European Union leaders Saturday called for solidarity and team spirit in the bloc in order to make progress in settling the constitutional issue.

The call was made by EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and other European leaders following their one-day meeting in the Portuguese town of Sintra, about 30 kilometers away from Lisbon.

"We need ... to work together in a real team spirit to ensure the continuity of the direction of the European Union," Barroso said at a press conference after the mini-summit.

The meeting, called by Barroso, was attended by European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering and leaders from Germany, Portugal and Slovenia, the current and future two rotating EU presidencies.

The meeting was "very useful and enjoyable" and "very successful" as team spirit has been shown at the meeting, Barroso told reporters.

The leaders discussed a wide range of issues including Kosovo and relations with Russia, a source close to the commission said earlier in the day.

"They did not only focus on the constitutional issues. This is not a special constitution summit at all," the source said.

However, Barroso made a strong call for progress in seeking a solution to the constitutional crisis.

He said that all the global issues need "the European dimension" and the EU needs "capacity to act."

"We need more efficient decision-making in Europe, we need more coherence externally, we need more democratically accountable methods of working," he said.

"That is why we need the treaty settlement," he added. "We have discussed in every detail the way forward for the treaty settlement."

"It is a tough issue, it is very difficult, but we believe the Europeans need progress in this area, a new treaty for Europe that gives Europe capacity to act in the age of globalization," Barroso told reporters.

There will be a mini-summit next year when Slovenia holds the presidency, Barroso announced.

Also speaking at the press conference, Merkel said the meeting is "very important" because the discussions show "we all want to stand together."

She also called for team spirit, stressing that that "Germany cannot bring all the issues to a successful conclusion."

"In the end, we are able to do that, if we stand together and work together," she said through an interpreter referring to the constitutional settlement.

Barroso said earlier this week that the meeting would be " informal and without ties" and hoped the format would be more productive.

Barroso had planned to invite more leaders including those from Poland, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Italy and the Netherlands, but he later scaled down the list to avoid speculations about European divisions.

The five leaders, including Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates and Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa, arrived here Friday night.

After a two-hour close-door session, they had a coffee break in the morning and continued their discussion at lunch time.

With absence of leaders from major powers like France and Britain, the significance in resolving the constitutional crisis is largely scaled down.

Since the French and Dutch voters rejected the EU constitution draft in the summer of 2005, the process has been in an impasse. The treaty needs to be ratified by all the members, but so far only 18 countries have approved it.

Source: Xinhua