Brussels, 18 September 2025 (MIA) - I believe the message of the European Commission to the candidates for EU membership is that we are ready for admission and we want to see new members join the Union in the coming years, of course once they meet the requirements, says the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) President Oliver Röpke.

"This has always been a promise by the European Union. However, we saw over the years that the promise was not delivered from both sides. We now have the enlargement momentum and I believe we must maintain it," Röpke tells the European Newsroom (ENR), in which MIA is a participating agency.

Röpke says the EESC stimulates active involvement of representatives of the civil society from candidate-countries in the implementation of reforms, which is a prerequisite for membership based on merits.

"Everyone accepts this approach. We now need strong political will. I see this and can say that the EESC is an absolute supporter of this idea," notes Röpke.

Photo: ENR