EU leaders stock up on shirts for summit

...reforming the bloc's institutions.

Asked how many shirts he had brought to an EU summit in Brussels, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen told Reuters on Thursday: "That's my secret but I can tell you I have enough shirts for a very, very long negotiation."

Asked about the prospects for reaching a deal on a new treaty at the summit, Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said: "I have many shirts."

"Now is the right moment to reach a decision. If we don't succeed here it will be really difficult. I am ready to stay here as much time (as necessary) so that we can find a result," he told Reuters.

The summit was planned to last two days, but it could stretch deep into Saturday in efforts to secure agreement.

A spokesman for Germany, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, has advised reporters to pack a third shirt.