The European Commission is proposing changes to the European Union’s enlargement rules that could allow new members to join while temporarily limiting their voting rights, and even suspend some voting powers if they seriously violate EU standards. The plan is intended to make future enlargement more predictable while preventing democratic backsliding and institutional paralysis as the bloc expands beyond its current 27 members.
The draft strategy, expected to be presented within days, argues that enlargement would strengthen Europe but also create greater demands on decision-making, administration, law enforcement, infrastructure and funding. It proposes a system of gradual integration, together with safeguards designed to prevent new members from blocking EU decisions or retreating from democratic commitments after accession.
The approach is being developed as the war in Ukraine has renewed the strategic importance of enlargement. Ukraine and Moldova, together with the Western Balkans, are central to the EU’s current expansion plans. The conflict with Russia has turned eastern enlargement into a security issue, while also reviving efforts to integrate the Balkans. Iceland had also become part of the debate, although its citizens rejected the prospect of EU integration in a referendum in August.
The Commission is seeking to maintain momentum despite growing political uncertainty in Europe. It is concerned that support for enlargement could weaken amid the rise of Eurosceptic far-right parties, political instability in France and the continuing war. At the same time, Brussels insists that geopolitical pressure will not mean lowering the conditions for membership.
Marta Kos, the European commissioner for enlargement, has said the EU’s security concerns do not justify reducing accession requirements. “Enlargement is a security strategy against Russia,” she said recently, while stressing that Ukraine would still have to complete the required reforms before becoming a member.
Under the proposed system, candidate countries that make progress on reforms could gain earlier access to EU programmes and policies. The Commission envisages gradual participation in areas including energy, transport and defence, as well as partial access to the single market for companies from candidate states. Such access would depend on adopting EU rules and demonstrating the ability to implement them.
Brussels is already testing the approach in the Western Balkans through a €6 billion growth plan that links financial support and gradual access to parts of the single market to reforms. During a visit to the region, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the model as “gradual integration at its finest”, pointing to access to European infrastructure such as the single euro payments area. “While they prepare to join the EU, we open parts of our single market to their companies,” she said.
The most contentious proposal concerns safeguards against countries joining the EU and subsequently abandoning democratic commitments. The draft considers a temporary political arrangement under which a new member could accept restrictions on the use of its veto for a defined period. It also proposes a clause allowing certain rights, including voting rights, to be temporarily suspended in cases of serious democratic regression.
The proposals draw on the EU’s experience with Hungary under Viktor Orbán, whose government was accused of democratic backsliding and repeatedly used its veto to obstruct European decisions, particularly on foreign policy and Russia. Diplomatic sources warn that the proposed restrictions could create first- and second-class members.
The Commission is also considering reducing the number of commissioners and introducing a rotation system. Such a change could mean that countries including Spain would periodically lose their representative on the European Commission, although the system would be required to maintain geographical balance.
