Spanje overlegt met Duitsland en Frankrijk over EU-grondwet en regiogelden (en)

Spanish premier José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero has declared old Europe rejuvenated, following a meeting with his French and German counterparts in Madrid yesterday.

Speaking after the meeting with French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, Mr Zapatero declared that "old Europe is as new".

The Spanish government has been keen to stress the importance of the meeting, signalling that Spain has shifted away from the pro-US policies of the Aznar administration.

"It has been another meeting_ but not just any meeting", Mr Zapatero said according to the Spanish news agency EFE, describing the group as "fervent pro-Europeans".

The German Chancellor in a sideswipe at the centre-right government of José Maria Aznar said that without a Socialist in March's elections there would have been no "historic" deal on the Constitution.

The three men promised to work together for a `yes' vote in the upcoming referendums on the treaty.

However a discussion on the EU's forthcoming EU budget for 2007-2013 proved to be a little more contentious, with Spain fighting to keep aid for its poorer regions after the accession of 10 new EU members in May this year.

"You are able to have grand ambitions, but unfortunately there are limits" commented the French President.