“The treaty is not dead. The treaty is alive, and we will try to work to find a solution.”—José Manuel Barroso, president of the EU Commission (press conference, 14 June 2008).
“I am convinced that we need this Treaty. Therefore we are sticking with our goal for it to come into force. The ratification process must continue.”—Frank-Walter Steinmeier, German Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs (Reuters, 14 June 2008).
“We think it is a real cheek that the country that has benefited jost from the EU should do this. There is no other Europe than this treaty. With all respect for the Irish vote, we cannot allow the huge majority of Europe to be duped by a minority of a minority of a minority.”—Axel Schäfer, leader of the German Social Democratic Party in the Bundestag (Irish Times, 14 June 2008).
“Of course we have to take the Irish referendum seriously. But a few million Irish cannot decide on behalf of 495 million Europeans.”—Wolfgang Schäuble, Federal Minister of the Interior (Deutsche Welle, 15 June 2008).
“[The Lisbon Treaty] will be applied, albeit a few months late.” Diego López Garrido, Spanish Secretary of State for the European Union (Forbes, 15 June 2008).
“I don’t think you can say the Treaty of Lisbon is dead, even if the ratification process will be delayed.”—Jean-Pierre Jouyet, French Secretary of State for European Affairs (Reuters, 16 June 2008).
“The Lisbon Treaty is not dead . . . It is imperative that they vote again.”—Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, former President of France and principal author of the EU Constitution (RTL television, 19 June 2008).
“They are bloody fools. They have been stuffing their faces at Europe’s expense for years and now they dump us in the shit.”—Nicolas Sarkozy, President of France (Times, 20 June 2008).
