Albania and North Macedonia blocked from EU accession talks by Denmark, Netherlands, and France
Two Balkan states which have long pursued membership in the European Union have faced a setback as the necessary talks to consider an entry are stalled by EU member states.
Albania and North Macedonia have seen their efforts stymied by a French-led effort to change the system by which new nations are admitted to the EU.
North Macedonia, which was formerly known as Macedonia before changing its name to resolve a dispute with Greece, has been a candidate for EU membership since 2005. Albania was listed for consideration in 2014.
France’s block on the process was announced very suddenly earlier this week, leading to widespread criticism from other EU members. It is particularly notable that France should be at odds with Germany, where Angela Merkel has long pushed for the admission of Balkan states.
While Denmark and the Netherlands joined France in blocking the decision, both focused their skepticism moreso on Albania, and expressed willingness to consider North Macedonia individually.
Worries have arisen among EU members that stalling the accession process may breed resentment in the public of the two candidate countries, possibly leading to the election of less EU-friendly governments and a shift into the Russian sphere of influence.
North Macedonia’s pro-EU government is on especially unstable ground, with a Russian-backed nationalist backlash stirring in the country surrounding the change of the nation’s name to appease EU member Greece.
Beyond Albania and North Macedonia, delays may discourage other Balkan states that were next in line, most notably Serbia and Kosovo, which have previously been under pressure to settle differences over their violent history before EU membership could be considered.
Repeated delays may harm the position of those politicians in Serbia and Kosovo who used EU membership as a carrot to coax the peace process along.
Those in favor of expanding the EU have viewed France’s sudden push for reform as insincere, simply an attempt to put off a decision which was previously promised to be made “clear and substantive” by October.
Both the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the president of the European Council, Donald Tusk, spoke out against the French move, both calling it a “mistake”.
The French European Affairs Minister stated on Monday that France’s push to reform the vetting procedure sought to avoid “the endless soap opera” of currently scheduled talks.
However, a joint letter by Tusk, Juncker, and others earlier this month stated the matter differently.
“North Macedonia and Albania did what we asked them to do. Achieving that required a significant effort from their citizens, for whom the European perspective has been a great source of motivation and determination,” read the statement.
“There is no guarantee of success. There will be a lot of hard work on reforms along the way. Membership will not happen overnight. And both countries are aware of this. In parallel, EU cooperation will have to deepen to go along with the widening, in the mutual interest of European and candidate countries’ citizens.”
