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France supports further EU enlargement
08.01.2008, 10:39
French
Europe minister Jean-Pierre Jouyet told the Financial Times newspaper that the
French government had changed its attitude to enlargement and to Europe more
generally since French voters rejected the EU constitution in mid 2005. In
other words, France has indicated that it is ready to support further
enlargement of the EU with a series of countries from the Western Balkans.
"We used to believe that a federal Europe was necessary for a more deeply
integrated union and that enlargement would counter this and prevent Europe
from working effectively. We have now overcome this contradiction," the
minister said.
"The thing that has most struck me since I took up this job seven months
ago is precisely the capacity of an EU of 27 members, and more one day, to take
decisions."
He told the FT that "in France we have not done enough to make the case
for enlargement".
The words are likely to be seen as a strongly positive signal to Croatia,
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia, which have
been promised eventual EU membership.
Mr Jouyet's words are especially important as France will take over the EU
presidency in the second half of 2008.
But France's new fondness for enlargement does not extend to Turkey. President
Nicolas Sarkozy remains firmly opposed to Turkish membership of the EU, having
previously remarked that the country does not belong in Europe.
The statements by the Europe minister are in line with a recent proposal to reform
the French constitution.
Under the draft bill, submitted last month, French approval of new EU member
states could be done either by popular vote or by the French
"Congress" - comprising the country's national assembly and the
senate.
The new bill has dropped the proposal of the previous government under Jacques
Chirac obliging a referendum on all new EU membership bids but maintains the
right of the president to decide the method of ratification - by congress or by
referendum.
Source: EUobserver.com