French President Jacques Chirac and visiting German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will hold talks here Tuesday on the European Union constitution before the incoming May 29 referendum in France.

The two leaders and French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin were expected to meet at 10:00 a.m. (0800 GMT) at Chirac's Elysee Palace to discuss the European constitution.

All the recent polls show that French voters will reject the constitution on May 29.

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer paid a visit recently to France to solicit support for the constitution, saying the future of Europe depended on the decision of French voters.

The constitution is meant to simplify decision-making in the enlarged 25-member EU, but it must first be approved by all the member states.

France's possible rejection of the constitutional treaty is seen as a by-product of the widespread social malaise, high unemployment, fears of competition from foreign low-cost economies,and a mistrust of politicians in Paris.

In addition, Chirac and Schroeder are expected to hold talks on economic and industrial cooperation, in efforts to further strengthen bilateral ties.

Other topics during their meeting include the EU's 2007-2013 budget, the controversial Bolkestein directive on the liberalization of the bloc's services sector and the lifting of anEU arms embargo on China.

Source: Xinhua