91998E3678

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3678/98

by Gerhard Hager (NI) to the Council

(4 December 1998)

Subject: EU visa policy

In the answer to my oral question (H-0695/98)(1) the Council assured me that adoption of the acquis communautaire constituted the touchstone of the accession negotiations. The Council was providing the applicant countries with all possible logistical support for the application and efficient transposition of the Community acquis. I was also assured that "both the Community and the applicant countries have announced their intention to implement the necessary adjustments in this area as quickly as possible." The Czech government has now blocked a bill to adopt EU visa policy, and Hungary, too, is still critical of EU visa policy. Czech government representatives have taken the line that good relations with the CIS states are important to them as well as speedy accession to the EU and that they do not wish to upset these relations with visa obligations.

Is the Council aware of these developments and can it repeat the assurances it gave in reply to the previous question?

Reply

(8 February 1999)

The Council confirms that acceptance of the "acquis" of the Union by the applicant States will constitute a central point in accession negotiations.

That applies, naturally, to all subject areas, including visas.

The Council of the European Union is making every effort to help the applicant States to align themselves on the EU "acquis".

Thus:

- during the first half of 1998, the Council, in close collaboration with the Commission, completed work on defining the "acquis" and communicating it formally to the applicant States. A similar communication concerning asylum and immigration was made in 1997 under the Netherlands Presidency;

- in May 1998, the Council adopted a Joint Action establishing a mechanism for collective evaluation of the enactment, application and effective implementation by applicant countries of the acquis of the European Union in the field of Justice and Home Affairs. This Joint Action provides for a group of experts from the Member States to be established, with the task of preparing and keeping up-to-date collective evaluations of the situation in the candidate countries on the enactment, application and effective implementation of the acquis of the Union in the field of Justice and Home Affairs. This Group has already begun meeting;

- in addition, in the area of visas, meetings are held regularly (once per Presidency) with representatives of the applicant countries. The latest of these meetings took place on 26 and 27 November 1998 in Brussels. A seminar on the security of documents is also planned for January 1999.

(1) Report of Proceedings, July 1998.