European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn has hailed the European Union’s "transformative power" in South Eastern Europe, saying that the prospect of joining the EU has encouraged reforms in would-be member states.
 
Rehn was speaking at the release of the European Commission’s report on October 14 2009 on the enlargement process.
 
"We have tried over the past 5 years to strike a delicate balance between consolidation, on one hand, and respect of commitments, on the other. This has enabled us to keep on moving in a gradual and carefully managed enlargement process, without losing the gravitational pull that drives reform in the candidate countries and potential candidates," Rehn said.
 
He said that in these difficult times of economic crisis, the membership applications of Montenegro and Albania had underscored the EU's "continued power of attraction, and our role in promoting stability and prosperity".
 
Iceland's application for membership had added a new dimension to the EU enlargement agenda too, that of anchoring financial stability, Rehn said.
 
"The EU’s transformative power is greatest in South Eastern Europe, where our ‘soft power’ of attraction provides hope and drives reform."
 
Rehn said that there was no question that the European prospects of the Western Balkans and Turkey had been a factor for stability and societal progress, and for democratic and economic transformation.
 
Croatia, he said, was "nearing the finishing line", after four years of intense accession negotiations.
 
"Croatia, however, needs to pursue and intensify its reforms efforts, especially on the judiciary, fight against corruption and organised crime before the negotiations can be concluded. And it has to definitely solve the issue of access to documents for ICTY as a matter of urgency."
 
Rehn said that the EU had free-trade arrangements in place with the rest of the Western Balkans –Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo .
 
"And we are working to extend visa-free travel next January to the citizens of those countries that have met the EU’s conditions, especially the issuing of biometric passports. Visa liberalisation has successfully driven reforms in areas such as border security and border management."
 
However, he said, in the Western Balkans, the progress achieved was "not irreversible" and political minefields remained, either in the form of bilateral problems between certain countries, or domestic stalemates in others.
 
"This means we must continue what I'd a policy of political de-mining in the Western Balkans, to avoid back-sliding," Rehn said.
 
"We have seen some successes, such as the recent agreement on solving the border dispute between Croatia and Slovenia with the help of some mediation and the subsequent re-launch of Croatia’s accession talks after a long blockage."
 
On Bosnia and Herzegovina, he said that last week, together with Sweden's foreign minister Carl Bildt and US deputy secretary of state James Steinberg, meetings had been held with the leaders of the country for two days "to try to overcome the political stalemate that has dragged this country backwards over the past year or so".
 
"We want Bosnia and Herzegovina to be a credible applicant for EU and Nato membership. But for this to happen, it needs to stand on its own feet, without the OHR, and be able to govern itself effectively," Rehn said.
 
"Let us be clear, an application for EU membership by Bosnia and Herzegovina could only be considered by the EU once the OHR has been closed," he said.
 
He said that Bosnia and Herzegovina would need to reform its constitutional framework to permit its institutions to function effectively before the EC could recommend the granting of candidate country status.
 
"Bosnia and Herzegovina, like any other country, will need to be in a position to adopt, implement and enforce the laws and rules of the EU."
 
The US and EU were working with Bosnian leaders to help kick-start their Euro-Atlantic journey, Rehn said.
 
"But we cannot want it more than they do. We trust that the positive first steps made in Sarajevo last week, will be converted into a deal next week. This is an opportunity that will not come around again any time soon, and that should not be missed. Now is the right time to conclude an agreement, before the election campaign of next fall's elections start."
 
The leaders – and ultimately the people – of Bosnia and Hertzegovina must decide, whether the country wants to stay permanently behind its neighbours, in an associate partnership only with the SAA, or whether it wants and is able to get its act together and strive seriously for EU membership, with all the rights and obligations that it implies, according to Rehn.
 
"I hope, for the sake of their citizens and the Western Balkans as a whole, that the Bosnian leaders will rise to the occasion and reach a deal."
 
On Macedonia, Rehn said that the country had made "convincing progress" and substantially addressed the key reform priorities.
 
The EC considered that Macedonia sufficiently fulfilled the Copenhagen political criteria.
 
"These elements have enabled the Commission to recommend the opening of accession negotiations."
 
 
Rehn said that he hoped that the government in Skopje would take this as "a very strong encouragement to finally settle the name issue".
 
"We underline in our conclusions that ‘Maintaining good neighbourly relations, including a negotiated and mutually acceptable solution to the name issue, under the auspices of the UN, remains essential’. Now it is indeed more essential and urgent than ever, for the sake of the country's EU future."
 
Rehn said that, overall, the rule of law , in particular the fight against corruption and organised crime, remained a major challenge which the enlargement countries needed to address at an early stage.
 
"Plenty of reform work is going to address the problem, and the Commission will continue to use all instruments of the enlargement process to help them in this endeavour."
 
He said that the EC had identified in several countries problems related to the freedom of expression and the freedom of media . "These problems need to be addressed as a matter of urgency. The issues at stake are serious, as they concern, still and again, fundamental rights."
 
"For instance, while in Turkey there was much less prosecutions under the new article 301 of the Turkish penal code than some years ago, intellectuals nevertheless continue to be hassled for their words. I was particularly disappointed to learn about a recent Court ruling which could take Orhan Pamuk again to trial – still about the same issue which took him to court already."
 
Moreover, Rehn said, too many other provisions of the Penal Code, or of the anti-terror law, were used to effectively restrict freedom of expression.
 
"Legal uncertainties and pressures of all sorts affect freedom of the press in practice, as shown by the tax fine against the Dogan media group."
 
In the broader strategic context, Turkey was playing a key role in regional security, for example, in the Middle East and Southern Caucasus, security of energy supply and the promotion of dialogue between civilisations, Rehn said.
 
"I welcome the normalisation of relations with Armenia , which is a historic step and which the EU welcomes as a contribution to stability and peace in the region. Likewise, I welcome the ‘Democratic Opening’ to resolve the Kurdish question by wide consultation and concrete measures."
 
Rehn said that the EU wanted Turkey to ensure "full, non-discriminatory" implementation of the Additional Protocol to the Association Agreement and to make progress towards the normalisation of relations with the Republic of Cyprus.
 
"We call on the leaders of the two communities in Cyprus to bring the settlement talks to a successful end as soon as possible and on Turkey to contribute in concrete terms to such a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue."
 
Rehn said that the EU’s policy of "stabilisation through enlargement" had major implications for the EU’s foreign policy and for its global role.
 
"Our credibility as a global actor rests on our ability to shape our own immediate neighbourhood. That's why it is necessary to ensure the continuity and credibility of our enlargement policy," Rehn said.