The European Parliament is once again discussing EU institutional reform

Translated by Annachiara Laino

The enlargement of the European Union and accession procedures

The European Union – then the European Community – although established to create closer and stronger cooperation among its Member States, has always paid particular attention to its external projection. This external character is expressed in numerous and different activities. The European institutions maintain diplomatic relations with non-member countries, establish relations with other international organisations (both universal and regional), participate in international conferences and, above all, conclude bilateral and multilateral agreements with third countries. 

Since the Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950, the desire of the founding fathers of the European Union to expand the borders of the nascent international organisation has been evident. In fact, the project – ideally designed to ensure stable and lasting reconciliation between France and Germany – is part of “an organisation to which other European countries can join”. 

Although ten years have passed since the last enlargement, the European Union has continued to exert a strong influence on the international scene, and numerous countries have, at different times, notified their desire to join the Union. The accession process is complex and requires a certain amount of preparation, both on the part of the candidate states and on the part of the European institutions themselves. 

States wishing to join the Union must meet a series of fundamental criteria established and provided for by EU law. This attempt at harmonisation takes different paths depending on the individual national context; the measures to be taken are in fact related to the starting conditions of each candidate state. All this makes adaption to European principles strictly contingent: the need for constant monitoring and continuous checks by the European institutions is therefore understandable.

The consequences of enlargement on the institutions of the Union

In 2022, during the Conference on the Future of Europe, the need for a general review of the governance of the European Union emerged. The issue has now acquired central importance for European institutions, Member States and academia, especially in relation to enlargement. 

The debate is currently ongoing and it seems that it has not yet been possible to reach a unanimous consensus on the most appropriate way to address the issue. In particular, two schools of thought have emerged: while one group believes that the treaties can be considered "enlargement-proof", a second group (led by the European Parliament) believes that the only viable option is to reform the treaties. 

Any enlargement of the EU to include the nine candidate states currently under consideration will certainly have a considerable impact on the institutions and advisory bodies of the European Union, as well as on the language regime, even without contemplating a change to the treaties. 

Firstly, it should be emphasised that the Treaty of Lisbon has made the institutional system “enlargement-proof”, in the sense that no further amendments to the treaties are necessary to continue on the path towards the accession of new Member States. 

Beyond these considerations, on 22 November 2023, the European Parliament formally requested, through a resolution, that substantial changes be made to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The stated objective is to improve integration between Member States and strengthen the Union itself, so as to make it ready to welcome the current nine candidate countries. 

The European Commission, on the other hand, argues that the institutional structure of the European Union can be redesigned using the instruments already available in the current treaties.

The European Parliament stresses the need for institutional reform

Almost two years after these discussions, following a period of substantial deadlock, the European Parliament has once again placed the issue of institutional reform of the Union at the centre of the debate, approving, by 330 votes to 273, a report that is fully in line with the reform process that has just begun, thanks in part to the exhortations contained in the report presented last year by former ECB President Mario Draghi, who, after his historic “whatever it takes” statement, is back on the European scene at a time of great uncertainty and international tension.

Mondo Internazionale APS - Riproduzione Riservata ® 2025