Thursday

1st Jun 2023

Exclusive

France unveils new model EU enlargement

  • French president Emmanuel Macron shocked EU colleagues at October summit by saying no to North Macedonia (Photo: consilium.europa.eu)

Western Balkan countries should still become EU members, but via a new, step-by-step method, France has said.

The "gradual association" idea was the basis for a "reformed approach to the [EU] accession process", set out in an informal, six-page paper circulated to EU diplomats by France on Friday (15 November) and seen by EUobserver.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

  • French veto could harm Western influence in the region, Germany and US warned (Photo: Zlatevska DNEVNIK)

EU enlargement currently works by opening accession negotiations with candidate countries, which cover 35 separate areas or "chapters" of European law.

Once candidates agree to make the necessary reforms, they are admitted as full members and have access to European programmes, such as science grants, and to tens of billions of euros a year in EU subsidies.

But in the new French model, they would make the reforms in a seven-step process, gaining access to selected EU programmes and funds along the way, before arriving at "full" membership.

The seven steps are: (i) rule of law and fundamental rights; (ii) education and research; (iii) employment and social affairs; (iv) financial affairs; (v) the single market, agriculture, and fish; (vi) foreign affairs; and (vii) "others".

If candidates graduated step one, they could gain entry to Eurojust, the EU judicial cooperation club in The Hague, for instance, France said.

Step two could see them win access to the so-called Horizon 2020 science programme and let Balkan universities take part in the Erasmus student exchange scheme, the French paper added .

Step four could see them join the EU banking union, while step five would "make candidate countries eligible for structural funds" - the multi-billion euro subsidies.

"Completion of negotiations corresponding to each step taken by the country would open the possibility to participate in corresponding EU programmes, to be associated to certain relevant sectoral policies, and, where appropriate, to benefit from certain targeted funding," the French paper said.

The "final objective remains full and entire accession", it added.

EU affairs ministers will hold initial talks on the French ideas in Brussels on Tuesday.

They would have to agree to any changes by unanimity.

But if things went well, then the European Commission ought to flesh out the ideas in legal documents by January 2020, France noted.

And that might mean the EU reforms could still be put in place, or, at least, agreed in principle, in time for a summit with Western Balkan leaders in Zagreb in May.

Veto shocker

The new proposals came after French president Emmanuel Macron caused shock last month by vetoing the opening of accession talks with North Macedonia, even though it had changed its name to comply with EU demands.

It prompted concern that France intended to halt EU expansion in the Western Balkans.

It also prompted German and US warnings on potential instability or in a spike in Chinese and Russian influence in the region.

But the French paper "reaffirmed" the EU's "unequivocal support for the European perspective of Western Balkan countries".

Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia "belonged to Europe by their history, their culture, and their geography," France said.

It did not mention Turkey, which is an official EU candidate, but whose talks were de facto suspended three years ago after a failed coup in Ankara led to mass-scale repression.

Any EU reforms could also affect Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, which aspire to join one day.

The French paper justified Macron's veto by saying the past 20 years of EU intervention in the Western Balkans had yielded "too slow" progress and "insufficient benefits" for its people.

But the step-by-step method, and its acceleration of EU subsidies, would bring "concrete benefits", it said.

And those, in turn, would "stem the migratory movements [out of the Western Balkans to Europe] which pose difficulties for both sides" and "reduce unfavourable external influence [from China and Russia]," it added.

New rigour

France also warned that Western Balkan backsliding on democracy or rule of law would come at a price, however.

It called for "rigorous conditions" and "reversibility" of EU benefits if things went awry.

"Criteria for passage from one step to another will be precisely defined, allowing for verification of their effective and lasting ... implementation," France noted.

The criteria on the rule of law step could be taken from the "justice scoreboard", while the financial affairs one could be based on the "European semester", France said, referring to two existing EU checklists on member states' judicial and fiscal compliance.

The Council of Europe in Strasbourg, a European human rights watchdog, could also furnish criteria on constitutional probity and on anti-money laundering compliance, France noted.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, a wealthy nations' club in Paris, and the World Bank in Washington could supply additional benchmarks, it said.

But "specific governance" on enlargement steps would be in the hands of the EU commission and member states, who would "regularly follow ... progress made" and "examine" candidates' performance, France said.

Bosnia wants explanation for Macron's 'time-bomb' remark

Bosnia requested an interview with the French ambassador to Sarajevo, after Emmanuel Macron described the country as a "ticking time bomb" and one of the greatest concerns for Europe due to the "problem of returning jihadists".

Macron warned on danger of Balkans veto

France's veto on North Macedonia enlargement will endanger the Serbia-Kosovo peace process, a senior EU official has warned, but diplomats do not expect Macron to change his mind.

EU to publish new enlargement method

EU hopefuls will know more about the hoops they will have to jump through in future when the European Commission publishes its new "enlargement methodology" this week.

Column

What a Spanish novelist can teach us about communality

In a world where cultural clashes and sectarianism seems to be on the increase, Spanish novelist Javier Cercas (b.1962) takes the opposite approach. He cherishes both life in the big city and in the countryside.

Opinion

Poland and Hungary's ugly divorce over Ukraine

What started in 2015 as a 'friends-with-benefits' relationship between Viktor Orbán and Jarosław Kaczyński, for Hungary and Poland, is ending in disgust and enmity — which will not be overcome until both leaders leave.

Latest News

  1. MEPs pile on pressure for EU to delay Hungary's presidency
  2. IEA: World 'comfortably' on track for renewables target
  3. Europe's TV union wooing Lavrov for splashy interview
  4. ECB: eurozone home prices could see 'disorderly' fall
  5. Adapting to Southern Europe's 'new normal' — from droughts to floods
  6. Want to stop forced migration from West Africa? Start by banning bottom trawling
  7. Germany unsure if Orbán fit to be 'EU president'
  8. EU Parliament chief given report on MEP abuse 30 weeks before sanction

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. International Sustainable Finance CentreJoin CEE Sustainable Finance Summit, 15 – 19 May 2023, high-level event for finance & business
  2. ICLEISeven actionable measures to make food procurement in Europe more sustainable
  3. World BankWorld Bank Report Highlights Role of Human Development for a Successful Green Transition in Europe
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersNordic summit to step up the fight against food loss and waste
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersThink-tank: Strengthen co-operation around tech giants’ influence in the Nordics
  6. EFBWWEFBWW calls for the EC to stop exploitation in subcontracting chains

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. InformaConnecting Expert Industry-Leaders, Top Suppliers, and Inquiring Buyers all in one space - visit Battery Show Europe.
  2. EFBWWEFBWW and FIEC do not agree to any exemptions to mandatory prior notifications in construction
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersNordic and Baltic ways to prevent gender-based violence
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: Economic gender equality now! Nordic ways to close the pension gap
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: Pushing back the push-back - Nordic solutions to online gender-based violence
  6. Nordic Council of MinistersCSW67: The Nordics are ready to push for gender equality

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us