Irish Reject Treaty - EU meets
Damage control is on the minds of most European governments after Irish voters rejected a European Union treaty that is meant to streamline decision making and give the EU a more robust foreign policy. Ireland is the only EU member state holding a referendum on the treaty. 18 other member states have already ratified the treaty by parliament. The treaty has to be approved by all 27 members for it to become active. EU foreign ministers are meeting in Luxembourg to discuss the referendum result.
European Union foreign ministers are gathering in Luxembourg for talks on how to respond to the Irish rejection of the Lisbon reform treaty.
Voters in the Irish Republic, the only state to hold a referendum on Lisbon, rejected the treaty by 53.4% to 46.6% last Thursday.
The treaty cannot be implemented unless approved by all 27 EU states.
But the majority of EU members agree that those who have yet to ratify the treaty should carry on and do so.
Administrator @ June 16, 2008