"The word 'constitution' is a difficult word. It is a term that we will not use in our declaration," the official with the EU's German presidency told reporters.
BRUSSELS: The word "constitution" will not figure in a declaration marking the 50th anniversary of the European Union's founding treaty because some member countries object, an EU official said on Tuesday.
"The word 'constitution' is a difficult word. It is a term that we will not use in our declaration," the official with the EU's German presidency told reporters.
"We won't storm the walls to impose the word 'constitution'," he added.
The declaration, to be released on March 25, is meant to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome but its wording has proved controversial, and the 27 EU countries are divided over what it should contain.
The constitution project has been ratified by 18 member states but remains in limbo after it was rejected in referendums in France and the Netherlands in 2005. It must be endorsed by all states to legally take effect.
Paradoxically, the declaration was meant, in part, to focus the minds of EU leaders on what future direction the European project should take.
Germany has been a fervent defender of retaining most of the constitutional treaty in its present form, but the presidency official's remarks are a sign that Berlin will not yet publicly confront any of its EU allies over the issue.
"The aim is to prepare Europe in a positive way for a compromise on the European constitution," the official said. A debate on the blueprint's future is expected to take place in either May or June.
Key divisions remain over the declaration, which is expected to take up two to three pages -- notably the section on how the European Union should move forward.
A reference to the single European currency has also pitched Britain - which is not in the euro club and wants it excluded from the text - against Belgium, Luxembourg and Spain, who insist that it appear.
But European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said Tuesday: "I have seen no one opposing that so far ... they all accept the reference to the euro."
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