Euractiv: France blocked the opening of accession talks with North Macedonia despite the promise made

France blocked the opening of accession talks with North Macedonia despite the promise made by the EU to Skopje that its historic name deal with Greece would earn it a ticket to EU membership negotiations, wrote media network Euractiv.

Following EU ministers’ call to postpone the decision for October, this meeting was seen as make-or-break, particularly after the German Bundestag backed the opening of talks in September, Euractiv wrote.

“Only France blocked North Macedonia, while the Netherlands and Denmark backed Skopje but opposed Tirana’s bid. Finland proposed Albania’s case to be separated from that of North Macedonia, but France disagreed,” the media network reported.

According to Euractiv, the Finnish EU presidency announced the issue will be put on the agenda of the summit of EU leaders, set to take place in Brussels Thursday and Friday. The summit already has an awkward agenda, including how to avoid a hard Brexit and the response to the Turkish incursion in Syria.

“French European Affairs Minister Amélie de Montchalin said her country was against opening accession talks for the two Western Balkan countries. She explained that more reforms are needed in both countries, but also made clear that bigger issues had to be addressed, including a deep reform of the way the Commission conducts the negotiations and addressing the issue of brain drain in the respective countries,” wrote Euractiv.

Brain drain is indeed a problem, the media network underlined, but the issue has not been addressed in the case of the accession process of the new EU members, or of Serbia and Montenegro, the “two Western Balkans countries already in the process of accession talks.”

Euractiv reported that De Montchalin said criteria had been set in 2018 and these should be respected. In the case of North Macedonia, she specified the reform of the special prosecutor office, which in her words has not been completed.

A French presidency official said Macron’s government would not agree to open the talks now, wrote the media network.

“These countries will be part of the European Union one day… but it is too early to open the legal process towards enlargement,” the official said.

On the other hand, Euractiv stated, the opening of accession talks was a priority for Germany.

Diplomatic sources in Brussels told Euractiv that France could change its position at the summit only in the hypothetical scenario of a major trade-off, such as Germany taking on board French ideas for the reform of the eurozone.

“Macron is already thinking about the presidential elections of 2022. He is also anxious not to provoke Russia, who frowns at the EU accession of territories where it has kept an influence, such as Serbia, Montenegro and North Macedonia. Montenegro has joined NATO. Macedonia hopes to be next in early 2020, while Serbia has no plans to join the Atlantic alliance,” Euractiv wrote.