Applicants welcome call for entry date

Date: 16/09/1999

By Simon Taylor

LEADING applicant countries have welcomed incoming Commission President Romano Prodi's call for a firm date to be set for enlargement.

But they have voiced doubts that Union leaders will be able to agree on a fixed timetable for admitting new members at their December summit in Helsinki.

Prodi ignited the debate over the wisdom of laying down a timetable in a speech to MEPs this week. He said the EU should "give serious consideration in Helsinki to setting a firm date for the accession of those countries which are best prepared, even if this means granting lengthy transition periods".

Senior Polish officials resp-onded enthusiastically. "The Union setting a date would facilitate Poland's reforms," said one, adding that it would help convince the public of the need for painful changes.

Most applicant countries have set internal target dates for completing their preparations for EU membership, with the majority aiming for 2003.

Germany's Joschka Fischer has emerged as the strongest advocate of setting a timetable in Helsinki. But he faced opposition from fellow foreign ministers at a meeting in Finland last week.

Most insisted it would be too early to fix dates in December even though the Commission's latest reports on the applicants' progress, due out next month, will provide a clearer picture of the state of play in each candidate country. France's Hubert Védrine said deadlines could be counter-productive if applicants could not meet their commitments.

But Polish officials point out incoming Enlargement Commissioner Günter Verheugen said in July that Warsaw's target entry date of 1 January 2003 was "not unrealistic". However, he also told MEPs the Union could not agree a timetable until it had a clear view of applicants' position in all areas of EU legislation. Talks on many difficult dossiers have yet to begin.