European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos stated today in Zagreb that the enlargement of the European Union is no longer a question of its enlargement, but of strengthening the Union, saying that the candidate countries must show that they have made a clear strategic choice in favor of Europe.
Speaking at the Conference of Ambassadors, Consuls General, Consuls and Military Attaches, Kos said that 2026 will be a record year in the enlargement process, as more negotiation chapters were opened and closed in the first eight months than in any year in the last 25 years.
“Enlargement today is not a matter of making our Union bigger. Expansion is a matter of making ourselves stronger,” Kos said, according to the European Commission’s press release.
She assessed that geopolitical gray zones on the European continent increase uncertainty and vulnerability and that enlargement has become one of the key instruments for strengthening the stability and security of Europe.
As examples of progress, she singled out Montenegro, which closed more than half of the negotiation chapters and for which the member states began preparing the accession agreement, and Albania, which met key temporary benchmarks in the area of the rule of law and began to close chapters.
According to her, Ukraine and Moldova have also made significant technical progress in the past two years in harmonizing with the EU acquis, which is why she called on the member states to enable the formal opening of all remaining negotiation clusters.
Kos said that she wants the other candidate countries to join the group of leaders, but only if they show equal determination in implementing reforms and building trust with all member states.
“Candidate countries must truly choose Europe. Our common security and common values,” said Kos.
She announced that the European Commission will present proposals in September on how the EU should prepare for the reception of new members, ahead of the European Council meeting on enlargement in October.
According to her, it is necessary to reach a consensus on the consequences of the admission of new members for the current members and the EU budget, internal reforms that will enable efficient decision-making, protection of the rule of law and a change in the enlargement model itself.
