Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-06-12-Speech-3-164"
Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
---|---|
rdf:type | |
dcterms:Date | |
dcterms:Is Part Of | |
dcterms:Language | |
lpv:document identification number |
"en.20020612.5.3-164"2
|
lpv:hasSubsequent | |
lpv:speaker | |
lpv:spokenAs | |
lpv:translated text |
".
Slovakia has, over the past year, made considerable progress in the negotiations about EU membership, and this certainly deserves credit, also in view of the internal problems which the government coalition has faced in that country.
Slovakia is now, since yesterday, at the top of the list of negotiating countries, which is, given that country’s past, no mean feat. But in the case of Slovakia too, preparations have not yet entirely finished. Judging from the schedule, a great deal of work will need to be done this year. Despite the optimistic note in my report, there are still points of criticism and points that will weigh heavily when this Parliament comes to reaching a final verdict. They are not new and concern in many cases other candidate countries too. They involve the fight against corruption which, in Slovakia, is still too widespread. They also concern improving the government’s implementing capacity, a topic, in fact, to which this Parliament ought to devote a separate debate. In addition, the problems of the Roma should be tackled more swiftly. Also, an effective regional policy should be developed as a means of fighting excessive levels of unemployment in that country. Additionally, effective border control should be implemented in the framework of future Schengen cooperation.
For a number of these points, demands are high. We do not want perfection but visible progress towards an average level we have in the current EU. It is precisely the advocates of enlargement, to which, fortunately, also the large majority of this Parliament belongs, who have the responsibility of carefully testing the acceding countries at the end of the journey, on the basis of the criteria formulated in the past.
In September, parliamentary elections will be held in Slovakia and there is already a great deal of speculation about the outcome. It is up to the Slovakian citizens to decide, but as in 1998, these elections are, in fact, about Slovakia’s future in Europe. I hope that the turn-out will be as high as possible, and I expect that the outcome will lead to the forming of a new government that will be able to work with the European Union in a manner that is just as positive as the current government."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples