Czechs reject enlargement deadline

Date: 30/09/1999

By Chris Johnstone

THE Czech Republic has joined EU governments in rejecting European Commission President Romano Prodi's call for a date to be set for enlarging the Union by the end of this year.

Within days of being confirmed in his new job this month, Prodi said EU leaders should seriously consider setting a deadline for letting new countries into the bloc when they meet in Helsinki on 10-11 December.

But the Czech Republic's chief negotiator Pavel Telicka this week urged governments to wait until they meet in Lisbon next June to set a date, adding: "This is a Czech position, but I think it is shared by other candidate countries."

Telicka pointed out that the leading applicant countries would not have submitted progress reports on all the outstanding areas of legislation where they must comply with EU rules by December and the Union would therefore not have a complete picture of their progress.

"The Czech Republic would favour a date, but on a solid base with answers to all the issues on the table," he added, although he described Prodi's proposal as "sympathetic" and "showing a strong drive to make progress."

The Commission president's call for membership talks to be opened with "less advanced countries" such as those in the Balkans as soon as possible has also created unease amongst the leading applicants, which fear that their entry could be delayed as a result. "We have received verbal assurances that this will not happen but we will have to see in practice," said Telicka.

His comments came as Prodi sought to avoid a confrontation with member states angered by his call for a firm entry date by talking instead of the need for applicants to be given a "precise pathway" for accession. He said they had a right to know how long the process would take, "even if we do not go into the details of the date"

The Czech Republic would almost certainly benefit from a delay in setting a date since it expects its profile as an EU candidate to improve sharply over the next six months. Telicka points to "a new attitude from the government", constitutional changes which mean that legislation can be passed more quickly, and economic growth as factors which will put the country in a much stronger position by June.

The Czech Republic has joined EU governments in rejecting European Commission President Romano Prodi's call for a date to be set for enlarging the Union by the end of 1999.