E.U. close to accord on migration of labour

By Batuk Gathani

BRUSSELS, MAY 7. The stage is now set for the realisation of the quest for an enlarged, democratic and prosperous European Union highlighted by common foreign and defence policies.

On Sunday in Sweden, the 15 European Foreign Ministers edged closer to resolving issues over money and migration of labour in the proposed enlarged E.U. These issues are politically sensitive in E.U. countries, where the unemployment rate is high and in some cases have reached the two-digit mark. The issues related to migration of labour have often threatened to delay the E.U.'s proposed enlargement into former communist ruled regions of Eastern, Central and Southern Europe.

On the pan-European foreign policy and security front, Mr. Javier Solana, the E.U.'s chief diplomat and head of Foreign Affairs, and Lord Robertson, Secretary General of NATO, are in Macedonia to push for a renewed dialogue between warring ethnic factions.

The three-month-old civil war in Macedonia has escalated in recent days. For the fourth day in succession, the Christian Macedonian army units used tanks and artillery to blast the rebel positions of Muslim ethnic Albanians. The firing has also continued along the border with Kosovo and Serbia, as ethnic Albanians press their claim for a Greater Islamic Albania. On Sunday night, seven civilians were reported killed in the fighting.

Mr. Solana on Monday urged Macedonian authorities to show ``maximum restraint''. Lord Robertson will make a fresh assessment of the crisis scenario from a military and security point of view.

The E.U. leaders are scheduled to meet in June. On July 1, Sweden will relinquish the rotating six-monthly presidency of the E.U. in favour of Belgium. The E.U. Foreign Ministers are expected to reach a compromise on free movement of East European workers. The detailed proposals will be presented to the E.U. heads of Government in June.

Mr. Romano Prodi, President of the European Commission - administrative and civil service arm of the E.U. - said he doubted if the much-heralded nightmare of Western Europe being swamped by impoverished job-seekers from poorer parts of Eastern Europe will ever happen. Thirteen countries are seeking the membership of the E.U. and the first wave of new members would include Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia.

At a much later date, perhaps beyond 2010, `the second wave' would consist of Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Malta and perhaps Turkey. Turkey's fate depends on how democratic and secular it emerges and how it contains social and psychological challenges posed by Islamic fundamentalists. Turkey will be the largest non-Christian, Islamic country to be a member of the E.U.

The enlargement of the E.U. is a long-term process and even front-runner applicants are not expected to join the grouping before 2003. But the European Foreign Ministers appear to have reached a consensus on the delicate and politically sensitive issue of the ``free movement of labour'' within the boundaries of the E.U. Hence, the stage is set for the beginning of the endgame of the enlargement of the E.U. The three-year-old negotiations on enlargement have been led by Germany, Spain and Austria.

The enlarged E.U. will eventually stretch from Ireland to the Baltic states, bordering Russia. This will be the world's largest single market comprising over 500 million prosperous consumers. The E.U. is also India's largest trading partner.

The 1991 treaty on the E.U. set out an ambitious plan for political, economic and monetary integration. Some pessimists argue that E.U. institutions are becoming bureaucratic, cumbersome and expensive and that its governance structures are unwieldy. On the optimistic side, it is argued that the dream of European unity has progressed much in the last four decades. The European Community started from a narrow coal and steel community in the 1950's. The European Union has now emerged as a broad political and economic union, which has overcome the trauma of two World Wars, also started in Europe.

The Europeans today enjoy unprecedented prosperity with the highest living standards in history. The pan-European trade and investments are at a record high level as Governments move towards an era of more sustained co-operation in economic and political matters. It is also fast emerging as a global economic and political superpower.

The E.U. could now face enlargement to embrace as many as 25 members in the next two decades. The aspiring countries for membership range from the oldest applicant Turkey (April 1987) to the latest Slovenia - June 1996. They are encouraged to undergo reforms and establish political and economic structures to enable them to meet the membership obligations of the E.U. They have to satisfy three basic conditions; a) European identity b) democratic status and c) respect for human rights.

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Section  : International
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