• Tuesday, 19 November 2024

EU enlargement part of debate on eliminating unanimity in decision-making process

EU enlargement part of debate on eliminating unanimity in decision-making process
Brussels, 20 September 2022 (MIA) – The Czech EU Presidency has opened the topic of eliminating unanimous decision-making in certain foreign policy areas. Union enlargement is part of the debate, although not a high priority, according to Czech Minister of European Affairs Mikulas Bek, MIA reports from Brussels. Minister Bek told a press conference after the General Affairs Council on Tuesday he is not an optimist that the proposal would be passed by the end of the Czech Presidency but said they would not give up. Prague has asked members to give their thoughts about the sections of the foreign and security policy that would be voted through qualified majority rather than unanimously. The main goal is to overcome blockades by countries such as Hungary regarding the sanctions on Russia. Asked by MIA if enlargement was specifically mentioned regarding the elimination of unanimity, the Czech minister said “enlargement was not officially the main topic.” “Several member-states mentioned enlargement as a relevant context in the debate, the Czech Presidency is very committed to the process, and this should be incorporated in the debate on institutional changes,” said Bek.