JEF Welcomes the European Parliament's Enlargement "Dress Rehearsal"

The Young European Federalists welcome the joint meeting between the Members of the European Parliament and Parliamentarians from the applicant countries. "It is important for the future EU members that they are involved in the European Institutions as early as possible," said Ingvild Stub, Vice-President of JEF-Europe. The use of candidate countries' languages in the parliamentary plenary session and the new flags in front of the Parliament building show that the historic process towards the final unification of the European continent has irreversibly started.

However, some of the most sensitive issues are still to be solved by the Union as well as the current and future EU members before the enlargement takes place. "The new EU members have to be treated fairly when it comes to the accession. The poorest countries of the new European Union should not be made net payers to the EU budget from the very beginning. On the other hand, the politicians should stress a great level of achievement that has been reached in recent years and the opportunities that lie in the process of enlargement. To insist purely on the costs and financial issues at this stage, would result in decreasing public support for the enlargement process," said Saso Romanovic, member of the JEF Europe Executive Bureau.

Whereas the majority of the future EU members have done their "homework" and will have closed all chapters in the coming month, the EU is still working on its tasks. In the Convention on the Future of Europe - also thanking to the contributions of the future EU members - politicians from all levels are debating the future structure of the European Union. Only if they can decide on abandoning veto-rights, which would lessen the possibility of blocking the Union's decision making processes, and if all EU-citizens are given a greater chance to participate, would the enlargement process result in a more democratic, efficient, and stronger Union.