BRUSSELS – The European Commission is considering three main options for the future of enlargement policy, Euractiv’s newsletter reports. According to this portal, the first would leave the current system unchanged, keeping Albania and Montenegro as the frontrunners, with the aim of joining before the end of the EU’s political term in 2029.
Under the second option, known as ‘gradual integration,’ candidate countries would join more EU initiatives and programmes without formally entering the bloc, leaving the ratification hurdle across all 27 capitals to later.
“Experts see this as the better option. But it would leave the likes of Ukraine disappointed”, Euractiv stresses.
The third option, which is considered to be the most radical, is what EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos calls “phased integration”.
“Under this approach, countries would get a quick formal entry, agreed by all 27 countries, and then catch up with reforms later. Ratification is only set to get trickier, with a rising far-right in Europe”, the web portal notes.
According to Euractiv, Ursula von der Leyen’s Head of Cabinet, Björn Seibert, faced national ambassadors for a closed-door dinner last night to lay out the options.
“He received strong pushback, according to four people with knowledge of the discussions”, the portal reports.
An EU diplomat said working on the options posed no problems, and that the leaks helped stimulate the work, Euractiv concludes.
