Chances grow for Bulgaria, Romania to join EU in 07
September 5, 2006
By Marcin Grajewski and Darren Ennis
BRUSSELS/STRASBOURG, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Prospects of Bulgaria and Romania joining the European Union in 2007 rather than 2008 rose on Tuesday as their leaders launched charm offensives to secure early membership.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev said he understood from top EU officials that the bloc's executive arm would recommend on Sept 26 letting Bulgaria and Romania join next January, a view confirmed by a European Commission source.
"From the discussions I have had, joining in January 2007 now looks to be a realistic goal," Stanishev told reporters after talks with Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.
However Barroso was more cautious, declining to speculate on the date, demanding more evidence of action against corruption and organised crime, and saying Bulgaria would probably face "accompanying measures" when it did join.
"There has been progress, but let's say on Sept 26 if we believe if that progress has been enough ... membership should start on Jan 1, 2007," he said.
EU President Finland's Prime Minister, Matti Vanhanen, said after talks with his Romanian counterpart in Helsinki he was sure Bucharest had made clear progress towards EU entry in 2007.
A Commission source earlier told Reuters the EU executive was likely to recommend letting Bulgaria and Romania join next January rather than in 2008, but propose tough conditions for the bloc's second enlargement wave into ex-communist Europe.
SAFEGUARDS
The two Balkan countries may be excluded initially from some EU policies in areas where they are not fully prepared for membership, such as the fight against corruption and organised crime, which is a worry especially in Bulgaria.
Vanhanen also promised to open the Finnish labour market to workers from Bulgaria and Romania once they join the EU, the first such declaration from a member state.
The issue has became sensitive in Britain since official figures last month showed hundreds of thousands of workers from Poland and other new members have flooded the British labour market since the bloc's eastward enlargement in 2004.
Under the accession treaty, which the Black Sea neighbours signed last year, either country could be delayed by a year from 2007 if it is deemed not ready to join, or excluded for some time from some EU policies for which it was unprepared.
The Financial Times said on Tuesday that Bulgaria will come under tougher EU scrutiny for its shortcomings in handling fraud and organised crime and could face financial sanctions.
The Commission source said the amount of EU aid is fixed by the accession treaty and it is difficult to strip countries. But aid could be withheld if the countries' payments agencies to distribute farm subsidies are deemed not ready.
Applying safeguards could mean, for example, that court rulings of a new member state are not fully valid in the bloc, or the country is excluded from the EU's common border policy.
In May, the Commission postponed its recommendation on Bulgaria and Romania to exert pressure on them for more reforms.
Stanishev, who presented an updated action plan for EU membership to the Commission, vowed that constitutional changes sought by Rehn to help Bulgaria better fight corruption and organised crime would be ready soon.
"We will be ready to vote (the amendments) in parliament in a matter of weeks," he told Reuters in an interview. (additional reporting by Sakari Suoninen in Helsinki)
Copyright ©2006 Vision.org
An aristocratic title is not enough to ensure a noble behaviour. A person's greatness comes from acknowledging the mistakes and agreeing to correct them.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." (Jimi Hendrix)
*** sustineti [romania_eu_list] prin 2% din impozitul pe 2005 - detalii la http://www.doilasuta.ro ***
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