Brussels  - One possible explanation for the ongoing rows within the European Union over who should attend international talks on the financial and economic crises is that the bloc includes at least six countries which currently head international organizations.

THE CZECH REPUBLIC is the current holder of the EU's rotating presidency, which hands over every six months. It took over the job from France on January 1 and is to pass it on to Sweden on July 1.

The Czech EU presidency has called two emergency summits on the economic crisis, the first on Sunday to reject protectionism, and the second in May to discuss the troubles of the labour market.

BRITAIN holds the six-month presidency of the Group of 20 (G20) top economies. It has called a G20 summit, expanded to include Spain and the Netherlands, for April 2 to discuss financial reform.

ITALY holds the annual presidency of the Group of Eight (G8) leading economies. It is to host a G8 summit in July, and is widely tipped to invite most of the states who attended the expanded G20 meeting in London in April.

POLAND holds the six-month presidency of the Vysegrad Group, an informal association with the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia. Poland called an informal summit of the quartet on Sunday, just before the EU's summit, and expanded its remit to include Bulgaria, Romania and the three Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

FRANCE is the most recent member of the group of countries which use the euro to have held the EU's presidency. In that capacity, French President Nicolas Sarkozy in January suggested calling a eurogroup summit to discuss the economic crisis.

Other euro users, including Germany, rejected the idea, saying that it would undermine EU unity.

GERMANY instead called a summit of the European members of the G20 (Britain, France, Germany and Italy), together with Spain and the Netherlands, in Berlin on February 22.

Analysts point out that Germany does not hold any international presidency at present, but is too big to ignore. dpa