All 15 EU member countries, not just France, should decide the EU's stance on farm subsidies, a European Commission spokesman said.
France objects to the wording on the "phasing out" of farm subsidies in the draft accord on the launch of a new round of global trade negotiations being considered by World Trade Organisation ministers here.
"There are 15 countries, not only France, which must take a decision, and this moment has not yet come," Commission spokesman Gregor Kreuzhuber said.
He was commenting after an EU source said the EU does not rule out leaving the ministerial meeting, due to end later today, without an agreement.
Asked about the possibility, the source said: "We'll have to see, we cannot exclude that."
The source added: "There is a very big majority saying that we are short on the environment, investment and of course there is the agriculture issue, which is not progressing."
He said European Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy "is jumping back into the fray with a very strong position".