Enlargement of the European Union was one of the priorities outlined by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her State of the Union speech on September 13th, and it is likely to become an ever more pressing issue over the next few years. After the speech, Talking Europe sat down with the EU Commissioner in charge of neighbourhood and enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi. He is a distinguished Hungarian diplomat and lawyer. He served as Hungary's ambassador to the EU, and has held prominent positions at the Hungarian ministry of justice and ministry of foreign affairs.
Várhelyi insists that there has been a new approach to EU enlargement since the war in Ukraine: “We've seen that with the war of aggression of Russia against Ukraine, there's a clear rethinking about enlargement being a priority,” he says. “I think by now it is clear for everyone in Europe, not only for the leaders but also for the general public, that if Europe wants to ensure its long-term security and prosperity, it will need to enlarge, and it will need to have a larger population coming under the same values and creating the same area for everyone in a Europe of peace, stability and security. Now, if you want to look at the State of the Union speech in that context, I think this speech paved the way for how to achieve this, as a mid-term or even short-term reality.”
More specifically, on a key enlargement issue, Várhelyi talks about the Western Balkans growth plan. “What you will see being rolled out this autumn is a growth plan designed for the Western Balkans, which includes four pillars: the possibility of early integration (meaning the real integration on the ground), integration of the economy, integration of the societies, and acceleration of the reforms that are necessary. We can speed up the process of countries effectively joining us in everyday life, without waiting for the institutional process.”
Turning to Turkey, where Várhelyi recently made a visit, he says, “Turkey is now at a very important juncture, and we have heard very encouraging messages right after the elections from the president, and also from the new government, that they want a restart in their relationship with Europe. The European Council was very quick to discuss it, and to ask the Commission to create the parameters of a positive agenda with Turkey. We're supposed to go back and report to the European Council still this year. What I was doing in Turkey was to map areas in which we could develop a positive agenda. And yes, Turkey is in a customs union with us. Turkey is a very important market for us. Turkey is a very important investment country for us. Turkey is one of the most powerful NATO allies in our continent. So we have a lot in common. And if you look at geography, it is very clear that we are dependent on one another.”
Várhelyi also discusses the recent EU-Tunisia agreement, and the EU’s efforts to crack down on human smuggling: “Smuggling is a key focus for us, be it the Western Balkans, be it in North Africa, helping our partners there to create the capacities to protect their borders and to crack down on organised crime, to work with one another because these networks know no border. And of course, our authorities, our police forces, our security forces should also help our partners to crack down on these international networks.”
Produced by Isabelle Romero, Sophie Samaille and Perrine Desplats
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