BRUSSELS (AFP) - EU regulators have provisionally approved the original three-country bailout package for troubled finance group Fortis, a spokesman said Sunday, though the deal is swiftly being superceded.

"We have given provisional approval to last week's deal by the Belgian, Luxembourg and Dutch governments," said Jonathan Todd, spokesman for EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes.

Under the hastily arranged rescue, Belgium made the biggest contribution, taking a 49 percent stake in the Belgian arm of the company, Fortis Bank NV/SA, for 4.7 billion euros.

The Dutch government took a 49 percent stake in the Dutch arm, Fortis Bank Nederland Holding, for 4.0 billion euros.

On Friday the Dutch government announced it was taking over the Dutch arm of Fortis entirely.

This operation, Todd said, may not need any EU approval.

"The fact that a country has taken a 100 percent share, doesn't need EU permission per se," he told AFP.

"Countries are free to nationalise or privatise companies".

The Belgian and Luxembourg governments were mulling over the weekend what to do with their Fortis stakes, with an announcement expected by Monday.

Todd said that a report from The Hague quoting Kroes as saying the EU had greenlighted the full nationalisation of the Dutch arm of Fortis had misunderstood the EU Commissioner.

"She was referring to the earlier deal," he said.

The Netherlands government said Friday it would nationalise the Dutch activities of the Belgian-Dutch banking group in a 16.8 billion euro (23.5 billion dollar) deal to ease pressures from the global financial crisis.

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