The EUobserver may have opened up an intriguing new possibility. The writer of this report suggests France, not Spain and Poland, is responsible for the collapse of the EU summit (Read about it here).

As you may know, it was widely being reported the issue was what voting system the new. super EU would use in the Council of Europe. Spain and Poland wanted to keep the existing system because it gave them more equal standing with the larger member states. France and Germany, on the other hand, wanted a new voting system that would lean the balance of power in the EU more in their direction.

Now here's what the report is suggesting: All along France wanted to keep the existing voting system also -- just like Spain and Poland. The only reason France was siding with Germany on this voting issue was to torpedo the summit and make it look like it was Spain and Poland's fault.

I have to credit the EUobserver for some good observing. Not only do I think this suggestion may hit the mark, like I said before, I think this idea may have opened up an intriguing new possibility to consider.

You see, the existing voting system was adopted at the Nice summit in December 2000 --  under the same French EU presidency that implemented Recommendation 666. At this summit the EU heads approved the exsiting weighted voting system which gives the 10 Western European Union nations the majority vote in the EU. Not only do they have it now, these 10 nations will continue having the majority vote even after the 10 new members are admitted next May.

This brings up an important question: Why would France, a member of the 10 nation WEU and the presidency holder who adopted the weighted voting system, want now to get ride of the voting system? The best answer, of course, is what the EUobserver is suggesting -- France didn't. All along France wanted to keep the weighted voting system.

Now for that intriguing new possibility I mentioned: What if this was all planned from the get go. What if France and Spain were actually working together to torpedo this summit. Why? So the 10 nation WEU alliance could stay in control of the EU.

And here's another report that suggests that's what's happening. The EUobserver is also reporting the European Commission is worried about a move on the part of certain core members to forge their own deeper integration in defense (Read about it here).

You know what, I think the Commission should be worried.