Czech court opens EU treaty session

The Czech Republic's top court has opened a hearing to assess whether the EU's Lisbon Treaty will comply with the country's constitution.

The 15-member Czech Constitutional Court convened on Tuesday in the city of Brno to consider a case by 17 euroskeptic senators who fear the treaty will give too much power to Brussels and infringes Czech sovereignty.

The complaint is considered as one of the last hurdles to the treaty, which aims to streamline EU decision-making and must be approved by all 27 member states to take effect.

The Czech Republic is the only country, which has not signed the treaty yet.

Euroskeptic Czech President Vaclav Klaus has repeatedly said he will wait for the court verdict before he signs the treaty.

The Czech parliament approved the treaty earlier this year.

Prime Minister Jan Fischer said on Monday that the court was unlikely to make an immediate ruling, adding that a subsequent hearing would probably reach a verdict.

Klaus has demanded an opt-out from the treaty designed to make sure the treaty will not allow ethnic Germans forced out of former Czechoslovakia for alleged World War II collaboration with the Nazis to claim back their property.