Afronding onderhandelingen grondwet wellicht in 2005 (en)

Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern is pessimistic about reaching an agreement on the EU Constitution during the Irish EU Presidency believing the negotiations could easily continue into 2005.

"It could go into 2005," said Mr Ahern in an interview with the Irish newspaper, the Sunday Business Post.

"There certainly was no mood to settle in Brussels, and no mood that we should settle in the short term," continued the Taoiseach (Irish prime minister).

Difficult Irish EU presidency

Ireland will take over the six-month EU presidency on Thursday and will have to use all its diplomatic skills to overcome the differences among the 25 current and future EU member states.

The Constitution talks broke down earlier this month in Brussels over the proposed new system of voting - which would alter the balance of power in a future EU. Mr Ahern now has to take over from the Italian EU presidency and has promised to report back to EU governments on the state of negotiations in March.

"We'll have to see, when people reflect on it, what is their view", he said in the interview. "Can we pick it up? If we believe there's a will to do it, we'll certainly do all we can to move it on", he concluded.

However, he pointed out several reasons why agreement may not be reached during the Irish presidency including Spanish general elections (in March) and European Parliament elections (in June).

New president of the Commission

Another difficult task for Ireland is to try forge an agreement on a new president of the European Commission.

According to the Financial Times, Ireland would like to see an efficient technocrat in the style of master administrator Jacques Delors to rebuild the reputation of the European Commission.

The present Commission President, Romano Prodi, will leave his post next October, and EU leaders in June will appoint his successor. So far a clear frontrunner for the job has yet to emerge.

Jean-Claude Juncker of Luxembourg, Paavo Lipponen of Finland, Guy Verhofstadt of Belgium and Costas Simitis of Greece are among the names most frequently mentioned.