The European Union said Monday it hopes to have a compromise deal in two months that would enable Irish voters to back a new EU treaty containing major internal reforms.

The Czech government, which holds the EU presidency, said it is negotiating with Ireland and its 26 EU partners to guarantee that Irish sovereignty would be preserved under the planned reforms.

In turn, the EU expects Ireland before 27 EU leaders meet in Brussels in mid-June to set a new date for a vote on the reform treaty, said Stefan Fule, the Czech European affairs minister.

Ireland is the only EU nation to have rejected the treaty. Its "no" in a June, 2008, referendum denied the new treaty the unanimous backing of all EU governments.

The draft reforms would remove outdated EU housekeeping rules to accelerate decision-making, cut red tape and bolster the EU's standing on the world stage.

Officials said the guarantees under negotiation would respect Ireland's cherished neutrality and its laws on taxation, worker rights, health, education standards and its ban on abortion.

Getting an Irish "yes" in a second referendum is not a given. The Irish government has faced domestic criticism over its determination to hold a second vote.