Views: 6
The European Commission has adopted a package on pre-enlargement policy reviews, setting out the policy orientations and actions needed to prepare the Union for future enlargements. The accession countries should implement the required reforms and achieve concrete progress in core elements of the enlargement process; whereas the EU and the states should support the candidate countries with financial and technical assistance to achieve these criteria, following the European values and fundamental integration principles.
Background
The EU’s pre-accession instruments play an important role as they provide valuable experience for designing modernised support tools tailored to specific country needs, as was the case with Phare (the Program of Community aid to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe), SAPARD (pre-accession agricultural instrument) and ISPA (Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession).
Already three years ago, in the SOTU-23 address the Commission President suggested “matching the determination of further enlargement” for the countries to join the EU and announced pre-enlargement policy reviews. The Granada Declaration that same year set out the parallel responsibilities of enlargement countries to advance their reforms and of the Union to undertake the necessary internal preparations. In Granada declaration of October 2023, the European Council acknowledged that the necessary acceleration of reform efforts in candidate countries should be matched by a parallel process of groundwork and reforms within the EU-27.
More in: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2023/10/06/granada-declaration/
The Commission’s March 2024 Communication on the pre-enlargement policy reviews outlined a work program covering four areas: values, policies, the budget and governance. In June 2024, the European Council adopted a roadmap for future work on internal reforms and invited the Commission to present in-depth policy reviews with operational elements in those four areas.
On pre-enlargement reforms in: https://commission.europa.eu/publications/communication-pre-enlargement-reforms-and-policy-reviews_en
In the Political Guidelines for 2024–2029, the Commission committed to put forward proposals to strengthen the Union’s capacity to act. In parallel, the European Parliament set out its position through its 2023 proposals for Treaty reform and its 2025 report and resolution on the institutional consequences of enlargement negotiations.
More on the EU-enlargement negotiations, in: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/2097/oj/eng
As part of the 2026 Enlargement Package, the Commission is drafting so-called indicative roadmaps for Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine, provided they maintain reform momentum. The road maps also present a coherent approach for the gradual integration, including a mapping of the strategic areas. The Commission will also work with the EU member states and the candidate countries to align accession negotiations with the Union’s internal preparations.
Reference to: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_2075
Historic reminiscences
The countries that joined the EU in 2004 – the largest so far EU’s enlargement – have experienced during over two decades substantial economic growth and higher standards in several socio-economic areas, including an increase in GDP per capita of 30 % on average. Besides, generally, all new member states have experienced an additional 12 % of GDP growth compared to their projected growth if they had not joined the EU (and this growth was quite noticeable even within next five years of their accession).
At the same time, over the last 20 years, the EU-wide economy has grown by about 30 percent, whereas the countries that were already part of the EU at the time of the 2004 enlargement have also experienced growth and prosperity, with a clear causal relationship with expanded markets, connectivity and investment resulting from the enlargement.
Thus, every EU region experienced economic growth through enlargement, but the poorest regions experienced the highest relative economic growth.
Positive impacts
Presently, the GDP per capita in the expected accession states in the Western Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia remains around or below 50 % of that of the EU, although some candidate countries have demonstrated steady economic growth over recent years, which enables a merit-based and forward-looking approach.
The experience following all EU enlargements demonstrates the positive impact that EU membership and membership of the EU single market and access to structural funds have on economic and social convergence.
Thus, for example, various studies have shown that the addition of ten new member states about 20 years ago managed to shrink the GDP per capita gap between the EU and the United States by 10 %; whereas expanded access to, among other things, labour markets, industrial capacity, digital technologies, in particular AI and critical rare earth minerals, would enable the EU to accelerate the green, digital and just transitions while decreasing its costs, at the same time becoming more strategically autonomous from Russia, China and other systemic competitors. Hence, scenarios combining substantial enlargement with strong convergence could add up to about $10 trillion to the EU’s GDP by 2035.
The new package of measures
The present Commission’s package provides an in-depth assessment of the EU-wide policies in light of upcoming enlargements: i.e. it sets out the ways the existing Union’s Treaty framework and future accession treaties can be used to prepare the EU-27 for a larger membership.
It also proposes a set of safeguards for future accession treaties, including stronger sectoral safeguards and a new institutional safeguard clause, to ensure that commitments undertaken during accession negotiations continue to be fulfilled steadily after accession.
The package also reinforces the gradual integration process by making it more coherent, more structured and predictable. This enhanced process will further support the candidate countries’ preparation for membership through earlier participation in selected Union policies, provided conditions are met.
Such approach can build administrative capacity, strengthen preparedness for accession and deliver tangible benefits for citizens and businesses both in the EU and in enlargement countries before membership. Participation would remain merit-based, conditional and reversible and depend on policy readiness and strategic alignment.
The new package will feed into the strategic discussion among the member states on enlargement and reforms, including at the decision process among the EU institutions and bodies. Besides, new measures will guide the work in the European Parliament and the Council on executive and operational adjustments required for future accessions.
In the process of gradually integrating candidate countries into the EU, closer integration should bring tangible benefits to citizens and businesses in both the EU and candidate countries. The Commission will map existing gradual integration instruments and identify opportunities to deepen integration in strategic sectors such as energy, transport, digital and defence.
It will complement and reinforce the accession process, build administrative capacity and mutual trust, while remaining conditional and reversible. The Commission will launch annual dialogues with enlargement partners to track progress, identify opportunities and address gaps during gradual integration.
References to: a) https://commission.europa.eu/document/19022e79-d2b4-4d13-bdc6-0185da92856a_en. And b) https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_2075;
Bottom-line: the road maps
Building on the experience with previous enlargements, the Commission proposes (as is seen in the 2026 enlargement communications), indicative roadmaps providing a pathway for the next steps in the accession processes of the most advanced negotiating countries Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine, provided they maintain the pace of reforms. These roadmaps will prejudge neither the outcome nor the speed of negotiations but will provide an anchor for the negotiations both for the candidate countries and for the EU institutions.
Based on the revised enlargement methodology that provides for greater predictability, such
roadmaps will allow for better prioritization, sequencing and monitoring of the process. In line
with the so-called “own-merits principle”, the pace of accession negotiations will continue to depend on the negotiating countries progressing and completing the required reforms necessary to meet the conditions of the EU’s perspective membership.
The accession process will remain rigorous and merit-based, with participation, benefits and
obligations tied to reforms’ delivery, implementation capacity and strategic alignment. However, as the Commission reiterates, “rigorous and merit-based approach do not mean slow in delivering for the EU citizens and businesses: the member states and enlargement countries must be able to experience the tangible benefits at every stage of the process”.
Source and citation from: https://commission.europa.eu/document/19022e79-d2b4-4d13-bdc6-0185da92856a_en
The present EU enlargement is a strategic investment in the European-wide peace, security and prosperity; it would deliver significant political and economic benefits for all partners in the enlargement process. To fully unlock these benefits the EU member states and institutions must be ready to welcome new members: the new Communication’s communication titled “Preparing for a wider Union”, outlines the policy orientations and practical steps needed to prepare the EU for the next enlargements.
Main source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/qanda_26_2076
More on the “wider Union” in: https://commission.europa.eu/document/19022e79-d2b4-4d13-bdc6-0185da92856a_en