The European Union will consider the applications of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova for accession only after Albania and North Macedonia join the big European family. This was stated by Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto in an interview with Funke, which is quoted by TASS.
The diplomat stressed that it is extremely important that Brussels should treat all statements of candidates for EU accession equally.“I am concerned about the development of the situation in the countries of the Western Balkans. North Macedonia and Albania have been waiting for a very long time to join the European Union,”
Haavisto emphasized.
Recall that Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine simultaneously applied for EU membership in March 2022. Three months later, it was approved by Chisinau and Kyiv. At the same time, the Moldovan authorities were assigned the obligatory fulfillment of a number of conditions related to changes in legislation and the implementation of effective justice reforms, as well as the fight against corruption.
Despite the fact that, according to experts, the justice system in Moldova remains under political control and the problem of integrity persists, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration (MFAEI) Nicu Popescu is quite optimistic. According to him, the country must be fully ready to join by 2030, even if from the moment of signing the accession agreement to the actual accession, one has to go through the bureaucratic procedures that are typical for each EU member state. He is sure that there is a high probability that by the end of this year the Republic of Moldova will start negotiations on joining the European Union.
In this regard, Chisinau is counting on the support of the summit of the European Political Community, which will host on June 1.“Our goal is to bring the country into the European Union or to the doorstep of the European Union by the end of this decade. Why am I talking on the doorstep? Because from the moment of signing the accession agreement to the actual entry, ratification in the parliaments of the EU states, there is a margin of time. It’s about bureaucracy and politics, because in member states it takes a long time to ratify a new country’s accession, and in some countries a referendum is required. These are processes that the Republic of Moldova cannot control. Our goal is to be ready to join by the end of this decade, if this or that country is late by a month or three, this will not affect us, ”
Source: eadaily