Germany’s new federal government is signaling a shift in the European Union’s enlargement policy, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reports, highlighting a key paragraph in the coalition agreement that has so far received little public attention, as cited by Deutsche Welle.
“EU enlargement and its capacity to admit new members must go hand in hand. Therefore, at the latest with the next round of enlargement, we need internal consolidation and institutional reform of the EU to strengthen it,” the first part of the paragraph reads. It continues: “The principle of consensus in the European Council must not become a bottleneck for decision-making – this applies also to the remaining decisions requiring unanimity in the EU Council.”
FAZ assesses that this signals a clear departure from the traditional rhetoric on enlargement, drawing attention to a long-standing issue: the EU’s limited decision-making capacity is a central obstacle to accepting new members.
“Each new full member brings an additional veto right in areas that require unanimity. If the EU accepts all countries currently negotiating or aspiring for membership, nothing in foreign policy could be decided against the will of Belgrade, Chișinău, Kyiv, Sarajevo, Skopje, Podgorica, Pristina, or Tirana,” FAZ writes, noting that the internal structure and foreign policy orientation of these countries could significantly impact EU decision-making.
“Pro-Russian” Membership Candidates
FAZ highlights Serbia and Moldova as key examples. According to the report, Serbia’s democratic backsliding would likely make it difficult for the EU to take a united stance against Moscow. This is already challenging, as shown by the case of Hungary.
Moldova’s situation is also fragile: though pro-Western President Maia Sandu is still in office, her re-election last year relied heavily on diaspora votes from Western Europe. If the result had depended solely on domestic voters, the EU referendum initiated by Sandu would have failed, and a pro-Russian challenger would have won, FAZ notes.
French President Emmanuel Macron has for years warned that EU membership promises are being made too lightly to neighboring countries. “Even with 27 members, the EU often functions more poorly than well. So how can a union with 35 members function under the same rules?” FAZ asks.
Skepticism Over EU Reform
The paper observes that, although EU reform has been on the table for years, there is no consensus in sight to abolish unanimity. If the abolition of unanimity becomes a precondition for enlargement—as proposed in the coalition agreement—then further enlargement appears unlikely. “All sides are aware of this, but previous German governments have lacked the courage to state it clearly,” FAZ writes.
An Old but Still Relevant Alternative
A different view comes from Vienna. Austrian Minister for Europe Claudia Plakolm recently stated she hopes the EU will admit new members by 2030 and suggested a temporary suspension of the unanimity principle. However, it remains unclear how such a suspension would work and what would be gained if unanimity were reinstated later.
According to FAZ, “in the usual weekend speeches on the EU,” enlargement is often advocated without addressing the real obstacles it entails. Still, the German coalition agreement mentions an alternative—granting candidate countries access to the EU single market once they fulfill nearly all membership criteria, but without full membership or veto rights. This approach maintains high standards while avoiding added political burdens for the EU.
“Such a model would extend the EU’s legal space without overloading its political structures,” FAZ concludes.
