Czech parliament to be asked to vote despite opposition

RATIFICATION  THE CZECH government will ask parliament to vote on the European Union's Lisbon Treaty this autumn, but the country's president is still staunchly opposed to the beleaguered treaty.

After meeting prime minister Mirek Topolánek and his deputy Alexander Vondra, foreign minister Karel Schwarzenberg said they would submit the treaty for ratification after elections from October 17th to 18th to local councils and part of the upper house of parliament.

"We agreed that some time after the election we will submit the Lisbon Treaty for ratification," Czech newspapers quoted Mr Schwarzenberg as saying.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Zuzana Opeletalova confirmed his remarks and said the minister had meant that the vote would take place "some time in the autumn, after the election . . . towards the end of the year".

Mr Vondra suggested that parliament would only vote on the treaty once the Czech constitutional court had ruled on its legality. A verdict is expected in October.

"It is not worthwhile to do anything now because it would be a pressure on the constitutional court," Mr Vondra said.

Mr Schwarzenberg, a strong advocate of the treaty, reiterated his belief that the Czech Republic was obliged to ratify the document, because the government had already signed it.

But the three politicians, who held talks with the president, Václav Klaus, failed to soften his opposition to a treaty which he says will strip vital powers from national governments and hand them to unelected officials in Brussels.

Presidential aide Jiri Weigl said the meeting did nothing to alter the position of Mr Klaus, who was quick to declare the treaty dead after Ireland's No vote.

He will meet Polish president Lech Kaczynski in Prague next week for talks that some analysts expect to throw up suggestions for amendments to the treaty, which could persuade Ireland to vote differently if a second referendum was held.

Under pressure from French president Nicolas Sarkozy, Mr Kaczynski has softened his opposition to signing a treaty that the Polish parliament has already ratified.

Legal experts say Mr Klaus would be expected to sign the treaty if the constitutional court clears it, and the lower and upper houses of parliament approve it, even though he would be extremely reluctant to do so.

While a majority of the lower house of parliament appears to support the treaty, a strong Eurosceptic presence in the Senate makes the charter's passage far from certain.