Oliver Ropke, President of the European Committee for Economic and Social Affairs (EESC), stated in his speech at the press conference on the Enlargement Candidate Members Initiative that the expansion of the EU has reached a key moment. He emphasized that candidate countries and the Western Balkans should no longer be left in the waiting room.

Ropke highlighted that while membership in the European Union should be based on the merits of each country, he added that there is much more that can be done.

“This is a significant initiative that we started 10 months ago when I assumed the presidency. We aimed to become one of the first EU institutions to include candidate countries in our work,” Ropke underlined.

Moreover, Ropke pointed out, “It is a great sign that we celebrate this process today. The expansion has reached a turning point. We have included all the candidate countries and the Western Balkans in our initiatives. Personally, I am of the opinion that we cannot leave them in the waiting room any longer. We must commit ourselves to prove that even though EU membership should be based on merit, I think we can do many things further and integrate the candidate countries into our work to strengthen civil society. This project will start. We look forward to working with you. I am convinced that you can bring new initiatives and views. It is not a one-way street. Both parties can work for each other.”

“I want to share with you that the response to our call for expanding countries was impressive, with over 600 applications. There are 131 members from candidate countries, which shows how vibrant civil society is in these countries. I look forward to setting a new standard in terms of gradual integration,” mentioned Ropke.

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