Enlargement seen as EU’s best reply to Russian aggression

“The way forward for Ukraine is in our Union. The way forward for the Western Balkans is in our Union. The way forward for Moldova is in our Union,” she stated.

“And I do know simply how vital the EU perspective is for therefore many individuals in Georgia,” she added.

She in contrast the following enlargement to the ‘big-bang’ one in 2004, when the EU first started taking in post-Communist states.

“After the autumn of the Iron Curtain, we turned an financial mission into a real Union of individuals and states. I imagine that the following enlargement should even be a catalyst for progress,” she stated.

She repeatedly talked about an EU of “30+” members and of “finishing our union” on Wednesday.

“In a world the place some are attempting to choose off international locations one after the other, we can not afford to go away our fellow Europeans behind,” von der Leyen additionally stated.

Her enlargement enchantment was framed by the geopolitical and ethical emergency of Russia’s battle on Ukraine.

The Fee boss informed the story of late Ukrainian author Victoria Amelina, quoting Amelina’s emotive phrases to her son earlier than she was killed in a Russian air-strike in Ukraine, to pressure residence the concept Ukrainians belonged within the EU.

Von der Leyen invited Colombian activist, Héctor Abad Faciolince, who survived the identical air-strike, to carry up Amelina’s picture to a standing ovation by MEPs.

In the meantime, the numbers of Ukrainian refugees who had come to the EU was so large it virtually constituted de-facto enlargement.

“Because the begin of the battle, 4 million Ukrainians have discovered refuge in our Union. And I need to say to them that they’re as welcome now as they have been in these fateful first weeks,” von der Leyen stated.

In sensible phrases, she introduced “pre-enlargement coverage opinions” to see how EU establishments must adapt to the “30+” mannequin.

EU-aspirant states ought to in future face yearly rule-of-law checkups, she additionally stated.

However she did not point out the concept of introducing majority voting into EU foreign-policy making, which might get slowed down in nationwide vetoes even on the stage of 27.

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She additionally did not point out “strategic autonomy” — the previous idée fixe the EU ought to be a army energy impartial of the US, however introduced enlargement as Europe’s greatest reply to Russia’s menace.

EU issues over Georgia

Her trumpeting of a much bigger EU marked a serious shift from final 12 months, when she barely talked about enlargement.

Her gentle snub to Georgia got here amid EU concern that the ruling celebration of Georgian oligarch Bidzina Ivanshvili is taking the nation in an undemocratic route.

Turkey can be an EU hopeful, however its accession course of halted in 2016 because of a vicious crackdown on democracy by president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

France and Germany have each championed foreign-policy majority voting and strategic autonomy up to now.

However smaller and Russia-facing EU international locations hate the concepts, as these would enhance French and German energy inside Europe, whereas destabilising its US safety relations.

And if von der Leyen’s speech was designed to offend nobody, that might be because of undeclared intentions to run for an EU or Nato job after her time period ends subsequent 12 months.

Ukraine had superior in “nice strides” towards EU-entry eligibility over the previous 12 months regardless of the battle, she additionally stated on Wednesday, despite the fact that its accession prospects and territorial integrity are up within the air till the preventing ends.

Moldova is at the moment battling Russian coup plotters to maintain its pro-EU authorities in energy.

And the six Western Balkan states within the queue are continuing in the direction of the EU at totally different speeds, amid ongoing Kosovo-Serb pressure and ever-louder discuss by the Serb a part of the Bosnian federation that it desires to tear previous peace accords to shreds.