Schroeder Wants Strong European Commission ����German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder (fourth from the right of the front row) and European Commission President Jacques Santer (fourth from the left of the front row) posed for a photo taken with others after German Cabinet and European Commission held talks in Bonn Monday. ����In the meeting Schroeder called on the European Parliament to ponder key tasks of financial reform and EU expansion. ����Bonn needed a strong Commission to reform EU finance by a March summit in order to pave the way for taking in new member states from Eastern Europe, stressed Schroeder at a Bonn news conference with European Commission President Jacques Santer. ����Germany currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. ����In a related development, ex-German Chancellor Helmut Kohl rejected suggestions from Santer that he consider becoming the next EU Commission president when Santer's term ends next year. ����Schroeder repeated earlier warning that failure to agree on EU finance by March could lead to a delay in taking in new members from the former East Bloc. ����Reform of farm subsidies remains key to revamping the Union's finance and every member state must be prepared to compromise, said Schroeder. ���� WorldNews 1999-01-13 Page6 Full Story in Chinese