• English Site
• > SPIEGEL Blog
• > Accession to the European Union

European Union Expands East

Romania and Bulgaria to Join in 2007

The European Commission on Tuesday recommended that Bulgaria and Romania be allowed to join the European Union as planned on Jan. 1, 2007. Concerns remain about the ability of the club to absorb new members.

Fewer than three years after the European Union grew by 10 new countries in May 2004, the club is set to add two new members. The European Commission on Tuesday recommended that Bulgaria and Romania be allowed in on Jan. 1, 2007 as planned. But in a move to address widespread concerns that the two countries are not fully prepared for membership, the Commission has tacked on an unprecedented list of conditions the south-eastern European countries must meet to avoid being deprived initially of full membership benefits.

"As a result of the progress made, Bulgaria and Romania will be in a position to take up the rights and obligations of EU membership on Jan. 1, 2007," the Commission's report -- which will be presented to the European Parliament on Tuesday -- reads according to a Reuters report.

The admission of the two countries will add some 30 million people to the EU's present population of around 450 million and push the club's borders east to the Black Sea. Both countries, however, are relatively poor -- with economies only one third the size of the EU average -- and both have struggled to bring rampant corruption under control. Money laundering and organized crime are of particular concern in Bulgaria. The country has also been told it needs to amend its constitution to remove ambiguities about the independence and transparency of its judiciary. Billions of euros in EU aid may be withheld should adequate steps not be taken.

Romania, for its part, has been asked to do more to battle corruption and to set up "an integrity agency" that will take a close look at the assets of public officials. A number of public officials, most notably former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, are under investigation for using their positions to enrich themselves to the tune of hundreds of thousands of euros. Nastase, who is known to Romanians as "Nastase sapte casa" -- Nastase of the seven houses -- due to his numerous residences, stands accused of receiving up to €100,000 worth of goods from China among other irregularities.

Both Romania and Bulgaria have been asked to improve food safety standards or face sanctions. The sanctions may be applied for up to three years following accession. The expansion is to be formally approved by EU leaders in October. Four countries -- France, Germany, Denmark and Belgium -- have yet to ratify the entry of the two countries but are expected to do so soon.

"The process of European integration continues after January 2007 as well," Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev warned his country on Tuesday. "It is important not only that we formally join the EU -- although this is a historic event, this is the real, the final fall of the Berlin Wall for Bulgaria -- but it is equally important how Bulgaria's economy will integrate ... and how we will implement Europe's social model."

The enlargement comes as Europe continues to struggle with its constitution, rejected by both France and the Netherlands in 2005. In a nod to concerns that the club cannot continue absorbing new members, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said that Romania and Bulgaria will be the last countries admitted until the EU decides on how it wishes to move forward.

"The upcoming enlargement with Bulgaria and Romania will be the last stage of enlargement allowing the reunification of Europe," Barroso said in comments delivered on Monday. "We are not in a position to further integrate Europe without further institutional reform. There are limits to our absorption capacity."

Despite the comments, the EU urged Montenegro to continue working toward EU membership. The tiny Balkan country joins Croatia, Serbia, Turkey, Bosnia, Macedonia, Albania and Ukraine on the list of EU hopefuls.

cgh/ap/reuters