EU/FRANCE: French president Jacques Chirac yesterday added to the fears of countries seeking to join the EU by questioning whether the Union could continue to expand without the reforms contained in the beleaguered EU constitution.
Mr Chirac called for a special summit of EU leaders to discuss the current issues facing the EU, including enlargement. In his opening remarks at the EU summit in Brussels, Mr Chirac said the constitutional treaty, rejected by voters in his own country and the Netherlands in referendums, "was drafted as the indispensable response to allow an enlarged Europe to function well".
According to a copy of his speaking notes obtained by Agence France Presse last night, he asked: "In this new situation, can the Union continue to expand without us having the institutions capable of making this enlarged Union work efficiently?" His remarks reflect the view in the countries that rejected the constitution - particularly the Netherlands - that voters' fears of the consequences of enlargement contributed to the No vote.
European Commission polls have shown majorities against eastern expansion in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. They show opinion is divided in Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium and Portugal. By contrast, in the 10 new member states there are majorities in favour of enlargement.
Britain and Germany are also strongly in favour of continued enlargement. Bulgaria and Romania are officially still on course for accession on January 1st, 2007. Croatia is officially on course for the opening of accession talks so long as it co-operates with the Hague tribunal, which is seeking war crimes suspects.
However, mindful of the considerable concern among people in the original 15 member states that enlargement will bring greater competition for jobs and could drive down wages, EU leaders have sought to play down the enlargement issue at this summit.
Polls and political analysts say that among the reasons why Dutch and French voters voted against the constitution was fear of the impact of further enlargement. An important element of the French referendum debate was the concept of "the Polish plumber", who was depicted during the campaign as undercutting French workers, doing longer hours for lower wages. Fear of mass migration from Turkey, should that country be admitted to the EU, was a significant issue in the Dutch vote.
Tomorrow's summit conclusions are not expected to contain the traditional warm language about future enlargement. It is customary for these conclusions, agreed by the 25 EU heads of state and government, to refer to the progress made toward full membership of candidate countries such as Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Turkey. They traditionally note closer co-operation with EU hopefuls such as Ukraine and also hold out a future prospect of membership for Albania and the other Balkan states.
Tomorrow's conclusions are expected to be less enthusiastic.
The German chancellor Gerhard Schröder yesterday reiterated his commitment to expanding the European Union beyond Bulgaria and Romania. He said the Union should not abandon the ambition to include Turkey and the Balkan states.
Speaking yesterday to the Bundesrat, the lower house of the German parliament, he said: "A certain consequence of such a course change would be a return to old nationalism and conflicts in these countries." He said possible EU membership for Turkey in 10 to 15 years would be a "blessing".