German Parliament Approves European Union Treaty (Update1) and Denmark Ratifies Treaty

German Parliament Approves European Union Treaty (Update1)

The Danish parliament also ratified the treaty today with a 90-25 vote. Portugal backed the treaty by parliamentary vote yesterday. Eleven of the EU's 27 member states have now given final approval to the accord.

Merkel said she hoped the treaty would become law on Jan. 1, 2009, a year in which Germany will mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.