom's five different regional parliaments to confirm its ratification.

France's anti-treaty Communist Party said Mr Chirac was so worried the "No" would win he had sought solace from Mr Schroeder and Mr Kwasniewski and was "once more trying to put pressure on the way French men and women vote."

EU President Luxembourg proposed scaling down Britain's contested rebate from EU coffers as part of a deal in a row over the bloc's 2007-2013 budget.

In a document to be discussed by EU foreign ministers tomorrow and Monday, it also proposed cutting payments to the budget by Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden and suggested trimming the overall spending level.

Luxembourg, which holds the EU presidency until June, hopes to broker a deal at the bloc's summit on June 16-17, but many diplomats doubt they will meet the deadline, even though delays threaten to throw EU financial planning in disarray.

Luxembourg's plan, which would freeze Britain's rebate in 2007 and gradually reduce it from 2008, looked set to be rejected by London unless the EU agreed on some concessions, such as cutting the bloc's costly farm subsidies, diplomats said.