Chirac blames Blair as EU constitution talks collapse

Telegraph ^ | 12/14/03 | Colin Brown and Francis Elliott

[mitchbert]

Michael, over to you...

[jwfiv]

Trying to rebuild the Tower of Babel...Chirac is pissoised that the smaller "pioneer" nations don't bend over far enough, the way Villepain does.

[LasVegasMac]

Well I don't blame the UK one bit for actions to date.

Like, what, Chirasmuck is now the head newt for this? France??

If I was Mr. Blair, I'd be asking the head frog questions such as....

Are you guys over that shade tree planting phase yet?

When will you learn to build an aircraft carrier that, you know, works like its supposed to?

France deserves to be kicked in the "Chirac" - often and hard.

They could not make a pimple on a decent country's a$$.

Other than that, they suck.

LVM

[Mr. Mojo]

Tony Blair insisted, however, that the humiliating inability of heads of government to get beyond the first items on the summit agenda did not spell doom for the constitution. "We have got to find a way through."

Why, Tony? ....Unless, of course, you desire the death of England.

[Mike Darancette]

In private, Jacques Chirac, the French president, blamed Britain for not supporting the Franco-German position

At Animal Farm: Napoleon and the Dogs want Snowballs support.

[DeFault User]

Who would want to belong to a club that would have France as a member?

[Sub-Driver]

Let's redo the title

Chirac blames Bush as EU constitution talks collapse

[A CA Guy]

So the more powerful nations tell the weaker ones "Go jump, we are starting it our way which is best and we can go back to this later"?
Sounds more like "totalitarianism" than any democratic venture I've ever heard.

[tet68]

Some nations are more equal than others.......

Ick!

[Mike Darancette]

Publicly, he indicated that a hard core or "pioneer group" of states would push ahead with European integration regardless of how the new members of the EU behaved.<\big>

Factions already? Or is Schroder just Chirac's bitch Schnauzer?

[Billthedrill]

A lot of us saw this coming from the outset. It's a little issue called "States' rights" here in the US. It turned out to be so important we fought a war over it. "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

[Bella]

Constitution collapse? Anything like ours?

[folklore]

They will not vote on the constitution until 2009, but they demand Iraq have one ready by next Friday. Idiots!!!

[Tamzee]

They will not vote on the constitution until 2009, but they demand Iraq have one ready by next Friday. Idiots!!!

Excellent point :-)

[McGavin999]

Publicly, he indicated that a hard core or "pioneer group" of states would push ahead with European integration regardless of how the new members of the EU behaved.

Ooops, I think the mask just slipped and anyone with two brain cells to rub together can see just what old Jacque and Gerhard really had planned. Looks like Britain just escaped with their pocketbooks intact.

[longjack]

Factions already? Or is Schroder just Chirac's bitch Schnauzer?

I was just skimming over a report on a German site.

"Spiegel - Online"....Schröder droht den EU-Abweichlern

Schroeder is blaming Poland for the debacle, hinting that to integrate Europe in the future one can't negotiate through national egotism. Germany, he insured, negotiated from the standpoint of the ability of a united Europe to act on it's own.

Schroeder mentions that the citizens of Poland shouldn't take all this personally, since they are dear to his heart.

The consideration is being made (initiated by Luxembourg)[yeah, right.] to begin negotiating important decisions with the 6 original Eoropean trade members, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Fischer is attributed to the "two-speed" Europe quip a couple of weeks ago. Fischer was the odds on favorite to become the European foreign minister, BTW.

Schroeder is threatening the "deviationists" with the "two-speed" idea now, namely, negotiating with those countries that want more integration (he includes Great Britain, in that group).

Poland's foreign minister, Wlodimierz Cimoszewicz, said he wasn't going to sign any decision that weakened his own country politically.

The article mentions that Spain and Poland refused to relinquish the vote distribution accorded them in the Nizza agreement, and thus blocked any agreement.

France and Germany want a double majority, meaning a measure has to be passed by a majority of member nations (13 out of 25) that concomitantly represents 60% of the total population of the united Europe.

That's my opinionated interpretation of what I read, not a translation. I basically think Schroeder is a Schleimschei$$er (BS artist), and that the "double majority" argument is BS as well. If France and Germany want the double majority instead of the Nice agreement you can be damn well sure they know now they have that double majority established through bloc building they have already completed.

longjack

[Semi Civil Servant]

If the EU can't agree on a constitution, how will "Justice" Sandra Duh O'Conner make her decisions?

[Paladin2]

"I am not in favour of an initiative by the six founding members. I don't believe it is appropriate to form groups of countries. It is important for all countries to work collectively and on an equal footing."

This is why the UN works so well (LOL). France is part of the upper tier (permanent SC member). The EU, with France having veto power, could be expected to work just as well for the other members.

More evidence that the US Federal legislature setup with the Senate giving nearly equal power (still some tenure, FBI file access, etc. inequalities in operation) to the individual states has great merit.

[DeFault User]

US Federal legislature setup with the Senate giving nearly equal power

Shhhhh, don't give them any ideas. Not that they would emulate the US system, but it is a solution. Since Napoleon was unable to consolidate Europe, I doubt that Chirac will be able to dominate it either.