EU deepening not necessary for Ukraine and Moldova to join EU

The ECR Group has come out clearly against the own-initiative report on the further deepening of the EU in the run-up to the accession of new member states such as Ukraine and Moldova, which was adopted today. The mantra of the current federalist majority, which wants to transfer more and more powers from the Member States to Brussels, is based on false assumptions. During the debate, ECR shadow rapporteur Jacek Saryusz-Wolski said: "To say that enlargement requires centralisation of the EU through treaty change is a blatant lie. Enlargement is just a false pretext for the planned construction of a European superstate to replace today’s European Union".

The ECR Group recalls that previous enlargements have not had a negative impact on the EU’s decision-making capacity. On the contrary, the speed of decision-making has increased, even when unanimity has been maintained.

"Extensive academic research on previous enlargements and their impact on the functioning of the EU has shown that enlargement has not had a negative impact on the EU’s decision-making capacity. On the contrary, the speed of decision-making has actually increased, even without unanimity," said Saryusz-Wolski.

"Even though the previous enlargements in 2004 and 2007 absorbed larger economies and populations than the forthcoming one, the EU institutions continued to function well and even more effectively," he added.

For the ECR Group, the abolition of unanimity would be a fall from grace that would destabilise the entire institutional structure of the EU. According to the Conservatives, only unanimity guarantees that important decisions are negotiated on an equal footing and that all states are on board.

Nevertheless, the ECR Group believes that the European Parliament has rightly emphasised the role of enlargement as an important foreign policy instrument, the importance of granting candidate status to Ukraine, Moldova and — under certain conditions — Georgia, and the role of the Western Balkans. However, the EU should decentralise rather than centralise further with a view to enlargement.

Share this article: