The EU needs to change its rules to allow a new wave of countries to join, the bloc’s enlargement chief said on Tuesday, calling on capitals to present their own plans after rejecting the European Commission’s proposals to streamline the process, according to Politico.
The Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, stated that the Community Executive has already presented three options to the countries and “without… the decision of the member states, we cannot move forward,” speaking at the Competitive Europe Summit.
These three options include maintaining the status quo, changing the current system to ensure that candidate countries do not wait for years, or the reverse enlargement proposal put forward by the Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, and her team, in which candidates would join before completing key reforms.
The accession process has been complicated by the persistent refusal of the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, to ensure the unanimous support necessary for Ukraine to continue its candidacy. Reverse enlargement was envisaged by Brussels as a way for Kiev and others to start gaining access to the single market and investment schemes before becoming full members of the EU.
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