BRUSSELS Belgium wants European Union leaders to discuss opening up their markets as a way of curbing immigration when they meet in Spain next week, Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt said on Saturday.

Heads of state and government of the 15 nation European Union will gather in Seville. Illegal immigration is among the most pressing issues facing European governments, with anti-immigration parties in the ascendant in several countries.

Verhofstadt told ****De Morgen***** newspaper he saw a clear link between economic protectionism and immigration. He said he planned to raise the issue at the EU summit.

"Decreasing protectionism is a means to control immigration flows," he said.

"One of the most important reasons for immigration is our own protectionism. If people are not able to acquire an income in their home country because they can't sell their products on our markets, then in the long run, they will come here." Verhofstadt said the European Union must act on agreements reached at a global trade summit last year.

Ministers from the 142 countries of the World Trade Organization agreed in November to launch free trade negotiations to end by January 1, 2005.

The WTO negotiations will look at lowering or eliminating tariffs rich countries impose on semi-finished goods from poorer states.

Verhofstadt criticized what he called "panic" measures adopted by other member states to control immigration, having underestimated the issue for years.

He said Belgium had managed to cut the number of asylum seekers to below 20,000 in 2002 from 42,000 two years ago without undermining the right of asylum.

"We just wanted to prevent our country being abused by human traffickers. That sounds a lot more sensible than the current panic reactions in certain countries, which are adopting measures which go too far," Verhofstadt said.

"I would not describe what is happening in the United Kingdom right now as a move towards the right, but a typical panic reaction of a government which has realized that there are 100,000 refugees on its doorstep," he said.

EU interior ministers agreed on Thursday on an action plan to improve border control, combat illegal immigration and pressure third countries into cooperating to fight human trafficking and take back rejected migrants.

The recent stunning electoral scores of French far right crusader Jean-Marie Le Pen and murdered Dutch anti-immigration campaigner Pim Fortuyn have helped jolt the European Union into swifter action against illegal immigration.