“Politico”: Albania among the four countries the EU wants to fast-track toward membership

The European Union is preparing proposals aimed at offering the four most advanced candidate countries a clear, step-by-step path toward EU membership, writes Politico.

According to two senior European Commission officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the plans, special “roadmaps” are being considered for Montenegro, Ukraine, Moldova and Albania.

The initiative is part of efforts to accelerate a membership process that has been moving slowly for years.

The four countries are considered among the most advanced candidates for membership, but so far they have faced varying paces of reform and a lack of clear deadlines for completing negotiations.

Under the new proposal, countries would get a clearer perspective: if they implement the necessary reforms, the process would have indicative targets and deadlines for concluding negotiations.

Deadlines and marked reforms

The roadmaps aim to define more clearly what is required of each candidate country.

At the same time, they would also create obligations for EU member states, which must give their approval for the process to move forward.

The plans would also set approximate deadlines for completing reform clusters, known as negotiating “clusters”. These are important milestones on the road to membership.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, during her State of the Union address in early September, promised targeted support for candidate countries that have made the most progress.

A European Commission spokesperson confirmed that the new roadmaps would create a path toward concluding accession negotiations.

According to him, they would set a clear list of priorities, deadlines and targets to help the most advanced candidates complete the necessary reforms.

Other countries lag behind

According to officials quoted by POLITICO, at this stage the roadmaps would not be offered to candidate countries considered to be at an earlier stage of the process, such as Kosovo, North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Also outside this initiative would remain Georgia, Turkey and Serbia, whose processes have slowed over concerns about democratic and rule-of-law backsliding.

“Geopolitical necessity”

The new initiative comes at a time when the EU increasingly sees enlargement as a strategic issue.

European leaders are seeking to strengthen ties with democracies and pro-trade countries, especially in the EU’s neighborhood, in a period of tensions with the United States, practices considered hostile by China and threats linked to Russia.

European officials worry that too long an accession process could cause disappointment in candidate countries or expose them to pressure from external actors opposed to their rapprochement with the EU.

In a draft version of the pre-accession policy review, it is said that enlargement remains a “geopolitical necessity”, while the accession process requires time and deep, sustainable reforms.

The document stresses that this period should be used strategically, both for preparing the EU for wider membership and for gradually deepening the integration of candidate countries in areas of common interest.

Gradual integration before membership

In parallel with the new plans, the EU is reviewing its “pre-accession” policies.

The idea is to offer candidate countries a clearer path toward “gradual integration”, using economic benefits and participation in joint projects as incentives for implementing reforms.

The review, led by von der Leyen’s close adviser Alexandre Adam, is expected to be presented to senior EU officials on October 6.

The goal is to keep candidate countries on the membership path even during the long period required to complete applications and negotiations.

As part of this review, Ursula von der Leyen and Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos would also propose changes to the internal functioning of the EU, aiming to put in place safeguards to prevent new members from undermining important bloc policies or failing to honor commitments.

The changes could include emergency clauses and transitional periods before new countries receive all rights related to membership.

Decisions requiring unanimity

The European Commission document argues that the EU can handle wider membership through targeted adaptations, mostly within the existing framework of EU treaties.

However, some European capitals remain cautious about enlargement, especially after the experience with the deterioration of rule-of-law standards in Hungary and Budapest’s use of the veto to block some EU policies.

The support of all member states is necessary for a candidate country to move through the stages of the accession process.

EU country leaders are expected to discuss how and at what pace enlargement can be achieved during the two-day summit in Brussels on October 15.

In this context, the European Commission will seek political support to accelerate the process.

The European Council will hold a strategic discussion on enlargement and internal EU reforms.

Commissioner Marta Kos earlier told POLITICO she hopes the proposed changes and discussions with European leaders will create an “enlargement autumn”, after several years of slower pace.

Meanwhile, Ursula von der Leyen is expected to visit the Western Balkans this week, where she will hold talks with the leaders of Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia and Kosovo.

She will not visit Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia, which are in an election period.