Hungarian EU enlargement commissioner: Ten years of enlargement advances achieved in a single term

Oliver Várhelyi, the EU enlargement commissioner, said in Brussels on Monday that European Union integration, a priority of the Hungarian presidency, had advanced by ten years in a single term.

Várhelyi talks about EU enlargement

Briefing the European Parliament‘s foreign affairs committee, he called enlargement a down payment on the bloc’s future peace and economic prosperity.

In 2020 enlargement policy was revised to ensure procedures were made faster and more credible, with the rule of law placed at the centre of the accession process, he said.

He mentioned investments in connectivity, transport, digital energy and infrastructure and the mobilisation of private capital as potential advantages for aspiring members.

The past five years, he added, had seen a large proportion of EU investment plans made in connection with the Western Balkans and the Eastern and Southern regions.

Várhelyi said Serbia must speed up reforms and focus on the rule of law while seeking to normalise relations with Kosovo. Further, Belgrade must align itself with the EU’s foreign policy goals, adding that there was evidence, such as its “significant support” for Ukraine, that the country was oriented towards the EU.

Meanwhile, holders of a Kosovo passport are able to travel visa-free to the EU, he noted. Kosovo leaders, he added, must do more to win cross-party support for the implementation of reform and to ensure free speech.

Regarding Moldova, he noted the Oct 20 constitutional referendum with which the country opted to join the EU. Russia, he added, had mounted a “hybrid campaign” before the vote.

Turning to Ukraine, he said Kyiv should carry on working to curb systemic corruption, fight organised crime and protect minority rights.

Georgia’s accession negotiations have been suspended but hopefully they would soon continue, he said. If Tbilisi responded to EU concerns, the sides may resume talks, he added.

The commissioner referred to Turkiye as “an important partner” with which the EU maintained “good and fruitful” ties, even if accession talks had stalled.

The EU and Ankara were gradually deepening relations, and notwithstanding several problems in the relationship, “the constructive approach has led to results”, he said, also referring to cooperation on deterring migration and dialogue on the rule of law and democracy.

He said the EU also regarded reconciliation with Cyprus as an important matter, and he welcomed an improvement in Greece-Turkiye ties.

Ruling Fidesz MEP Viktória Ferenc during the ensuing debate noted the importance of the protection of minorities in Ukraine. Whereas legal protections for Transcarpathian Hungarians were now a part of Ukraine’s EU accession process, the full legal restoration of their minority rights was yet to take place, she added.

Opposition Tisza Party MEP Eszter Lakos asked Várhelyi what he saw as his enlargement policy legacy in the Western Balkans, questioning whether countries there found the enlargement process credible.

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