How will the European Union have to change to function with more than thirty Member States once enlargement is complete?
Twelve French and German experts, commissioned by Paris and Berlin, provided the answer on Tuesday in a sixty-page study presented in Brussels to European Affairs ministers and anticipated by Contexte. One of the proposed solutions is the extension of majority voting for almost all EU decisions (thereby eliminating the veto), the strengthening the rule of law resulting freezing of EU funds for countries that do not respect thisL’increase in the EU budgetthe reduction in the number of commissioners (now there are 27, one for each EU country) and from MEPsthe creation of a four-speed EU organized in concentric circles: the Inner Circle, the EU, the Associated States and the European Political Community.
Clearly we need to make some of these changes necessary to amend the Treaties, an operation that involves many uncertainties in terms of time and results. “Like the next one expansion it has to be done already by 2030 – writes the study – it is essential to take the initiative and initiate a long and complex process.” The candidate countries doUkrainethe Moldaviathe Georgia Hi Western Baltic States and work to meet the standards required for entry into the EU.
But the Union must also prepare. “It is important that governments decide to start the process without further delay,” the study continues, explaining that “some reforms can be implemented in the short term without treaty changes in a first phase starting in autumn 2023 and before the 2024 European elections». While reforms requiring treaty change should be addressed during the next institutional cycle (2024-2029). After the next enlargement, a further series of reforms will be necessary.
During the revision of the Treaties the possibilities for self-exclusion from certain EU policies (opt-out) should only be allowed when deepening integration or expanding qualified majority voting and no exceptions to the core values should be allowed. This differentiation could lead to this, according to experts “four levels of European integrationconsisting of an internal circle (deep integration in areas such as the Eurozone and Schengen), the EU itself, a wider circle of associated members and finally the European Political Community (CPE, the creation of Macron, ed.) as an external level for political cooperation without being bound by European law.” The document will form the basis for the debate on this subject during the European Council keep it informal Grenada on October 6 next under the Spanish presidency of the EU.
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I am Lawrence Sickels and I work in the news industry. For the past few years, I have been writing for The News Dept, a web-based platform dedicated to providing readers with quality journalism. My main area of focus is covering economic news and business trends across the globe.
