The French Presidency of the European Union, filled with ambitious plans begun with a false start Tuesday after the Lisbon treaty ratification came to a halt in Germany and in Poland.

Tuesday the German President Horst Köhler and the Polish President Lech Kaczynski refused to sign the ratification laws already approved by the Parliaments in Berlin and Warsaw.

Those acts are largely viewed as huge blows to the European Union unity, to future plans to expand the Union to the East and to French President Sarkozy's ambitions.

The German President had to take into account the demand of the Constitutional Court to not sign the treaty due to complaints coming from German left radicals that the treaty contradicted basic democratic principles. The President is not mandated to observe the future Court decision, but has to wait for it. The decision is not likely to come before October of 2008.

As far as Poland, the law there gives rights to the President to stop the ratification despite the Parliament's approval. Polish Premier Donald Tusk has asked the President to reconsider his decision stating that it was not in the best interest of Poland to be in Ireland's situation.

Sarkozy postponed Tuesday his visit to Dublin, which was scheduled for July 11. The goal of the visit was for Sarkozy to try to popularize the Lisbon Treaty. The official explanation coming from Paris was the President's heavily booked agenda along with the upcoming July 11 musical performance opening of Carla Bruni.

In the mean time Polish President Lech Kaczynski had stated that he would sign the Lisbon treaty only if it Ireland approves it.

The Lisbon treaty provides for a streamlining of the European Commission, the removal of the national veto in more policy areas, a new president of the European Council and a strengthened foreign affairs post.

Voters in the Irish Republic, the only state that held a referendum on Lisbon in June, have rejected the treaty by 53.4% to 46.6%. The document cannot be implemented unless approved by all 27 EU states.