(PRAGUE) - Judges in a top Czech court Wednesday ruled that the EU's Lisbon Treaty was in line with the constitution, paving the way for its ratification by parliament after months of deadlock.

"The Lisbon Treaty (...) does not run counter to the constitutional order," said Pavel Rychetsky, chairman of the constitutional court based in the southern city of Brno.

All 15 constitutional judges unequivocally rejected the arguments of Vaclav Klaus, the country's eurosceptic president, who had said the treaty undermined the country's sovereignty.

Visibly upset, M. Klaus said after the hearing that the court deliberations were more "political" than legal.

He called for "a serious political debate" and for fresh arguments to be raised against the treaty.

As the court did not deal with the treaty as a whole, but only with the disputed articles, the door is still open for opponents to launch more challenges to the treaty.

But Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek and Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg welcomed Wednesday's ruling.

"The verdict enables both chambers of the parliament to continue the ratification process, but I still expect both expert and public debates to continue," said Topolanek, whose cabinet has already approved the treaty.

"The fact that the constitutional court has dispelled doubts is good news for Europe and the Czech Republic," said Schwarzenberg.

The Czech Republic, which takes over the EU's rotating presidency from France on January 1, is the last EU member to begin the ratification process.

The Lisbon Treaty is aimed at streamlining EU decision-making after the 27-nation bloc's enlargement. But it must be ratified by all member states to take effect.

"The moment of a huge responsibility has come for those who play the decisive role in the further stages of the ratification process," Klaus warned after the hearing.

The treaty will be debated by the two-chamber parliament where it is likely to pass with votes from most of the governing coalition deputies and senators, as well as from the opposition Social Democrats.

Junior coalition partner the Green Party has already started to petition for an extraordinary parliament meeting to vote on the treaty before the Czech Republic assumes the EU presidency.

The European Commission voiced confidence Wednesday that the Czechs would ratify the treaty.

"We are entirely confident that the Czech Republic will honour its commitments, commitments that were made with the signature of the Treaty of Lisbon" last December, a spokeswoman said in Brussels.

Although Klaus's political influence is strong, his powers are limited, and it might be difficult for him to veto the Lisbon Treaty if it is approved by parliament.

But he can delay the process. Poland's President Lech Kaczynski, a fellow eurosceptic, has put off signing the treaty through for eight months now.

Earlier this week Klaus said he might only sign the treaty to finalise the ratification process once Ireland had approved it.

Ireland rejected the document in a referendum in June.

With its "no" vote, Ireland, the only nation legally obliged to hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, halted EU efforts towards structural reform.

The Irish government is now under increasing pressure to call a second referendum. Its decision on a new vote could be announced before the next EU summit, which will be in Brussels on December 11-12.

According to a a draft of a report leaked to the Irish Times newspaper in Dublin, a parliamentary sub-committee there is already considering holding a second referendum.

European leaders are anxious to get the reform treaty passed before elections to the European Parliament next June, but the Irish veto and the global economic crisis have both slowed down progress in this area.

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