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
You just can't make this stuff up.