December 2004 is voor Duitsland de deadline voor afronding Grondwet (en)

German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has upped the stakes in the EU Constitution talks by setting a deadline by which the new text should be agreed.

In an interview with the German news magazine Der Spiegel, Mr Schröder said "We have put on the table what we believe is right".

"We must see by the end of 2004 at the latest whether we can reach a decision on this basis".

The Chancellor was uncompromising on the issue of a new voting system - the main reason why negotiations on the Constitution failed at last month's EU Summit.

"Of course we will have to see where we can give ground to one or another (country)", he said, "but concessions on the weighting of votes are out of the question".

The new voting system, which is based on double majority system of a majority of countries representing 60% of the population, pitted Germany - with most to gain - firmly against Spain and Poland - with the most to lose.

Germany also threatened to go ahead with a core Europe, if talks on the Constitution are not finished by the end of this year.

"I don't want this [core Europe]," Mr Schröder told Der Spiegel, "but I must prepare myself for the fact that developments could go in this direction".

His comments follow those of French President Jacques Chirac who, directly after the failed summit, spoke of "pioneering groups" who could move forward in areas such as defence, the economy and justice.

Ireland against two-speed Europe

The German Chancellor's words will add to the pressure facing Ireland which has just taken over the EU Presidency and is currently assessing whether an agreement can be brokered.

However, the Irish Prime Minister has already spoken out against the idea of a two-speed Europe - the threat of which has been mentioned several times by Commission President Romano Prodi.

Speaking on Irish Radio Mr Ahern said such comments were "not helpful".

Mr Ahern will begin a two-month round of consultations with EU leaders on Thursday when he meets Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt. This follows a meeting with the European Commission tomorrow (6 January).