EU transport ministers failed to agree on the location of the headquarters of the Supervisory Authority of the European satellite navigation system Galileo. They also failed to see eye to eye on whether the headquarters should be located in an old or a new EU member, Slovenian Transport Minister Janez Bozic said after Tuesday's meeting.
While Slovenia sees the relevant European Council decision in 2003, which define the headquarters for new EU agencies, as clearly stating that such headquarters should be located in new members of the bloc, the old members say the decision merely "recommends" such a course, Bozic added.
The decision was made even more difficult by the pugnacity of all eleven candidates, including Slovenia, prompting a proposal to introduce new criteria, mainly security ones, Bozic revealed.
The minister added that he had clearly stressed that Slovenia fulfils all the criteria and underscored the country's advantages, including its location.
Bozic said that expressions of support were few and far between during the debate. However, Denmark voiced support for Slovenia, while Germany stressed that new members should get a chance to prove themselves, Bozic explained.
The chair of the transport ministers' council Susanna Huovinen said that the ministers did not narrow down the number of candidates, adding that "we have eleven best candidates and none of them wants to withdraw its candidacy."
The debate about the Galileo HQ will continue during Germany's stint in the first half of 2007, as Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen decided not to put the issue on the programme of the summit, which will take place in Brussels on 14 and 15 December.
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