Not everything is lost” “

“The result of the referendum merits profound analysis, in the first place by the French authorities. The European institutions will also have to reflect in due course on the results of the whole process of ratification”, say the representatives of the three main EU institutions (Parliament, Council and Commission) in a joint statement on the results of the vote in France rejecting the Constitutional Treaty of the Union with 54.87% votes against on 29 May. A JOINT DOCUMENT. Josep Borrell, President of the European Parliament, Jean-Claude Junker, President of the Council of Ministers and José Manuel Barroso, head of the Executive, write: “It should however be recalled that nine states, representing almost half (49%) of the European population have already ratified the Treaty” and that “the majority of member states have not yet had an opportunity to complete their ratification process”. “The tenor of the debate in France and the result of the referendum – declare the three politicians – greatly reinforce our conviction that the national and European political leaders must do more to explain what’s really at stake and the nature of the solutions that only Europe can contribute. We continue to believe that a response at the European level remains the best and most effective in a context of accelerated globalization”. After recalling the need to involve citizens more actively in this process, they add: “European construction is by its nature complex. Europe has already experienced difficult moments, but has always been able to emerge from them reinforced”. RELAUNCHING THE ACTION OF THE 25. “It is impossible to re-negotiate the text of the Treaty” and “the process of ratification of the Constitution underway throughout the European Union must go ahead”, insists Jean-Claude Junker, Luxembourg premier, and current President of the European Council. In reacting to the results of the French referendum, Junker simultaneously appeals for the forward march of the Union of the Twenty-Five. As for French President Jacques Chirac, he has declared: “I take note of the sovereign decision of the French people to reject the treaty. France – added the President – will maintain its place in the European Union and honour the commitments she has entered into, but it will now be more difficult to defend her interests”. The situation created with the negative result of the French referendum “will be discussed in the European Council due to be held as planned on 16-17 June”, says Jean-Claude Junker, who has outlined the path to be taken by the EU after the vote in France and given reassurances to the other countries that “the Constitution is not dead”, even though undeniably “it has not acquired new strength”. Declarations and analyses on the French referendum immediately arrived in Brussels from all over Europe. The President of the Italian Republic, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, explained that “a constructive effort on the part of all countries, beginning with France, will now be imperative”. For his part, Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Abdullah Gul, immediately repudiated the suggestion that the “no” of the French depended “on the fear of Ankara’s accession to the EU”. “There is no truth in this – said Gul in a briefing to the press -. Europe has already made its decision about Turkey’s entry” (the negotiations for membership are scheduled to begin on 3 October) “and the French vote will not alter that”. Anxieties about the vote, combined with the determination to revive the forward march of the EU, were also expressed, among others, by German Chancellor Gerard Schroeder (“A hard blow for the process of ratification, but it does not spell its end”) and by Spanish premier Louis Zapatero (“A stumbling-block, not a catastrophe”). WE WILL CONTINUE TO COOPERATE. “The Council of Europe will not be influenced by the vote of the French. The Council and the Union are two different organizations”, declared the General Secretary of the Council of Europe, Terry Davis, commenting on the French referendum on 29 May, in which 54.87% electors voted ‘no’, and only 45.13% ‘yes’ to the European Constitution (voter turnout: 70%). “The Council of Europe is formed of 46 countries ranging from Iceland to Turkey, from Russia to Portugal – said Davis – and is based on cooperation, not on integration”. So, he concluded, “we will continue to work together for the progress and diffusion of democracy, and the defence of human rights and culture of states throughout Europe”.