Foreign ministers made preparations for the EU Constitutional Treaty

Government Information Unit
Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Press release 193/2004
14 June 2004

The foreign ministers of the European Union met in Luxembourg on Monday, 14 June, to make preparations for the European Council meeting and the Heads of State or Government level session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) to be held at the end of the week. The ministers approved the agenda for the European Council and reached agreement on several points in the EU Constitutional Treaty. Finland was represented by Erkki Tuomioja, the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

The aim is to finalize the Constitutional Treaty at the IGC negotiations between the Heads of State to be held in connection with the European Council in Brussels on 17-18 June. The first session of the IGC will be held on Thursday and negotiations will continue on Friday.

The foreign ministers reached agreement on several points of policy concerning the Treaty, enabling the leaders of the Member States to concentrate on the most difficult questions concerning the institutions.

Issues that have not yet been agreed on in the IGC include the allocation of votes between Member States in the Council (the definition of qualified majority) and the line-up of the Commission.

In March, the European Council set a goal of reaching agreement on the Constitutional Treaty during the June European Council at the latest. Negotiations on the Treaty started during the Italian EU Presidency in 2003 on the basis of the draft treaty drawn up by the Convention on the Future of Europe.

Further information: Antti Peltomäki, State Secretary for EU Affairs, Government Secretariat for EU Affairs, tel. +358 9 1602 2180, and Risto Piipponen, Head of Unit, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 9 1605 6546