In our next video, Iulian Groza, Executive Director of the IPRE – Institutul pentru Politici ศi Reforme Europene, addresses a critical question: ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ง ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฎ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐จ๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ?
His message is clear: ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ซ๐ญ๐๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐จ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ – ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐๐ข๐๐ญ๐ ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ฌ ๐๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ซ๐๐ ๐ข๐จ๐ง, ๐๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐ค๐ซ๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐. For years, EU enlargement appeared stalled, driven in part by fears of provoking external pressure. Yet, as the Russian invasion of Ukraine has shown, hesitation does not prevent conflict.
On the contrary, it can leave countries more exposed. Paradoxically, this moment has also triggered progress. Ukraine and Moldova have made remarkable strides in just three years, reaching the stage of accession talks – a testament to their commitment and resilience.
However, prolonged ambiguity could come at a cost:
– It fuels internal dissatisfaction
– It empowers anti-European coalitions
– It disengages citizens
– And it opens the door for sustained external pressure
The conclusion is straightforward: a clear and credible enlargement path is essential. EU enlargement remains one of the most successful policies in Europeโs history, not only for candidate countries, but for the EU itself. Bringing the Western Balkans, Ukraine, and Moldova closer strengthens security, resilience, and prosperity across the continent.
The question is no longer if enlargement matters, but how decisively it will be pursued.
