European Commission proposed a 15-year probation period for new EU members

On October 6, at a meeting in Strasbourg, France, the European Commission proposed five steps before admitting new members to the EU, according to the EC website.

The plan calls for the approval of practical decisions in the areas of governance, the rule of law, and EU policies, as well as a more gradual integration of candidate countries into the union’s work. The EC also proposes assessing the impact of each new accession on EU policy and preparing road maps for Montenegro, Albania, Moldova, and Ukraine.

The key element of the plan, according to The Guardian citing the EU commissioner for enlargement, Marta Kos of Slovenia, is a 15-year probation period for new EU members. During this period, a country could be stripped of voting rights or access to funds from the EU budget if it violates basic democratic values and the principle of sincere cooperation.

Kos said that the EU needs faster mechanisms than Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union. It currently allows a member state to be deprived of voting rights in the event of a serious and persistent violation of democratic values, but in practice it has never been used.

The Guardian notes that the EU has already had concerns about the rule of law in Poland and Hungary. In Budapest under Viktor Orbán, common union decisions have repeatedly been blocked, including on sanctions against Russia. For the new mechanism to enter into force, it must be approved by all 27 current EU members.

Sources

• Source: theins.ru