The European Parliament adopted a resolution on 23 November concerning its new strategy for European Union enlargement, with 502 votes in favor, 75 against, and 61 abstentions. Tonino Picula, EP rapporteur on the New Enlargement Strategy, presented the Report on a European Parliament recommendation to the Council, the Commission and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy concerning the new EU strategy for enlargement at the plenary session of the European Parliament.
As part of the resolution, MEPs called on the EU to “overcome the status quo and re-energize the enlargement process both among member states and in applicant countries.”
Among the recommendations was the following:
- No alternatives should replace enlargement
- Reform the decision-making process on accession and advance with accession negotiations by qualified majority instead of unanimity
- Accession negotiations should be concluded by 2030
The resolution further recommends recognizing the importance of intergovernmental forums such as the Berlin Process, but also to “express strong reservations about any regional economic cooperation initiative that does not encompass all six Western Balkan countries and is not based on EU rules, such as the Open Balkan initiative.”
It’s widely known that Serbia’s non-alignment with the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy isn’t seen favorably by the EP, which recommended that the Council should advance accession negotiation with Serbia only if the country aligns with the EU foreign policy on Russia, including the sanctions. Moreover, the MPs stated that the EU should reconsider funding provided to Serbia “in order to ensure that all EU expenditure is fully in line with the EU’s strategic goals and interests.”
In light of the discussion about the EU delivering on its part when it comes to the accession process, the resolution stressed that visa liberalization to Kosovo should be granted “without delay.” Regarding the Belgrade-Priština dialogue, the MPs called upon the EU institutions to “step up the EU’s constructive engagement with the authorities of both Serbia and Kosovo.”
The resolution further stated the importance of the “long overdue” start of accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia and called for support to Bosnia and Herzegovina in fulfilling the 14 key requirements outlined by the European Council in June 2022, which would allow the country to be granted candidate status.
Montenegro, which is regarded as the “frontrunner in the EU accession process”, should be given “closing benchmarks for negotiating chapters” in order to accelerate the country’s accession. The resolution also called for Montenegro’s “multi-ethnic identity to be respected.”
Picula, EP rapporteur on the New Enlargement Strategy, expressed his satisfaction with the voting results on Twitter, where he said that the EP wants “a transparent and accelerated enlargement process for those who deserve it and the abolition of funds for those regimes that do not support European values.”
Group of Socialists and Democrats in the EP (S&D) released a statement stressing the importance of the report, bearing in mind that the “enlargement is one of the most successful EU policies, but it must be re-energised in order for the EU to retain its geostrategic relevance and credibility,” while also keeping the clear focus on the rule of law and democratic reforms.
The statement explained that the report “stresses that if the EU wants to be a geopolitical player, it must remain an open project, and also proposes a clear deadline: accession negotiations should be concluded by the end of 2030.”
The resolution recognized the importance of enlargement policy in light of current geopolitical circumstances caused by the Russian aggression on Ukraine, as well as the diminishing effectiveness of the enlargement policy “due to the EU’s failure to live up to its own promises.”
In order to learn from its past mistakes and improve the enlargement policy altogether, the EU should transform the accession process to be more responsive to the merits, as well as the backsliding demonstrated by candidate countries, as it is pointed out in the resolution.
Some of the concrete steps recommended by the EP towards achieving that include abolishing the requirement for unanimity when deciding on opening and closing clusters and chapters, as well as accession negotiations, and introducing qualified majority for votes related to the accession process instead. It further calls upon Member States to “avoid using unresolved bilateral and regional disputes to block candidate countries’ accession processes.”
The EP further proposed rewarding countries who make substantial progress in the reforms by a phase-in approach, gradually including them in “respective EU policies, initiatives and the single market, including access to EU funds in the respective areas, enabling citizens to reap the benefits of accession throughout the process and not only upon its completion.” On the other hand, regression or lack of progress should be sanctioned according to the targeted conditionality policy.
“I strongly believe the enlargement process can encourage much-awaited EU reforms. We have to improve decision-making. We cannot lose time once again, like in the case of North Macedonia and Albania… But as much as the S&Ds want the EU to accelerate the enlargement process, it’s clear that its success also depends on countries aspiring to join our EU family. They must make clear pro-European choices. EU membership means more than just EU funds and transport corridors. Before anything, it represents a set of values and principles to share and respect,” Picula stated.
The resolution calls on the Commission and the Council of the EU to regard the issue of harmonization with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy as a priority in the accession process, and states that negotiations with Serbia should progress “only if the country aligns with EU sanctions against Russia and makes significant progress on the EU-related reforms.”
The MPs adopted the amendment on the part of the resolution related to Serbia, which calls upon the Member States to “reconsider any bilateral and EU funds for Serbia that would benefit the Serbian authorities.” This refers to the funds under the framework of Western Balkan Economic and Investment Plan in particular, “in order to ensure that all EU expenditure is fully in line with the EU’s strategic goals and interests.”
The EP used this opportunity to express support for Bosnia and Herzegovina in implementation of reforms and “welcome the Commission’s recommendation with conditions for granting candidate country status to Bosnia and Herzegovina.” The final text of the resolution also included the amendment which “and calls on the European Council to follow up on the recommendation as soon as possible.”
When it comes to regional cooperation, the resolution included the amendment which welcomes the three mobility agreements signed on 3 November under the framework of the Berlin Process, one of the initiatives recognized as a good example of regional cooperation by the resolution. However, the resolution also called upon the Member States to “express strong reservations about any regional economic cooperation initiative that does not encompass all six Western Balkan countries and is not based on EU rules, such as the Open Balkan initiative.”
Following its adoption, the resolution now presents the official stance of the European Parliament towards the enlargement. Even though it is not binding, the resolution is an offical recommendation to the Commission and the Council.
/Compiled from wires by Argumentum.al
