Scheduled to be on the agenda of the ‘General Affairs’ Council on Tuesday 16 December (see EUROPE 13773/25), the enlargement of the Union is the subject of separate conclusions which must be validated by the ministers.
The document - a version of which Agence Europe was able to obtain on 10 December - welcomes the substantial progress made by several candidates, most notably Montenegro and Albania, while maintaining a line of strict conditionality on the rule of law, regional normalisation and alignment with the Union’s foreign policy.
Despite this, their approval could be a challenge. According to a senior European official, the text is being blocked by Hungary, which is still refusing to accept Ukraine’s advance. Without validation by the EU27, these conclusions could become mere conclusions of the Danish Presidency of the EU Council.
The draft conclusions mention at this point the need to maintain a “merit-based and credible” enlargement policy, stressing that the progress of the candidate countries “will continue to be assessed on the basis of fair and rigorous conditionality and their own merits: a cornerstone of the accession negotiations, with rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights at its core”.
The conclusions add that full alignment with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) remains an essential aspect of the EU integration process, expecting all partners to align fully, including with regard to restrictive measures.
However, the EU Council is expected to welcome the fact that several candidate countries have made significant progress in 2025 “despite significant challenges caused by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and continued hybrid activities”.
Western Balkans. At this stage, Albania and Montenegro are the two candidate countries closest to integration. The draft conclusions also mention the possibility of establishing an “Ad hoc Working Party on Drafting the Accession Treaty with Montenegro” before the end of the year.
Criticised for its links with Moscow, Serbia and its leader, Aleksandar Vučić, are becoming increasingly irritating at European level (see EUROPE 13771/23). The EU Council should reiterate that the will to join must be translated into deeds and words, and reaffirm that the Union firmly expects Belgrade to align itself fully with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), with restrictive measures against Russia and Belarus as an absolute priority.
With regard to Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the country’s reform momentum has stalled, the EU Council will reportedly reiterate its calls to all political players to refocus the country’s efforts on pursuing the EU accession process and implementing the necessary reforms.
As for North Macedonia, the EU Council is expected to recall that the central condition for the continuation of accession negotiations remains the constitutional review, which is still incomplete.
Eastern Neighbourhood. For Ukraine and Moldova, as the screening process was completed in time, the EU Council should recall that it is currently undertaking work to prepare the next steps. “The Council looks forward to the opening of the fundamentals cluster with both candidates without delay”, the draft conclusions add, while Hungary is still blocking the opening of the first cluster for Ukraine, which in turn is blocking Moldova’s progress.
On Tuesday, Marie Bjerre, the Danish Minister for European Affairs, on behalf of the Presidency of the Council of the EU, announced that she would be sending Chișinău “detailed guidelines on the requirements to be met” for clusters: the fundamentals, the single market and external relations. “Thanks to this, Moldova will be able to continue its close cooperation with the EU on its reform programme”, before the official opening of these clusters, she explained.
The EU Council also reiterates that Georgia’s EU accession process is “at a standstill” until the authorities demonstrate a “resolute commitment to reverse course” and returning to the path of EU membership.
Turkey. The EU Council recalls that Turkey “remains a candidate country and a key partner in many areas of joint interest”, but that accession negotiations “have effectively come to a standstill” and that “no further chapters can be considered for opening or closing”.
The EU Council points out that the EU is ready to continue dialogue with Ankara in areas of common interest in a progressive, proportionate and reversible manner, in accordance with the conclusions of the April 2024 European Council and subject to established conditions (see EUROPE 13393/5).
To see the draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/K05 (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre and Camille-Cerise Gessant)