Consolidation – Conditionality – CommunicationThe EU is continuing the enlargement process with due regard for the Commission's "three Cs":
Consolidation (of the EU's own commitments)
Conditionality (i.e. the requirement that accession candidates meet their obligations)
Communication (with citizens in order to win support for enlargement).
As the number of members grows, the EU's capacity to integrate new members takes on greater significance: "The Union needs to ensure that its institutions continue to act effectively, that its policies meet their goals, and that its budget is commensurate with its objectives and with its financial resources." (European Commission Strategy Paper of 8 November 2006 – special report on the EU's capacity to integrate new members). Those countries bordering the EU which have no prospect of accession will, where possible, be drawn closer to European structures through the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP).
We insist on strict adherence to the various criteria, as proposed by the Commission with the introduction of benchmarks for the negotiations and the road-map, the step-by-step model for drawing the countries of the Western Balkans closer to Europe under the Thessaloniki agenda. We reject time schedules and automatic progress from one stage to the next.
1. Overview
The EU opened accession negotiations with Turkey and with Croatia on 3 October 2005 (separate accession conferences at foreign minister level).
The accession conference with Croatia at foreign minister level provisionally concluded Chapter 25 (Science and Research) on 12 June 2006.
The accession conference with Turkey at foreign minister level provisionally concluded Chapter 25 (Science and Research) on 12 June 2006.
2. Screening
Screening of the individual negotiating chapters, which has been conducted separately for Turkey and Croatia by the European Commission, has now been completed, but not all screening reports are yet available. The screening process involves a comparison of European law with the laws of the respective candidate State. The aim is to identify possible problems with the implementation of the acquis and to determine the need for possible transitional periods and solutions. Following completion of the screening, the Commission will produce a screening report on the basis of which the Member States will decide whether the accession candidate can be invited to present its negotiating position on this specific chapter, or whether to set benchmarks which have to be met beforehand.
3. Negotiating framework
The negotiations will be conducted in an Intergovernmental Conference involving all EU Member States and the respective candidate State, and decisions will be taken unanimously. The negotiations with Turkey and Croatia are being conducted independently of each other. The objective of the negotiations with both countries is accession. These negotiations are an open-ended process, the outcome of which cannot be guaranteed beforehand.
The negotiations will be based on a new approach reflecting experience with the eastern enlargement of the EU. The central new element is that implementation and monitoring will take place before the conclusion of the negotiations. This will be done by laying down and reviewing benchmarks for the closure and, where appropriate, for the opening of each of the 35 negotiating chapters. This is intended to ensure that the new Member States do in fact fulfil their contractual obligations immediately upon accession or immediately after the end of any agreed transitional periods. A further new element is the possibility of agreeing exceptions and permanent safeguard clauses in the fields of freedom of movement, agriculture and structural policy.
