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Denmark welcomes Czech constitutional court ruling
Nov 3, 2009, 11:32 GMT
Copenhagen - Denmark welcomed the ruling Tuesday by the Czech Republic's constitutional court on the Lisbon Treaty aimed at streamlining decision-making in the 27-nation European Union.
Czech President Vaclav Klaus is the only party yet to ratify the treaty that other EU members have ratified, but Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said the Czech court ruling was 'very positive'.
The Czech decision is likely to rekindle the debate on Denmark's EU opt-outs on defence, justice and home affairs, and the euro.
Rasmussen has scheduled a meeting with other parties at the end of November to discuss the exceptions and a possible referendum - either on all opt-outs or separate votes.
'My basic view and the government's ambition is to seek full membership in the EU,' Rasmussen said.
On EU affairs, the centre-right minority government often seeks backing from the opposition rather than the eurosceptic Danish People's Party.
Denmark joined the EU in 1973. The current exceptions were adopted in 1993, the year after voters in the Scandinavian country had rejected the Maastricht Treaty. In 2000, voters also voted against replacing the krone with the euro.
Rasmussen noted that due to the financial crisis, Denmark's budget deficit was too large for it to meet the criteria to join the eurozone.
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