Fact-Checking Webinar: “Is EU Enlargement a Threat?”

After a long period of “fatigue”, the European Union’s enlargement policy has returned to the heart of the European debate, as an unexpected consequence of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. However, this return under geopolitical pressure has raised concerns among European public opinion as well as within EU institutions: dilution of the project, loss of sovereignty, ungovernable institutions, additional costs, a threat to our identity… So many preconceived ideas that deserve to be deconstructed.

At present, ten countries have submitted their applications to join the EU, but their respective accession processes are progressing at very different speeds. By comparison, the 2004 enlargement represented an even more ambitious challenge: ten states joined the European Union simultaneously (with three others following), contributing not only to its geographical expansion but also to the deepening of its project, economic integration, and the adaptation of its institutions. So do new enlargements really represent a danger for the EU?

This webinar aims to put facts back at the heart of the debate:

• Rather than weakening the Union, could enlargement actually strengthen it?

• What would be the real costs and the real benefits of new enlargements?

• Finally, would enlargement mean giving up our European “values”?

Join us on 20 January from 7 p.m. for a fact-checking webinar with Benjamin Couteau, researcher at the Centre Grande Europe and specialist in enlargement issues.