Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 395: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the current situation regarding discussions on EU enlargement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36425/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The issue of enlargement features regularly on the agenda of the General Affairs Council which I attend and in my bilateral discussions with EU Ministerial colleagues. The December 2009 Council adopted detailed conclusions, subsequently endorsed by the European Council, regarding enlargement generally and in relation to the position of various aspirant member states. It underlined that enlargement is based on consolidating commitments, fair and rigorous conditionality and the EU's capacity to integrate new members, and that each country is assessed on its own merits. The Council plans to discuss enlargement again in detail at the European Council in December. Prior to this, the European Commission is due to publish their annual progress reports on candidate countries, in November. These reports will provide a basis for further discussion and conclusions at the December Council.

Negotiations with Croatia are well advanced and work on most chapters will be completed by the end of the year. Currently, 22 of the 35 negotiating chapters have been closed and the work of the Accession Treaty Drafting Group is well underway. Issues that still require effort concern measures to combat corruption and organised crime, and cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

Progress in the negotiations with Turkey has been slow (only 13 of 35 negotiating chapters opened to date). Turkey's failure to fulfil its obligations under the Ankara Protocol and to normalise its relations with Cyprus remains a key obstacle and these issues are likely again to dominate discussions on enlargement at the December Council. The European Council in 2006 decided that eight relevant negotiating chapters could not be opened and no further chapters may be closed until Turkey's compliance with the Protocol is verified by the Commission. September's successful referendum approving constitutional reforms was seen by the Commission as a step in the right direction in general terms, although the Commission stressed that there is much progress still required.

An intergovernmental conference with Iceland on 27 July marked the formal opening of negotiations and the negotiations are proceeding. Despite significant concerns regarding domestic opinion towards EU accession, the government is still very much in favour.

In October 2009, the Commission recommended formally opening accession negotiations with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The December Council welcomed progress made in a number of important areas but stopped short of endorsing the Commission's recommendation to open negotiations. The key obstacle is a bilateral dispute with Greece regarding the use of the name "Macedonia." No breakthrough was reached at the June General Affairs Council and major progress is not expected over the next six months. Serbia's application for membership (made in December 2009) has yet to be fully considered by the Council. The June Foreign Affairs Council agreed that the ratification process for Serbia's Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU could begin. Although Council stopped short of referring Serbia's application to the Commission for an avis, the conclusions welcomed Serbia's commitment to EU integration" and indicated that the Council would "return to the membership application". The matter is expected to be considered at a General Affairs Council in the near future.

The Commission will continue its work on opinions on Albania's and Montenegro's applications for membership made in December 2008 and April 2009, respectively. No applications have yet been received from Bosnia & Herzegovina or from Kosovo.

It is important to note that enlargement is a negotiated process and, as in any negotiation, the eventual outcome and timeframe cannot be predetermined.

As a beneficiary of past enlargement, and on the experience of more recent accessions, Ireland is broadly supportive of enlargement. The prospect of enlargement bolsters economic and political reform processes and helps to promote stability, security and prosperity in Europe. Ireland takes an active role in discussions on the issue, both at Council meetings and in bilateral discussions with existing and aspirant member states.