France and Germany boost ties

France and Germany have ended a day of informal talks in Rambouillet near Paris, on the challenges facing the European Union.

A spokesman for the French President, Jacques Chirac, said the leaders had agreed on the need for a through-going reform of the EU before it takes in new members.

The spokesman said Mr Chirac, the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder, and the French Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, would continue their talks over the coming weeks.

Correspondents say the two countries are trying to reinvigorate their relationship at the centre of the EU, as France prepares to take up the Union's presidency for six months starting in July.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service