On Tuesday 19 March, MEPs on the Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs held talks with the European affairs ministers of the Member States on the priorities and necessary preparations for the EU’s enlargement policy. This discussion is part of the run-up to the European Council on 21 and 22 March, at which enlargement will be a key issue.
During the discussions, most of the ministers present began by stressing the importance of the candidate countries carrying out national reforms and of basing the accession process on merit.
“Enlargement must be based on merit. We must have a commitment from our partners”, summed up Finnish Minister for European Affairs Anders Adlercreutz, listing corruption, the market economy and justice among the priorities set as “starting points for accession”.
In addition to a commitment to the reforms, some ministers also insisted that candidate countries must fully align with the Common Foreign and Security Policy, when certain countries, notably Serbia, continue to maintain more or less close ties with Russia.
A significant part of the discussions was devoted to Ukraine and Moldova. Several ministers, including Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, called on the institutions to “keep their word” and “launch negotiations by June at the latest”.
In addition, the discussions on Ukraine and Moldova prompted some members of Member State governments, such as Austrian Federal Minister for the EU and the Constitution Karoline Edtstadler, to insist that the Western Balkan countries not be forgotten. “We must not have two-speed enlargement”, she said.
“We have lost credibility with certain countries, such as North Macedonia and Kosovo. We want the EU to be stronger and more united by 2030”, added Tanja Fajon, Slovenia’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs.
Some also felt that the EU itself should reflect on its future and the challenges of enlargement. Still on the subject of the EU’s internal machinery, the Lithuanian Foreign Minister criticised Hungary’s attitude, saying that Budapest was “blackmailing the EU” and using enlargement to settle “bilateral issues”.
His Hungarian counterpart, Péter Sztáray, insisted that it was not a question of “blackmail”. “The conditions have to be met, we can’t bully minorities, it’s not a bilateral issue, it’s a human rights issue”, he said. He also pointed out that his country would take over the Presidency of the EU Council in the second half of 2024.
On this occasion, Hungary will try, according to him, “to open new chapters with North Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo, to finalise with Montenegro, and to open negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina”. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)