BARVIKHA, Russia — Czech President Vaclav Klaus said Wednesday he would not drop objections to the European Union's Lisbon reform treaty, despite mounting pressure from EU leaders to sign.
"I explained that I fear, and I am not the only person to fear, a deepening of European Union integration," he said after talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
"For me it is something of vital importance. In my opinion, the conditions that I have made for signing the agreement are serious and the idea that I can forget what I have said is not well-founded."
His comments came the day after European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso told the Czech president -- who has become the last major obstacle to the long-awaited reform treaty's entry into force -- to quit stalling on the issue.
"I don't see any reason to send an important signal from Moscow about my position," added Klaus, speaking at Medvedev's official residence outside the Russian capital.
"I cannot say anything new here. But I tried to explain my position to the president," he added.
...Barroso said Tuesday: "We expect the Czech Republic to honour the commitment it has taken. It is in the interests of nobody, least of all the interests of the Czech Republic, to delay matters further." [is that a threat???? - ed.]
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