The European Commission has prepared a project to reform the Union’s expansion policy, which it intends to present next September, which includes abolishing the veto power of member states in decisions to accept new countries, according to what RT reported from Bloomberg.
According to the report, the proposed amendments will not be limited to the voting mechanism, but will include reconsidering the standards and requirements imposed on countries nominated for membership.
The initiative comes after the pace of expansion slowed down in recent years as a result of internal disputes, and the use of some countries’ veto power to pressure, slow down or obstruct the accession of new members, especially from the Western Balkans region.
The proposed mechanism aims to reduce obstruction and use the veto as a means of putting pressure on candidate countries or the rest of the Union’s members. However, according to the report, adopting the reform requires the approval of the 27 countries, which may open a discussion between governments that fear losing part of their influence.
It is expected that the project will be presented to member states and discussed in the European Parliament at the end of next September.
The report indicated that Hungary and other countries obstructed stages of the expansion process, while the course of negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova faced obstacles related to the requirements of reform and political differences within the Union.
In the background of the file, Ukraine and Moldova obtained the status of candidate countries in June 2022, and not in 2025 as stated in the transferred report.
Existing rules still require unanimous Council approval of any country’s accession treaty, along with approval by the European Parliament and ratification by interested parties, meaning that the notified draft does not constitute an effective veto override decision.
