legal successor to the Soviet Union - Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Austrian State Treaty had been a foundation for stability and security in Europe. Today, Austria and Russia were "equal partners in a Europe in the process of unification". Both nations had the same foundation in democracy. French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said the Austrian State Treaty had been a signal for European reunification. Out of the ruins of war, courageous men had suggested going a different way in Europe. "For once and for all, nationalism and war between Europeans was to be banned," Barnier said. The European project must go on: the new challenge was to implement the E.U. constitution, said Barnier, whose country goes to the polls in a referendum on the constitution at the end of May. --More 2225 Local Time 1925 GMT
