The European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, presented measures in Strasbourg on Tuesday 6 October to prepare the European Union’s governance, policies and budget for enlargement without changing the Treaties, while strengthening respect for the Union’s values and the rule of law as new countries join.
Ms Kos outlined five areas of action: - practical arrangements on governance, the rule of law and policies; - more ambitious framework for the gradual integration of candidate countries, acting as an “accelerator” for enlargement; - common framework for accession safeguards for all future enlargements; - impact on accession of the Union policies; - roadmaps for the most advanced countries: Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine.
“All Member States – and I stress this point – will enjoy the same rights, including the newcomers. We do not want a two-tier accession”, the Commissioner stressed.
The intention, therefore, is not to limit the decision-making powers of new Member States from the outset or restrict their representation within the EU institutions. The Commission nevertheless points out that the Treaties provide for a system of rotation among Commissioners so that their number is equal to two-thirds of the number of Member States, with the final decision resting with the European Council.
Institutional safeguard clause. The proposed creation of an institutional safeguard clause is the EU institution’s main announcement.
Applicable during the first 15 years after a country joins the EU, this clause would be triggered in the event of serious breaches of fundamental values (Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union) or the principle of sincere cooperation between Member States (Article 4). Certain particularly serious breaches could even lead to the suspension of voting rights in the Council of the EU.
“This is an insurance policy so we can act if needed”, Ms Kos explained.
The safeguard mechanism would complement existing instruments, including the procedure under Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union concerning respect for the Rule of law in a Member State. On the basis of a Commission proposal or a reasoned request from several Member States, the Council of the EU would decide whether to activate it by “reverse qualified majority or a qualified supermajority”, according to a senior European official.
The Commission also wants to extend the current three-year period of validity of the three safeguard clauses already included in accession treaties, which concern: - economic difficulties in a sector or geographical area; - breaches of single market rules; - shortcomings in the application of the acquis in justice and home affairs.
A new Member State could also undertake in writing not to oppose European Council and Council of the EU decisions on enlargement because of bilateral disputes.
Enhanced pre-enlargement monitoring. The Commission also proposes to strengthen monitoring between the signing of an accession treaty and the date of accession to the EU, a period that can last many months.
According to the same source, this monitoring would make it possible to identify and fix shortcomings in alignment with the EU and take appropriate corrective measures if problems arise. A clause allowing accession to the EU to be postponed could also be invoked “as a measure of last resort”, the source said. In its communication, the Commission does not specify the procedure for reaching such a decision.
It also proposes to expand the scope for gradual integration, depending on the reforms implemented by candidate countries and their alignment with the EU’s common foreign and security policy.
The instruments for gradual integration in five areas will be identified by the end of October: - participation in internal EU programmes (Erasmus+, ‘Horizon Europe’, etc.); - access to EU agencies – some candidate countries already work with Frontex; - gradual integration into the single market; - connectivity; - access to expert groups and committees.
An annual dialogue on integration would also be established with the countries concerned, except Montenegro, whose accession negotiations are the most advanced.
Facilitating the EU’s internal functioning. In a Union with more than 30 members, the question of decision-making becomes even more pressing. Where unanimity is required, a single country can block an agreement, as was demonstrated by the refusal of Viktor Orbán’s previous Hungarian government to open EU accession negotiations with Ukraine.
The Commission is seeking ways around these obstacles while working within the existing Treaties. It therefore suggests making better use of existing tools by invoking the Treaties’ ‘passerelle clauses’ where possible. There are 67 such clauses (see EUROPE 12996/18), which allow Member States to decide by qualified majority in the Council of the EU, but require unanimity to be activated.
According to a second European official, the Commission has yet to identify the areas in which the ‘passerelle clauses’ could be activated. EU foreign-policy sanctions, the opening of EU accession negotiating chapters, the fight against tax fraud and social protection are among the areas frequently mentioned.
EU enlargement will inevitably affect the substance of European policies.
“Our assessment shows that in most policy areas the EU can accommodate for enlargement”, but there are areas “where we would need adjustments”, Ms Kos noted. “For Ukraine, the scale, structure and very high productivity of the agriculture sector calls for the examination of targeted arrangements for sensitive agricultural products only”, she explained.
According to the first official, “substantial financial support will not be necessary” for Ukraine’s agricultural sector, which is “very different” from the EU’s in terms of productivity, unit costs and its orientation towards international markets.
Finally, the Commission intends to ensure that future EU Member States respect the Rule of law and fundamental European values. It has extended the scope of its annual Rule of Law Report to include candidate countries in the Western Balkans. The EU institution also states that the application of the procedure under Article 7 of the Treaty can be improved.
On Wednesday 28 October, it will present its ‘enlargement’ package, taking stock of candidate countries’ progress. It will include roadmaps setting deadlines and concrete actions for Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine and Moldova. Before then, in mid-October, the European Council will have held a strategic discussion on enlargement.
To see the Commission’s communication: https://aeur.eu/f/ns6; and the working document: https://aeur.eu/f/ns7 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant and Mathieu Bion)