Estonia set to ratify EU constitution on May 9

The Estonian parliament is expected to endorse the EU constitution on May 9, the date the European Union celebrates its official Europe Day, officials said on Thursday.

The EU constitutional treaty has already been approved by parliaments in 14 countries. But it has to be endorsed by all 25 EU member states to come into force and France and the Netherlands have already rejected it.

The constitution has attracted cross-party support in Estonia, one of 10 countries that joined the EU in May 2004, and parliament is expected to approve it by a clear majority.

"The constitutional treaty makes the EU decision-making process more speedy and efficient," Prime Minister Andrus Ansip told reporters. "It is in the interests of Estonia to have a strong European Union."

Ansip said rejection of the treaty by France and the Netherlands last year should not deter the EU from adopting the document.

"All EU member states should go ahead with ratification. The text is a compromise and should not be amended," he said. "If you leave something out the whole compromise is shattered."