[JURIST] Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen [official profile; BBC profile] on Tuesday called for the European constitution [official website; JURIST news archive] to be in place before the 2009 European parliamentary elections. Rasmussen acknowledged that some changes to the current draft constitution [text] may be necessary after voters in France and the Netherlands [JURIST reports] rejected the draft in 2006, but stressed that of the 27 EU member nations, 18 have ratified the text. Denmark has yet to hold a national referendum to accept or reject the draft document.

Germany assumed the six-month EU presidency on January 1, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel has promised to put the constitution back on the EU agenda, and has also pushed for ratification before the 2009 elections [JURIST report]. AFP has more. The Copenhagen Post has local coverage.