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Germany has laid out a detailed timetable for negotiations on the EU constitution with chancellor Angela Merkel to be personally involved in the run-up to a crucial summit in June. A letter sent to the European Parliament president on 2 January, obtained by EUobserver, shows that Berlin has asked that governments appoint an advisor "who enjoys their confidence" on both the EU constitution negotiations and the declaration for the 50th anniversary of the bloc - two issues Berlin sees as closely intertwined. The parliament is also to be represented although Berlin publicly has been brushing off attempts by the EU assembly to get involved on a grand scale.

The Commission’s reports on the Western Balkans show that the EU has taken a tougher line on future enlargements. Tackling issues of judiciary reform, corruption and organised crime are some of the key issues.

GA_googleCreateDomIframe('google_ads_div_nexttocontent' ,'nexttocontent'); GA_googleFillSlot("nexttocontent120x"); GA_googleCreateDomIframe('google_ads_div_nexttocontent120x' ,'nexttocontent120x'); Ljubljana - Slovenia's politicians - the ruling bloc, the opposition and the president - have found a rare occasion to stand united, with everyone stubbornly backing the decision to block the path of neighbouring Croatia into the European Union - despite Brussels' wishes. In a perennial row over where their common sea border meets the Adriatic coast, Slovenia - an EU member since 2004 - has stalled Croatia, which hopes to join in 2011. Most recently, Ljubljana effectively dismissed a proposal by EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn to resolve the stalemate by having international arbitration draw up the contested border. Croatia had already agreed to the proposal, but the Slovenian response - though wrapped prettily in diplomatic language - was effectively "no." Slovenia asked for amendments that were flatly rejected not only by Croatia but by the plan's author as well.

Slovenia yesterday (6 May) welcomed Croatia's decision the previous day to accept Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn's proposal for solving the border dispute between the two countries, which had frozen Zagreb's accession negotiations and become an irritant for the EU.

Background: During the French EU Presidency, Slovenia blocked the opening of nine out of ten negotiating chapters with Zagreb due to an unresolved border dispute (EurActiv 18/12/08).  The succeeding Czech Presidency has also failed to make any progress in the negotiations so far. Indeed, the EU recently postponed an accession conference after the two countries had failed show any signs of conciliation (EurActiv 24/04/09).  Diplomats have serious doubts about Croatia's ability to wrap up accession talks by the end of the year (so as to be ready to join the bloc in 2010) if the bilateral dispute is not resolved soon (see EurActiv LinksDossier on 'EU-Croatia' relations).  The border dispute between Slovenia and Croatia concerns small pockets of land along the Adriatic coast, which could prove important if accompanied by exclusive access rights to deep-sea zones. Unlike Slovenia, Croatia has a long coastline, prompting Ljubljana to attempt to assert its rights as a "geographically disadvantaged state". 

Slovenia welcomed the Croatian government's positive response to Rehn's plan, Foreign Minister Samuel Zbogar told the press hours later.  "We welcome today's [...] response. It will enable the resumption of talks," Zbogar told the press. He added that Slovenia would comments on the proposal after internal consultation. The minister declined to comment on media reports that Rehn's proposal was not in his country's interest, but made it plain that Slovenia would table amendments to the text.  Zbogar also disagreed with Croatian President Mesic's statement that the Rehn proposal was a "take it or leave it" offer. 

With just a month to go until Ireland's second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, a poll has shown that 46 percent support a yes vote, down eight points since May. Published by the Irish Times, the TNS mrbi poll shows a rise of one point in those saying they plan to vote No to 29 percent with the Don't Knows registering at 25 percent, up seven points in comparison to a pre-summer survey.

For his part, Mr Cowen has met with the main opposition parties to work out how to make the most effective Yes campaign ahead of the 2 October poll. He has also tried to persuade to voters to rise above their feelings for the government and concentrate on the issue at hand in the referendum. "I don't believe this is about the future of this government or the future of personalities, it's about the future of the country. This is not politics as usual. It goes beyond any issues of party, organisation or locality. It is about our country's future," said the prime minister on Wednesday (2 September).

Macedonia's ruling party candidate Gjorge Ivanov won Macedonia's presidential election on Sunday, pledging to resolve its long-standing name dispute with Greece in a bid to show the Balkan state's readiness to join the EU and NATO.

"Our first task will be to resolve the name issue with our southern neighbor Greece," Ivanov told Reuters. "I am sure we can find common interest and compromise." "I am sure Greece will be cooperative on the issue."

Macedonia applied for EU membership in 2005 but has not advanced since then, and Greece has blocked its NATO application in a 17-year-old dispute over Macedonia's name, which it shares with the northernmost Greek province. 

From membership conditionality to policy conditionality: EU external governance in South Eastern Europe Author: Florian Trauner (Show Biography) DOI: 10.1080/13501760902983564 Publication Frequency: 8 issues per year Published in: Journal of European Public Policy, Volume 16, Issue 5 August 2009 , pages 774 - 790 Subjects: European Studies; Public Policy; Formats available: HTML (English) : PDF (English) Article Requests: Order Reprints : Request Permissions In order to give pricing details we need to know your country. Please register and/or sign in to identify your country. Sign In Online Sample View Article: View Article (PDF) View Article (HTML) Abstract In view of the uncertainty about the final outcome of the current enlargement process, how effective is the EU's acquis conditionality in South Eastern Europe? By elaborating on the example of justice and home affairs, the article argues that the EU's external leverage has remained strong, as the EU has developed additional ways to render its conditionality approach credible. Although the hurdles for entering the EU have been raised, Croatia's compliance efforts can be considered to be similar to the logic observed in the eastern enlargement. The key to understanding the compliance of Macedonia, whose membership prospect is less certain or even questionable, is to take into account policy conditionality in addition to membership conditionality. The EU managed to compensate for less credible membership rewards by substantially increasing the value of the policy reward of visa-free travel. This strategy was effective but has created tensions with regard to the EU's broader objectives in the region. Keywords: Conditionality; enlargement; external governance; justice and home affairs; South Eastern Europe

Slovenia is expected to unblock Croatia's EU accession talks at a ministerial meeting today (15 June). The two countries have clashed for several months over disputed territories on the Adriatic coast.

Background: During the French EU Presidency, Slovenia blocked the opening of nine out of ten negotiating chapters with Zagreb due to an unresolved border dispute (EurActiv 18/12/08).  The Czech Presidency has so far failed to make any progress in the negotiations. Indeed, the EU recently postponed an accession conference after the two countries had failed to show any sign of conciliation (EurActiv 24/04/09).  Diplomats have serious doubts about the viability of Croatia's objective of wrapping up accession talks by the end of the year (so as to be ready to join the bloc in 2010) if the bilateral dispute is not resolved soon (see EurActiv LinksDossier on 'EU-Croatia' relations).  The border dispute between Slovenia and Croatia concerns small pockets of land along the Adriatic coast, which could prove important if accompanied by exclusive access rights to deep-sea zones. 

However, this may not be the end of the region's problems, as similar obstacles are expected to emerge in the Western Balkan accession process as a whole, diplomats told EurActiv.  EU diplomats said the lack of a clearly defined border between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina could soon create problems "one hundred times worse" than the current dispute between Ljubljana and Zagreb, in which the European Commission has invested a huge mediation effort.