EU expansion SHOCK: Brussels bids to speed up new members in EIGHT YEARS
BALKAN countries including Montenegro and Serbia could become fully-fledged EU members in less than eight years, according to draft plans circulating in Brussels.
GETTY
The bloc is reportedly preparing to welcome its next group of member states by 2025 and hopes the likes of Albania, Bosnia, Macedonia, and Kosovo will be “well advanced on their European path by then”.
The countries are some of the poorest in Europe.
But disputes in several Balkans nations could slow the accession process or scupper it altogether, with rival factions in Bosnia and Herzegovina split over wether they would rather join with Brussels or look east and deal with Russia.
A draft strategy paper due to be adopted by the European Commission on February 14 claims the “the Western Balkans partners now have a historic window of opportunity”.
Related articles
With strong political will, the delivery of real reforms, and lasting solutions to disputes with neighbours, Montenegro and Serbia should be ready for membership by 2025
It adds: “With strong political will, the delivery of real reforms, and lasting solutions to disputes with neighbours, Montenegro and Serbia should be ready for membership by 2025.”
The document, seen by EUobserver, goes on to say accession negotiations for Southeastern Balkan nations “should be well advanced” by then.
Serbia and Montenegro have already began accession talks, while Albania and Macedonia hope to begin this year.
Bosnia is angling to gain EU "candidate" status, though Serb nationalists in the country would prefer to ally with Moscow instead of the EU.
GETTY
But the Commission’s paper warned internal disputes would not hold back its “ambitious” timeline.
The draft document says: ”The EU cannot and will not import bilateral disputes.
“This is why all the Western Balkans partners concerned must resolve such disputes as a matter of urgency.”
This revelation comes just months after Brussels called for more integration with former Soviet republics in Eastern Europe, despite their questionable records on human rights issues.
The EU has previously expressed hopes its ”Eastern European partners”, which include Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, could one day join the bloc.
Other nations earmarked for possible membership include Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus.
However Brussels has insisted it will not deal with any Eastern Partnership country that does not respect EU values or “intimidates human rights defenders and journalists”.
