'EU date Balkan is inconvenient'

brussels - The mention of 2025 as a possible date of accession to the European Union of six Balkan countries is very unwise. That is what the VVD, CDA, D66 and the PvdA believe in the European Parliament.

The European Commission presented a strategy for the Western Balkans yesterday. Serbia and Montenegro are already negotiating accession with the EU, but Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia and Bosnia are also on the agenda for membership.

In theory, it can take decades before a country meets all conditions. But EU overseas head Mogherini and Euro commissioner Hahn (Enlargement) want to give gas, although they swear that the countries themselves will have to do their best.

'I am against mentioning data. With Romania and Bulgaria (who joined in 2007, ed.), We have made a big impact on ourselves ', according to VVD MEP Hans van Baalen. 'In practice, a target date becomes a political fact. '

According to CDA MEP Esther de Lange, the mention of a date of misery is in the hand. 'Heads of government can not go back at a certain moment,' she says.

The four parties agree that countries should be able to join in due course, mainly because of the geopolitical importance. But first all accession chapters will have to be finished neatly and without time pressure. 'The Balkans must remain stable and not be too influenced by the Kremlin,' says D66 MEP Marietje Schaake.

PvdA MEP Paul Tang emphasizes that even leader Serbia still has a long way to go. 'There are still problems with the independence of the constitutional state and freedom of the press. Good relations with neighboring Kosovo are also a requirement for membership. '