Debate steers shy of setting talks timetable

Date: 04/09/1997

EU GOVERNMENTS held their first in-depth discussion on enlargement to central and eastern Europe this week, marking the launch of a complex and frantic four months of debate.

But they avoided any reference to the pace of negotiations with the Union's ten eastern applicants, which are due to begin next year, sticking instead to a largely technical review of the Commission's assessments of each country.

Experts hope to have a first report ready by October's meeting of foreign ministers, who must decide whether to start accession talks with all candidates at the same time, or begin with only six (including Cyprus) as recommended by the Commission.

During their first encounter, national experts largely agreed with the Commission's positive avis on Hungary and Poland, although there were calls for technical clarifications in various places.

If the first meeting is anything to go by, it seems unlikely that there will be any major technical disagreements between EU governments and the Commission on the readiness of eastern European countries to join.

But the issue of whether or not the back-markers should be allowed to start talks next year, and then proceed at a slower pace, remains highly contentious.

Union ambassadors plan to hold an extraordinary meeting once a week to debate both the EU's plans to expand, and the reform of its policies and institutions deemed necessary as a result.

The first meeting will take place next Tuesday (9 September), in preparation for a debate among foreign ministers in mid-September.