THE HAGUE, 11/03/06 - The Christian democrats (CDA) do not want to offer any new countries candidate EU membership offering prospects of full membership of the EU. Instead, countries such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia-Montenegro and Albania should be offered a 'Partnership', according to a discussion memorandum.

Partnership would be a new category not leading to membership, but still clearly involving closer partnership with the EU than the European Neighbourhood Policy, which now applies to a number of countries in the former Soviet Union. Partnership could also for the CDA be the outcome of the negotiations between Turkey and the EU, according to the document drawn up by a working party for the largest government party.

CDA parliamentary leader Maxime Verhagen has embraced the document. It also states that countries in Africa and the Middle East would not be eligible to join the EU. Nor does the CDA favour future membership for Ukraine, according to Verhagen.

For the CDA, the EU Constitution belongs to the past. This was rejected last year in referenda in the Netherlands and France. But a new treaty must by some means be created to replace the Treaty of Nice, according to the CDA. The party does not then want to hold another referendum.

Verhagen and also party chairman Van Bijsterveldt stressed that the CDA will remain a pro-European party. "But the referendum did wake us up and did make us more critical," said Van Bijsterveldt.

At the presentation of the discussion memo, CDA MEP Eurlings urged the abolition of EU countries' veto rights in the EU's joint foreign policy. Eurlings also wants Dutch MEPs to have the right to pose written questions to the Dutch government, and to be allowed to interrupt ministers in Lower House debates.