Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Ireland has always been, and will remain, a strong supporter of enlargement of the European Union, provided that candidate countries meet the necessary conditions for membership. We recognise the value of enlargement as a transformative driver for stability and peace in candidate countries.

There are currently seven recognised candidates for membership of the European Union: Turkey, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Serbia, Ukraine and Moldova. Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia are recognised as potential candidates by the EU. Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have formally submitted applications for membership, while Kosovo has a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU, and has indicated an intention to submit a formal application for EU membership during 2022.

On 17 June 2022, the European Commission presented its Opinions on the EU membership applications submitted by Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova as invited by the European Council. The Commission recommended that candidate status be granted to Ukraine and Moldova, on the understanding that reforms are taken in a number of areas. It was also recommended that candidate status eventually be granted to Georgia, once a number of priority reforms have been addressed, with the Commission to review progress on all three applications by the end of 2022. Ireland welcomed and supported the 23 June decision of the European Council to grant EU candidate status to Ukraine and to Moldova and potential candidate status to Georgia.

Ireland has long advocated for this outcome and I have strongly supported Ukraine's EU perspective at meetings of the Foreign Affairs Council. As I re-iterated when I met Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba in April, Ireland fully supports Ukraine's application for EU membership. President Zelenskyy also expressed his thanks for Ireland being in the leading group of countries supporting Ukraine’s candidacy during the Taoiseach’s visit to Kyiv on 5-6 July.

We have come together with a group of other Member States with a view to providing political and practical assistance in support of Ukraine’s European perspective. I and my officials have also had frequent meetings with representatives of the Ukrainian, Georgian and Moldovan authorities on the issue of EU membership, including with the Embassy teams of those countries here in Ireland.

In the Western Balkans, current issues relating to the enlargement process largely revolve around the commitment to opening Inter-Governmental Conferences (IGCs) with Albania and North Macedonia. The main obstacle to agreement has been Bulgaria’s objection to moving ahead with opening accession negotiations with North Macedonia due to bilateral difficulties related to the Macedonian language, the Bulgarian community in North Macedonia, and the implementation of the 2017 Treaty on Good Neighbourly Relations.

Diplomatic efforts led by the outgoing French Presidency have been underway in recent weeks to resolve the issues. On 24 June the Bulgarian Parliament approved a proposal from the French Presidency aimed at resolving the impasse and lifting the veto. Following further discussions, including en margeof the NATO Summit in Madrid on 29-30 June, the French Presidency produced a revised proposal which has been accepted by the North Macedonian government and submitted to the country’s national assembly for consideration, with a parliamentary vote expected on 15 July.

The issue was discussed during the joint visit of the Minister for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne, T.D., with his Finnish counterpart, Tytti Tuppurainen, to Skopje on 4 July with both Ministers emphasising that the latest Presidency proposal represented a clear opportunity for North Macedonia to advance on its European track while safeguarding both the Macedonian language and identity.

Elsewhere, the EU is continuing to encourage greater reform efforts on the part of Serbia and Montenegro, particularly in relation to Rule of Law and promotion of good governance. Serbia’s non-alignment with the EU common position relating to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has also been of concern recently.

The possibility of granting candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina was also discussed at the June European Council meeting. Ireland welcomes that the Commission will be providing a further report on the country’s progress in meeting its reform agenda, and looks forward to supporting Bosnia and Herzegovina as it advances further on its European path.

Ireland will continue to support strongly the enlargement process and offer any practical assistance it can to candidate countries engaged in accession negotiations to the EU.