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EU candidate countries should be able to gradually unlock privileges such as partial access to the bloc’s single market to keep them motivated while they wait for full membership, Paris and Berlin have suggested in a new joint paper.
In the discussion paper, circulated ahead of a Western Balkans summit and seen by POLITICO, aspiring EU members could also win observer status at key meetings, as well as other perks, to avoid disenchantment with the process.
The idea would be to bring “candidate countries effectively closer to the EU through a more structured gradual integration, thus providing additional incentives for reforms,” reads the paper circulated Thursday among EU diplomats.
The Franco-German discussion paper coincides with growing frustration with the pace of EU membership talks, especially in the Western Balkans, where countries like North Macedonia have been waiting for more than 20 years to join the bloc.
