'EU needs defence to be global player'

A deeply divided European Union, facing a decisive moment in its 50-year history, must forge a common defence policy to be taken seriously in global politics, EU Commission President Romano Prodi said yesterday.

With the 15-nation bloc split over the US-led war on Iraq, Commission President Prodi told the European Parliament that unity was vital.

"The world will not take us into serious account until we stop looking divided, until the Union can match the United States as far as guaranteeing our own security," Prodi said in a debate interrupted by banner-waving anti-war protests by left-wing and green deputies, some wearing black armbands.

EU members Britain, Spain, Italy, Portugal and Denmark have backed the US-led military campaign, while France, Germany and Belgium have led the global opposition to war.

The government heads of Denmark and Hungary, after a meeting in Budapest, also called yesterday for a stronger European foreign and security policy, while stressing the paramount importance of transatlantic cooperation.

Hungary, which is due to join the EU next year, has also backed US policy over Iraq.

Some experts say the division in the EU has plunged it into the deepest crisis in its existence, but Commission President Prodi said history showed that crises often prompted the EU to take its boldest steps towards deeper integration.

His call for a European defence policy came after Belgium announced it would hold a summit with Germany, France and Luxembourg on April 29 to discuss closer integration of their military forces.

Commission President Prodi said the initiative was "timely and good" and could take the EU far, provided it was open to all members. It echoed the conclusions of a working group on defence at the Convention drafting a constitution for the EU, he said.