21 EU Enlargement and the Western Balkans
(a)
(27019)
COM(05) 557
(b)
(27020)
COM(05) 555
(c)
(27021)
COM(05) 553
(d)
(27022)
COM(05) 558
|
Draft Council Decision on the Principles, Priorities and Conditions Contained in the European Partnership with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Draft Council Decision on the Principles, Priorities and Conditions Contained in the European Partnership with Bosnia and Herzegovina
Draft Council Decision on the Principles, Priorities and Conditions Contained in the European Partnership with Albania
Draft Council Decision on the Principles, Priorities and Conditions Contained in the European Partnership with Serbia and Montenegro including Kosovo as defined by the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of 10 June 1999
|
Legal base | Article 2 of Council Regulation (EC) No 533/2004 on the establishment of European Partnerships in the framework of the Stabilisation and Association Process; QMV
|
Department | Foreign and Commonwealth Office
|
Basis of consideration | EM of 21 November 2005
|
Previous Committee Report | None
|
To be discussed in Council | 12 December 2005 General Affairs and External Relations Council
|
Committee's assessment | Politically important
|
Committee's decision | Cleared
|
Background
21.1 On 10 June 1999, at the EU's initiative, the Stability Pact
for South Eastern Europe was adopted, whereby more than 40 partner
countries and organisations undertook to strengthen the countries
of South Eastern Europe "in their efforts to foster peace,
democracy, respect for human rights and economic prosperity in
order to achieve stability in the whole region". The focus
is the creation of a secure environment, the promotion of sustainable
democratic systems, and the promotion of economic and social well
being, as the fundamental requirements for sustainable peace and
democracy.[38]
21.2 At the November 2000 Zagreb Summit of leaders
from the EU and the countries of the Western Balkans, the region
confirmed its full commitment to the Stabilisation and Association
process (SAp) a strategy explicitly linking the prospect
of EU accession, adjusted to the level of development of each
of the countries concerned, allowing them to move at their own
pace, and predicated on their each meeting the political and economic
requirements set for all aspirants. There is a high priority on
regional integration measures. The EU offers a mixture of trade,
economic and financial assistance (the CARDS programme) and contractual
relationships (Stabilisation and Association Agreements).[39]
21.3 The Thessaloniki European Council of 19 and
20 June 2003 reiterated its determination to fully and effectively
support the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries
and endorsed the "The Thessaloniki Agenda for the Western
Balkans: moving towards European integration", which introduced
European Partnerships "as a means to materialise the European
perspective of the Western Balkan countries".
21.4 In early 2004, the European Commission presented
its first European Partnerships. They are updated annually.
The Council Decisions
21.5 The renewed European Partnerships list short-and
medium-term priorities for each of the four countries as they
prepare for further integration with the European Union. Each
country is expected to respond by preparing a plan with a timetable
and specific measures. Progress in will be monitored regularly
by the Commission, through annual Progress Reports and the SAp
structures. The priorities have been selected on the basis that
it is realistic to expect that they can be completed or be taken
substantially forward over the next few years. Future partnerships
will include further priorities in line with progress. The Partnership
priorities will be the basis for programming EU assistance.
21.6 They are helpfully summarised by the Minister
of State for Europe in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr
Douglas Alexander) in his 21 November 2005 Explanatory Memorandum,
as follows:
"Despite progress in some areas, the Commission
underlines the importance of a number of key common challenges
facing the Western Balkans. Notably co-operation with the International
Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia (ICTY), building effective states
through public administration, police and judicial reform, and
fighting organised crime and corruption.
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
"The European Partnership identifies the
implementation of the recommendations made by the OSCE-ODIHR on
electoral reform in time for parliamentary elections next year,
as well as key pieces of legislation on Judicial and Police reform,
as immediate priorities. Other short term priorities in the political
sphere include tackling corruption; strengthening the independence
and efficiency of the judiciary; increasing administrative capacity;
depoliticising recruitment to the civil service and other public
bodies; practical implementation of the Ohrid Framework Agreement
and developing regional co-operation. In the economic sphere,
the priorities are completing market liberalisation (especially
privatisation and land registration); legalising the informal
economy; eliminating clientalism; and deepening regional economic
integration.
"The European Partnership identifies the
key short-term priorities as full co-operation with the ICTY;
full implementation of the agreement on police restructuring;
the adoption and implementation of public broadcasting legislation;
the proper establishment of State-level institutions; public administration
reform and the existence of a real internal market. The medium
term priorities build on the technical areas of the short-term
priorities. The recurrent theme is the need for the implementation
of agreed reforms and legislation, and the provision of adequate
resources to improve the capacity and functioning of institutions.
"The Albania European Partnership highlights
the need for short term (one to two years) results in the fight
against organised crime and corruption; the implementation of
legislation on land restitution; improvements in media freedom;
strengthening the public sector; and electoral reform in time
for the municipal elections in 2006. The medium term priorities
(three to four years) cover much the same ground. The need to
meet European standards is also noted, with emphasis placed on
technical areas such as customs and taxation, money laundering,
drugs, policing and, again, fighting organised crime.
"The key short-term priority areas for SaM
are to ensure the proper discharge of responsibilities at both
the Republic and State Union levels in line with the Constitutional
Charter. She must also ensure full co-operation with ICTY, and
show a constructive approach with regard to Kosovo, fully respecting
UN Security Council Resolution 1244. SaM must also make further
efforts to implement public administration reform to ensure transparent
recruitment, professionalism and accountability and in particular
to strengthen European integration structures at all levels and
improve co-operation between them. It is up to SaM to pursue the
reform of the judiciary to guarantee its independence, professionalism
and efficiency and to review the system of recruitment to ensure
careers are based on technical and professional criteria, avoiding
political influence, and secure permanent tenure of judicial posts.
Lastly, SaM must ensure effective democratic control over the
military by strengthening parliamentary control and establishing
transparent financial management.
Kosovo (as defined by UNSCR 1244 of 10 June
1999 and annexed to the SaM Report)
"Overall the European Partnership's analysis
of the situation in Kosovo, the challenges it faces in the short
to medium term and key deficiencies to address are accurate. Key
priorities will continue to be the rule of law and reform of the
judiciary, good governance, and institutional capacity building
and creating the conditions for investment, trade and economic
growth."
The Government's view
21.7 The Minister says:
"The Government supports the Stabilisation
and Association process (SAp) as the EU's main policy for the
EU integration of the Western Balkans. There have been a number
of important steps taken by the Western Balkans towards the EU
under the UK's Presidency: the opening of accession negotitaions
with Croatia; the recommendation to grant Macedonia Candidate
Status and the opening of SAA negotiations with Serbia and Montenegro
and, we hope, with Bosnia and Herzegovina by the end of the year.
The Government supports the publication of the European Partnerships
as an effective tool to underpin the SAp. By highlighting the
areas where improvement is needed, the European Partnerships provide
a useful spur for reform to the countries of the region.
"The Government notes the quality
of the Commission's analysis and welcomes its frank assessment
of the Western Balkans countries' progress. The Partnerships will
now be discussed by Working Group and presented to the GAERC on
12 December. The Government's view on the recommendations for
each particular country is:
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
"The European Partnership sets out clearly
the challenges that Macedonia is facing and in this sense provides
a useful policy framework for the government. Achieving these
objectives will require focus and determination by the Macedonian
authorities and well-targeted international community assistance
and advice. There has been progress against last year's Partnership.
But a mixture of inefficiency, bureaucracy and a lack of capacity
has meant that despite the notable achievement of completing the
legislative aspects of the Ohrid Framework agreement, overall
progress has been slower than we would like to have seen. We will
be looking for the Macedonian authorities to step up their efforts
in 2006. This will be crucial if Macedonia is to continue to make
progress towards its ultimate ambition of EU accession.
"The European Partnership's key short-term
priorities reflect those areas the UK identifies as key. Bosnia
has made clear progress this year against the sixteen priorities
identified in the Feasibility Study of November 2003, in particular
with the increased co-operation with the ICTY since January 2005
and the political agreement on police restructuring in October.
Bosnia has now made the significant progress required for the
Commission to recommend the opening of SAA negotiations. Bosnia
still has a long way to go towards EU accession, but the opening
of Stabilisation and Association Agreement negotiations by the
end of this year will mark a major milestone in the process, and
provide useful momentum. The European Partnership priorities are
useful in summarising the tasks ahead and keeping the focus on
some of the most politically difficult and important reforms still
to be implemented.
"The Albania European Partnership highlights
the areas that continue to cause the UK concern particularly
organised crime. Albania has made some progress since the last
European Partnership was released, but much of this is in the
form of legislative reform rather than results on the ground.
Disagreements between the leading political parties, a lack of
political will and a lengthy electoral process earlier this year
have hindered progress. But if Albania can show progress in the
future in areas of concern, then its ambition of integration into
the EU should be enhanced, in particular through the signature
of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement.
Serbia and Montenegro (SaM)
"The European Partnership accurately reflects
the various political, economic and technical tasks which Serbia
and Montenegro (SaM) needs to take on in order to make progress
towards the EU. SaM has clearly made progress since the last European
Partnership as on 10 October she opened negotiations for a Stabilisation
and Association Agreement (SAA). Serbia and Montenegro's prospects
for EU Accession depend very much on her ability to transfer the
fugitive war criminals, Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic, to
the Hague Tribunal as well as comply with the other political
and economic criteria required by the EU. Although SaM has made
some progress in complying with ICTY since the beginning of the
year, the transfer of Mladic and Karadzic is still outstanding.
As outlined in the European Partnership, SaM must also show constructive
participation on the Kosovo status process and this is a key task
for the forthcoming months. The European Partnership also states
the need for SaM to respect fully the Constitutional Charter and
ensure the effective functioning of the State Union. This last
issue may be overtaken by events as it is Montenegro's right,
in line with the Constitutional Charter, to hold an independence
referendum next year. As a result, it is possible that Montenegro
may secede from the State Union. The SAp has been established
in a twin-track format in order to take account of such a split
of the state union, it is possible that there may be some delay
in the conclusion of SAA negotiations for both Montenegro and
Serbia. The latter would inherit SaM's legal personality.
Kosovo (as defined by UNSCR 1244 of 10 June
1999 and annexed to the SaM Report)
"The European Partnership defines progress
in Kosovo as uneven. The policy recommendations for Kosovo, with
a particular focus on rule of law issues, are sensible. Progress
on the short and medium-term priorities will in many cases depend
on the outcome of the UN-led final status process, which has now
been launched. Work on these priorities and the UN Security Council-endorsed
Standards will need to continue even when Kosovo's final status
has been resolved. It would make sense for these two processes
to be merged progressively but further work will be required to
decide how precisely this will work in practice. In advance of
final status, the United Nations should continue to lead on monitoring
progress in Kosovo in line with its mandate under UNSCR 1244."
21.8 Finally, the Minister says that there are no
immediate financial implications, and that he expects the Council
Decisions to be agreed at the 12 December 2005 General Affairs
and External Relations Council.
Conclusion
21.9 The areas in which sustained progress is
required are a by now familiar, and disturbing, litany, and one
that continues to be echoed elsewhere in the region in countries
much closer to actual accession. The necessary outcomes are at
the heart of the sustainable democratic systems, the economic
and social well-being, the sustainable peace and democracy to
which the Stability Pact aspires, and are the essence of European
values and practice. It is thus clear how much yet remains to
be done. The EU can, and indeed should, help. But success is not
pre-determined, and is firmly in the hands of the Partner countries
themselves.
21.10 We now clear the documents.
38 For further details, see http://www.stabilitypact.org/about/default.asp. Back
39
For further details, see http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/intro/sap.htm. Back
|