The European Council will return on Thursday or Friday to the issue of opening negotiations for the accession of North Macedonia and Albania to the EU, following the inability of the General Affairs Council (GAC) to agree on a position on Tuesday 15 October (see EUROPE 12349/1).
At the request of the Finnish Presidency of the Council of the EU, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk – who met the North Macedonian and Albanian Prime Ministers on Wednesday 16 October – decided to add the item to the agenda.
According to a diplomatic source, the subject is “extremely sensitive”. “If the European Council simply does the same as the General Affairs Council, which failed to reach an agreement, the signal sent would be extremely bad”, she warned, adding that she would wait for further developments after the meeting of the French President and the German Chancellor on 16 October.
From Brussels, North Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev put pressure on EU leaders. “Do not extinguish the bright stars we have come for. Don't be our obstacles, I invite you to be our heroes”, he said to the Twenty-Eight. He warned that any postponement of the decision would be understood as a negative decision, with negative effects.
For his part, the Commissioner for Enlargement Negotiations, Johannes Hahn, still as upbeat as the previous day, called on leaders to assess the situation “in a broader context” and to give a “clear signal of commitment to a European perspective” for North Macedonia, but also for Albania. He said he has always believed in a positive result.
However, one diplomatic source clarified that a decision at the leadership level should not be expected, but to expect “indications” from them, on the follow-up to be given.
The discussions risk being tense. “The frustration is real, we have a problem of unity”, acknowledged a European diplomat. Disagreement on the progress made by the two countries, the need to stabilise the Western Balkans region versus ‘enlargement fatigue’, there are many divisions.
While a majority of Member States are in favour of opening negotiations with both countries, France, which claims to be supported by the Netherlands, does not want to open negotiations with either country. In between, some Member States would be in favour of opening up with Skopje, but not with Tirana, but others are reportedly against any decoupling. “The [Finnish] Presidency tried this famous decoupling, [at the GAC] without much interest”, said one source. He added, “Decoupling could cause upheavals in the region, but it is true that this would be in the logic of self-evident merit”.
In communiqués, the S&D and Greens/EFA groups in Parliament called on EU leaders to open accession negotiations with both countries. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with editorial staff)