Czech President Vaclav Klaus Signs EU Lisbon Treaty

Curt Here...

Hello everyone, today brings some exciting news, especially if you are a student of Bible Prophecy. This morning, November 3rd, 2009 the Czech President Vaclav Klaus signed the EU's Lisbon Treaty, becoming the 27Th and final EU country to ratify the Treaty, effectively putting it into law.

He signed the Treaty soon after the Czech Republic's constitutional court ruled that the Lisbon Treaty was compatible with the Czech constitution. The Treaty could come into force as early as next month, which would bring about what many Biblical prophecy students have been watching for and that is the Revived Roman Empire.

With the new Treaty comes two new jobs, the president of the European Council, and a EU foreign minister. The latest news suggests that negotiations on who will be appointed to these new posts will begin as soon as November 12. Of these two new positions the EU foreign minister is the one to watch as it will have the most power under the Lisbon Treaty.

The real questions that are yet to be answered from my perspective is of course centered around the future of Javier Solana. He was scheduled to retire in the middle of October, but his retirement was delayed because the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty was delayed, due to the Czech Republic's constitutional question. Since that has now been resolved, what happens to Javier Solana? Will he actually retire? Does he somehow become the new foreign minister? Does the 7 year ENP agreement that Javier Solana crafted and convinced Israel to sign have any prophetic Biblical significance?

My guess is that over the next couple of months, some of these questions may begin to get answered.

Stay Tuned

Curt

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Klaus signature completes EU treaty ratification

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Czech President Vaclav Klaus has finally signed the Lisbon Treaty, ending a highly drawn out ratification process that left many wondering whether the document's provisions would ever see the light of day.

"I signed the Lisbon Treaty today at 15.00 (CET)," Klaus told reporters on Tuesday (3 November).

His signature, the last of EU leaders, follows on from a Czech constitutional court decision early on Tuesday morning that ruled in favour of the Lisbon Treaty's compatibility with the Czech constitution.

"It's now absolutely clear that the Lisbon Treaty will enter into force soon," said European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso upon hearing the news.

Swedish prime minister and current EU president Fredrik Reinfeldt also sought to draw a line under the process.

"His signature ends a far too long period of institutional focus within the EU. It opens up for a more democratic, transparent and efficient Union," he said.

Welcoming the news, European parliament president Jerzy Buzek said his institution was now ready to swing into action to get a new commission up and running.

"We need a new and strong European Commission in place as soon as possible. The European Parliament will be ready as of the 25 November to start the hearings of the new commissioners- designate," he said.

New Jobs

As well as appointing a new set of commissioners, the EU can now move ahead with the planned overhaul of its institutions and the appointment of several new positions intended to increase the bloc's standing on the world stage.

All of these decisions had been held up by the political uncertainty in Prague, with Mr Barroso saying he can only assemble his commission team when it is clear who will become EU foreign minister, a new post that will see the person also act as vice-president of the commission.

Mr Reinfeldt said he would now engage in a round of name consultations for the new posts to be set up under the Lisbon Treaty. "As soon as possible I will also call for an EU summit," he said, with current rumours suggesting the meeting could be held as soon as 12 November.

The other top post created by the treaty is the president of the European Council.

Former UK prime minister Tony Blair's chances of securing this job suffered a setback last week when some Socialist leaders failed to support his bid. Current Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, and the current Belgian prime minister, Herman van Rompuy, now look like frontrunners to secure the job.

Both are from Europe's centre-right family, leaving the position of high representative for foreign affairs likely to go to a Socialist. The UK's current foreign minister David Miliband is though to be a favourite. However, it is not precluded that new names emerge for the posts in the coming days.

The treaty, which reduces member states' veto power in several areas and hands a chunk of co-legislative power to MEPs, could come into force as early as next month.

http://euobserver.com/9/28932