There is not such a big difference between the accession of 10 countries and the accession of 12 countries

Hubert Vedrine

Mr Vedrine said later: "I asked, since the negotiations are conducted on an objective basis and are not just a statement of sympathy, I asked my colleagues to think about the drawbacks of leaving two countries outside."

Hubert Vedrine surprised many in the EU

He added: "There is not such a big difference between the accession of 10 countries and the accession of 12 countries."

The EU Enlargement Commissioner, Guenter Verheugen, repeated on Monday that only 10 countries have set 2004 as their entry target date.

Laggards

Both Romania and Bulgaria have 2006-2007 as a target, and no-one seriously believes they are as well prepared as Hungary or Slovenia.

But the French foreign minister suggested that there were laggards even in the first group.

Poland has been lagging behind other EU hopefuls

"I think there are countries among the 10 which are not entirely ready for EU membership, and for whom we will make a special effort, one way or the other. I am not thinking of any country in particular, it is just a common sense observation," said Mr Vedrine.

Some diplomats believe Mr Vedrine had Poland in mind, which has been lagging behind in the negotiations.

Polish factor

But on his first trip to Brussels on Monday, Poland's new Foreign Minister, Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, said his country would like to conclude as many chapters in the negotiations as soon as possible.

In the last week, Poland announced concessions on sensitive issues such as the purchase of land by foreigners and the free movement of workers, but it still has some way to go.

Germany has made it clear, however, that it cannot imagine enlargement without Poland.

And that may be what Mr Vedrine really wanted to say - that since enlargement is clearly not only a technical, but primarily a political project, it may be wiser to take an all-embracing political decision and take in all applicants at once.

He assured his colleagues that there was no hidden agenda, and no need to think of bizarre explanations.

Mr Vedrine's colleagues did not react immediately.

The Belgian Foreign Minister, Louis Michel, who chaired the meeting, said these were good questions that could lead to a useful debate.