Programme 

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​This year's Enlargement Day faces a changed political reality with a major war and huge geopolitical shifts in Europe. The Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the ensuing EU membership applications of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova have changed the landscape of the enlargement policy. For the first time, delegates from those countries will attend the event.

What are the hopes and fears of those countries, are their expectations of a fast-track membership realistic, and would their local and regional authorities be prepared to handle the estimated 70% or more of the EU legislation that they would have to deal with? And where would that leave the countries that have been in the EU's waiting room for a lon​g time already, and have experiences and expectations of their own?

This year's event also celebrates 2022 as the European Year of Youth. For the young people in the enlargement countries, many of the opportunities - available to their fellow young Europeans in the EU - remain elusive. This year's Enlargement Day will explore what the needs and priorities of the young are, and whether they can mobilize to move the process forward themselves.

The Enlargement Day actually consists of six events: on 6 July, five meetings of the Joint Consultative Committees and Working Groups that deal with the CoR's relations with individual countries; followed by a high-level plenary session on 7 July.

Registration has now closed. For any last-minute enquiries please write to: wgs_jccs@cor.europa.eu

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14:30 - 17:30
Joint Consultative Committees (JCC) and Working Groups (WG)
In EU enlargement policy, the CoR has a role directly under the Stabilisation and Association Agreements, which mandate its Joint Consultative Committees (JCCs). The CoR thus has a statutory duty to the represent the EU on a long-term mission to help the partner countries prepare for membership.

The JCCs consist of members from the EU – drawn from among the members of the CoR – and from the partner country. For the countries that do not yet have a JCC of their own, the CoR has set up Working Groups. These consist of CoR members only, but invite speakers and participants from the partner countries.

All the JCCs and WGs meet twice a year, once in Brussels during the annual Enlargement Day, and once in a partner country. All their meetings are public events.

Due to technical limitations, only three of the five events on 6 July can be watched via webstreaming.
 
 
 
09:20 - 13:00
Enlargement Day Plenary Session  

Listening possible in: CS/DE/EN/FR/IT/PL/RO/HR/KA/MK/SQ/TR/UA

Speaking possible in: All of the above + HU/SR

Webstreaming: https://frontend.cor.smv.cloud/en/sessions/reference/enlargement-day-plenary-session


09:30–10:00

 Introduced by Nenad Šebek

Opening Session

  • Mr Vasco Alves Cordeiro (PT/PES), President of the European Committee of the Regions, Member of the Azores Regional Parliament (video message)

 

10:00–10:45

The Western Balkans and Turkey: Finally Some Movement – or More of the Same?

Panel debate moderated by Nenad Šebek

- Ms Anna Magyar (HU/ECR), CoR rapporteur on TheEnlargement Package 2021, Member of the County Council of Csongrád Megye

- Ms Dragana Sotirovski, Mayor of Niš (Serbia), Co-chair of the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) CoR-Serbia

- Mr Nikola Dobroslavić (HR/EPP), Chair of the CoR Working Group on the Western Balkans, President of Dubrovnik-Neretva Region

- Mr Mehmet Hilmi Güler, Mayor of Ordu Metropolitan Municipality (Turkey)

- Mr Dušan Raičević, Mayor of Bar (Montenegro), Co-Chair of the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) CoR-Montenegro, Second Vice-President of the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe (NALAS)

Serbia and Montenegro are busy negotiating their accession, Albania and North Macedonia are still waiting to open negotiations, Kosovo* and Bosnia and Herzegovina are at the end of the queue as "potential candidates". Can the local and regional authorities help move things forward, or is enlargement something that only happens in faraway ministries and even more remote Brussels?

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and in line with United Nations Security Council Resolution UNSCR 1244/1999 and the International Court of Justice Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.


10:45-11:00

Coffee Break

 

11:00–11:45

Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova - New Applicant Countries, New Directions, New Expectations

Panel debate moderated by Bert Kuby

 

- Mr Oleksandr Symchyshyn , Mayor of Khmelnytskyi, Member of the Board of the Association of Ukrainian Cities

- Ms Tatiana Badan, Mayor of Selemet (Moldova), Past President of the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe (NALAS)

- Mr Zurab Abashidze, Member of Tbilisi City Council (Georgia), Head of the Georgian Delegation to the Conference of Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP)

- Mr József Kóbor (HU/EA), Member of the Local Government of Pécs with county rights, Member of the CoR Working Group Turkey

- Mr Georg Ziegler, Team Leader - Support Group for Ukraine, European Commission, Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR)

The membership applications of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova have changed the entire landscape of the EU's enlargement policy. What are the hopes and fears of the "new enlargement" countries, are their expectations of a fast-track membership realistic, and where would that leave the countries that have already been in the EU's waiting room for a long time?


11:45–12:30

Youth and EU Enlargement

Panel debate moderated by Silke Toenshoff

- Mr Tine Radinja (SI/Greens), Mayor of Škofja Loka, CoR rapporteur on The Future of Youth Policy in the EU

- Ms Tatiana Yehorova-Lutsenko, Chair of the Council of Kharkiv Oblast (Ukraine)

- Ms Eriselda Sefa, Mayor of Lushnja (Albania)

- Ms Filiz Gencan Akin, Councillor, Edirne Municipality (Turkey)

 

2022 is the European Year of Youth. For the young people in the enlargement countries, many of the opportunities - available to their fellow young Europeans in the EU - remain elusive. What are the needs and priorities of the young, and can they mobilise to move the process forward themselves?

 

12:30–13:00

Closing Remarks: What Will the EU Do Now?

- Michela Matuella, Acting Director (Western Balkans), European Commission, Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR)

- Ms Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Gdańsk (PL/EPP), Chair of the CoR Working Group on Ukraine

 
Live!