Brussels – If EU enlargement is too serious a matter to be left to the Brussels bubble (General de Gaulle will forgive us for reformulating his famous quote), then the time has come for European regions, cities and sub-national actors to take the lead in shaping the design of the new Union.
“For us, a new challenge in the coming years will be to mainstream EU enlargement beyond traditional enlargement policies. Therefore, its impact should be analysed from a local, regional and territorial perspective,” said Béatrice Taulègne, Director in the Secretariat-General of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), opening the panel Preparing for an enlarged Union – Cities, regions, and the debate on EU reforms at the 2025 European Week of Regions and Cities on 14 October.
The Committee, which represents EU’s regional and local authorities, is seeking to carve out an increasingly central role—within the scope of its competences—not only in the EU enlargement process, but above all in the debate on internal EU reform. As Taulègne stressed, “this is not a choice or a luxury, but a reality we must work towards.”
This approach is already taking shape through the Enlargement Days—events dedicated to dialogue between CoR representatives and stakeholders—and now aims to bring “the voice of the regions” directly to the European Commission’s attention during the EU Enlargement Forum on 18 November.
The risk of regional disparities
“The economic literature points to the benefits of EU enlargement, but it also suggests that this new enlargement needs to be managed carefully, because it will be felt differently across regions and cities,” warned Mafalda Batalha, a researcher at the European University Institute (EUI), speaking during the discussion.
When discussing EU enlargement, we cannot overlook the challenges it poses at multiple levels, including the sub-national one. “European regions already face a set of common, yet unevenly distributed, challenges,” Batalha continued, pointing to migration, climate change, the energy transition, housing affordability, tourism pressures in cities, and an ageing population.
Enlargement will certainly not stop these problems, as “we are potentially bringing in new countries with very different social and economic structures.” For this reason, the integration of one—or even ten—future member countries must take such regional disparities into account.
The question then is: how should the EU prepare for enlargement? “It is of utmost importance to consider pre-enlargement policy reviews, because the EU essentially needs to ensure that its budget, governance and institutions are fit for a larger and more diverse Union,” the EUI researcher emphasised. The European Commission is set to unveil its proposal for internal policy reviews and reforms on 4 November—postponed by one week compared with the original timetable—on the same day as the 2025 Enlargement Package.
Batalha also stressed that this debate must include not only EU institutions and the authorities of current and potential future Member States, but also sub-national actors. “A one-size-fits-all approach is rarely sufficient,” she noted, adding that empowering local authorities will be crucial, as European regions “are often best placed to understand local challenges and propose policy solutions.”
What the European regions can do now?
“We have to make sure that the regions and the Committee are in the design room,” urged Corina Stratulat, Associate Director of the European Policy Centre (EPC), in her intervention, which drew on the evidence from a recently published paper on enlargement and EU reforms. “This is not only necessary because Russia is waging war in Ukraine, but also because our long-standing problems are unlikely to disappear, while new ones may emerge in the future.” Moreover, by reforming itself, the EU can set the example that could “potentially encourage enlargement countries to do the same.”
First of all, the European Committee of the Regions and sub-national representatives “should be embedded in a Forum on Enlargement and in any other related consultations” that bring citizens from across the EU and candidate countries into the process. An “honest” debate and clear information on the implications of the next enlargement are essential, Stratulat warned. As this will imply costs, “if you just take executive decisions behind closed doors and then try to sell them as the best thing that has ever happened to them, it is not going to work.”
The Committee is also urged to “press the European Council to mandate a governance reform report and to publish an EU enlargement roadmap linked to a comprehensive but dynamic EU reform plan.” These documents should outline “stages, resources, and timelines,” deciding on the first wave—or waves—of enlargement “and then resourcing the pipeline, with pre-accession support scaled to convergence and reform delivery.”
Key areas such as Cohesion policy and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) “are likely to be strained by potential future enlargements—and financing a larger Union will also become an issue,” Stratulat noted. Therefore, the Committee should provide “CoR-coordinated evidence on territorial impacts and funding needs for an enlargement roadmap,” including transition clauses and derogations where relevant.
Finally, “decentralised pre-accession support is also needed.” This could include channelling more IPA-style funding directly to municipalities and regions, expanding support at the local level, and backing SMEs and local media in candidate regions. Other measures might involve CoR-brokered region-to-region twinning with candidate countries, piloting direct municipal grants for acquis-related projects, and fostering cross-border cooperation to defuse bilateral tensions early.
Given that veto power is already a challenge in the EU, and considering ongoing bilateral issues among current candidates, “in a Union of 30+ members we must ensure that potential new members cannot block future accessions,” Stratulat concluded.
Discover more from The New Union Post
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
