EU leaders agree to weakened Mediterranean Union plan

EU leaders approved a watered-down version of a plan put forward by French President Nicolas Sarkozy for a grand Mediterranean Union stretching from Morocco to Turkey and aiming to foster cooperation with the EU's southern neighbours.

Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa called the proposal an "upgrade of the Barcelona process" – the mechanism currently regulating the relations between the EU and the Mediterranean countries – and said it had received support during the EU leaders' meeting in Brussels.

An agreement was reached to launch the project as soon as possible, "with the principle that all member states will participate," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso also said.

Mr Sarkozy also rejected claims that his initial proposal had been considerably weakened, saying that it was not very different from what was eventually agreed upon. There is still one secretariat, a joint north-south presidency, and periodical summit meetings foreseen, so "I do not think I have renounced anything," he said, adding that he was happy the principle of a closer partnership with the Mediterranean countries "was taken up with great enthusiasm" by the other member states, as the "Barcelona [process] simply did not work".

The proposal sparked ideas for other EU states as well, with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk saying that the EU should now commit more to eastern states, particularly Ukraine, which should be given a clear European perspective."We accept this agreement in general, but we also have our own proposal about Ukraine," he said.

Meanwhile, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said that key points, such as what exactly the role of the new Mediterranean set up would be, remained unanswered and suggested the French president was working to reach national goals above all. "It is obvious that Sarkozy wants to make a name for himself during the French presidency and is focusing on a subject in which he has an economic interest," Mr Topolanek was quoted as saying by CNN.