European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen will on Wednesday, 20 March, present proposals to reform the procedure for countries to join the European Union.
The newspaper Politico writes that.
“European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will today present proposals that will change the way new members join the EU,” the publication says.
According to the publication, as a new rule they want to introduce a phased procedure for joining the EU. This is necessary so that countries such as Ukraine or Moldova can access some privileges of EU countries without being full members. The proposal envisages gradual accession of the candidate countries to the European single market.
In addition, the EC may propose to abandon the principle of unanimity in making important decisions and introduce instead the principle of qualified majority.
Earlier, the former head of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, said that Ukraine’s accession to the EU in the next five years was unlikely.