I knew the EU was made up of three primary institutions -- the Council of Ministers, the Commission and the Parliament. I also knew that these institutions were known as the Institutional Triangle. What I didn't know was what they called it when these three institutions were fighting with each other. They call it "Trialogue" Read about it here.

What they're fighting over may be prophetically significant. You see, at issue is the EU's next seven-year budget. If they can't agree, beginning in 2007, they may not even have a seven-year budget. They may only have a series of annual budgets Read about it here. If you've been following my commentaries, you know I've been wondering if the EU's next seven-year budget period could actually be the 70th week of Daniel.

But, that's just speculation. In fact, what most interests me is the institutional battle. Here's why: The Council and Commission are both made up of unelected officials. The Parliament is the only EU institution that provides a hint of democratic oversight. So, what we're basically seeing is a battle for control between the EU heads -- who don't want to be held accountable, and the institution that's supposed to provide their accountability.

Why is the EU's next budget so important? Because, it's the budget that provides the EU with it's political goals and the means to accomplish its goals Read about it here.

Another thing that caught my attention in these articles was the continuing mention of Coreper (committee of permanent representatives of the EU member states). If you're read my book, you may recall it was at a Council's meeting of Coreper, back in July of 2000, where the infamous Solana Decision was proposed and approved. The meeting was held while the Parliament was in recess. What did it do? It placed all documents the Council deemed secret out of sight to the public -- including out of sight of the Parliament. In other words, the Solana Decision tossed transparency out the window and made full democratic oversight impossible. Now, once again, transparency appears to be the core issue in this war between EU institutions.

So, will the next Trialogue produce a new budget?

We should know soon.