European Commission (EC) President Jose Manuel Barroso called here on Monday for a halt to further expansion of the European Union (EU) after Romania and Bulgaria join in.

"It would not be wise to proceed with any further enlargement before we have dealt with the constitutional issue," Barroso told reporters after talks with French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin.

"It would be unwise to bring in other member states apart from Romania and Bulgaria," he added.

Barroso's call was made just a day before the EC is to present a report on whether Romania and Bulgaria would join the bloc next year or not.

According to Barroso, the EU constitution, which was vetoed by the French and Dutch public in a referendum in 2005, needed to be salvaged before the bloc could accept new members.

The EU leaders decided in June to postpone any decision on the future of the EU constitution until 2007.

Barroso's remarks were a big blow to Croatia and Turkey, both of which started entry talks last year.

Croatia was expected to finish its membership negotiations by 2009. Turkey's talks were expected to last decades.

"Of course I would like Croatia to join as quickly as possible, if it fulfills all the criteria," Barroso said.

Villepin agreed that the ability of the EU to take in new members had reached its limit.

"We have to make progress with our common rules before we can contemplate any further stages," Villepin said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 26, 2006)