Heavyweights accused of acting like 'inner club'

An attempt by European Union leaders to put on a united front in the war on terrorism was marred yesterday by accusations that Britain, France and Germany were acting like an exclusive "inner club".

At a summit in Ghent, Belgium, the EU's 15 member states sought to draw a line under the row by pledging their full support for the action in Afghanistan and calling for the al-Qa'ida terrorist network to be eliminated.

However, other EU countries were furious that the Prime Minister, Tony Blair; the French President, Jacques Chirac; and the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, went ahead with a "mini-summit" in Ghent before all 15 countries had discussed their response to the terrorist attacks.

Britain, France and Germany, the three countries invited by America to join its action in Afghanistan, discussed mainly military issues, and officials would not disclose details. French sources said France was preparing to take a greater military role in the campaign.

Although the three-way meeting lasted only 30 minutes, it angered other EU states.

Antonio Gutteres, the Portuguese Prime Minister, said: "I don't intend to make a group within the EU. The 15 should work together, and the 15 should find the consensus needed to fight against an adversary to all of us." Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister, also felt snubbed but insisted that he had "more important things to do".

Wilfried Martens, the leader of the EU's group of Christian Democratic parties, called the tripartite talks a "sort of provocation to the [EU] institutions".

Romano Prodi, the European Commission president, said: "The morale of the small states is really down." Declaring that EU summits were meant to be for all 15 members, he added: "They [the three countries' leaders] can have private conversations at any time, anywhere. At this moment we are so united, and so I prefer that in terms of image we are as united as we are in substance."

Mr Blair's spokesman sought to play down the rift, saying the three-way meeting would not prevent all 15 countries debating terrorism.

After discussing the campaign over dinner in Ghent last night, the 15 leaders reaffirmed their strong support for the American action despite concerns in countries such as Belgium and Sweden over civilian casualties. They also called for a big humanitarian effort to help the Afghan people.

A draft EU statement said that, under the auspices of the United Nations, the EU should "work toward the emergence of a stable new government, legitimate and representative of all the Afghan population". The draft statement called for increased vigilance because of the threat of biological or chemical attacks, appealing to the public to keep calm and to the media not to spread panic.

Security was tight. Thousands of people protested near by against the US-led strikes and global capitalism. Belgian police said some 7,200 people had taken part in the two marches. Another march was scheduled for the evening.

The 15 leaders were expected to make a thinly veiled call for the European Central Bank to cut interest rates to help the EU stave off the threat of recession. "Reduced inflation should provide room for monetary authorities to take further decisive action," said the draft statement.

The European Commission told the summit that the economic shock from the attacks on New York and Washington would cut growth in the EU to 1.5 per cent this year and the next, and push up unemployment. It claimed the existence of the euro had insulated Europe from worse harm.