The incoming President of the European Commission, Mr Romano Prodi, has said the formation of a common European defence policy should not cause problems for neutral and non-aligned members of the EU such as Ireland.
Such countries could opt out of agreed common European defence arrangements if they wished, Mr Prodi said yesterday in an interview with RTE.
Not all member-states had signed up to the common currency arrangements, he said. He saw no reason why the same course could not be adopted in respect of a common defence policy.
The EU should not be seen as a centralised body exercising power from Brussels. He was determined to have around him a new group of commissioners who would not only be able to run the Commission but who could also "awaken local energies". Asked whether he had yet decided on the shape of the Commission, Mr Prodi said that he had not yet decided on names but only "the needs". He knew precisely the type of people he wanted - people who saw "the unity of Europe as an asset for everyone".
They needed to be people who understood that Europe must stand together to avoid wars and to make economic progress.
Mr Prodi said Ireland had achieved "a miracle" within the last 10 years and the EU had made a major contribution to this. He looked forward to meeting the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, "as soon as possible" to discuss the appointment of Ireland's new commissioner with him.