Negotiators for the Czech government and president have been working out the wording of the opt-out demanded by the president as a condition for his signature under the European Union's Lisbon Treaty, Prime Minister Jan Fischer said Thursday, according to dpa. Presenting a last-minute hurdle after the Irish "Yes" vote on the pact, Czech President Vaclav Klaus has refused to sign the treaty unless his country gets an exemption from the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which he views as a threat to Czech citizens' property rights. The EU is likely to deal with Klaus' demand at its regular October 29-30 summit in Brussels. Fischer's caretaker cabinet and the presidential office so far are at odds over how the potential exemption should be adopted. While a presidential aide insisted that Klaus would not be happy with a political declaration, Fischer countered it was impossible to trigger a new round of ratification across the 27-member bloc. On Thursday, Fischer, an otherwise measured bureaucrat, told reporters with a hint of irritation that the re-opening of the ratification process was as nearby as "the universe and all intelligent galaxies. Period."
