Vienna (APA) – EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos will ensure that future EU candidate countries cannot misuse their veto in the interest of a foreign power to divide or weaken Europe. “We need to have an honest discussion about what safeguards we will include in future accession treaties to assure our citizens that the integrity of our Union is protected,” Kos said on Thursday evening in Parliament in Vienna.
In her “Speech to Freedom,” the EU Commissioner from Slovenia, a liberal politician and former diplomat, emphasized that she does not propose EU membership with fewer rights or without voting rights. “We are discussing safeguards against backsliding here.” The “Speech to Freedom” is organized by the liberal “Renew Europe” and a think tank of the Austrian liberal party NEOS.
Kos regrets EU’s shortcomings
Kos expressed regret that EU enlargement has not progressed more quickly. “I consider it one of the saddest moments of our European Union that we – with the exception of Slovenia and Croatia – could not follow the model that was so successful in the 1980s and early 2000s,” she said regarding the Western Balkans. “We have failed to use the credible prospect of EU membership as a tool to achieve reconciliation, to lift these borders, and to eliminate bilateral conflicts.”
The Ukrainians also paid the price for “allowing gray zones on our continent,” she said in reference to Russia’s war of aggression. “Today we see how the wave of freedom is receding, and Europe is once again at risk of becoming an island surrounded by autocracies,” Kos warned. The situation is more dangerous than in the 1990s. “Forces from within are weakening us. Today, we Europeans face the same fundamental questions as the founders of the European integration process: Do we want to take our fate into our own hands and decide sovereignly about our own future?”
“Realize European integration today, not tomorrow”
The candidate countries looked to the EU for protection against Russian attacks, Kos said. “We can achieve this by realizing European integration today, not tomorrow.” The war in Ukraine began when Kyiv turned to Europe to solidify its freedom and democracy. “Putin accepted the existence of Ukraine as long as he could control its leadership. But he could not accept a free and democratic Ukraine building its independent future.”
Europe should learn from these developments, Kos said. “The strategies for hybrid warfare that were first used against the democracies of Ukraine and Moldova were later observed in other parts of Europe. The same social media accounts that spread disinformation in Moldova were later active during the presidential elections in Romania and Poland.” By 2027, Ukraine and Moldova would be fully integrated into the EU energy market to protect them from Russian energy blackmail, Kos said.
With increased European cooperation, they could collectively “face the enemies of freedom.” She sees how reforms in Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, and Moldova are driving change, Kos said. “And even in Serbia, a young generation is forging new paths by demanding accountability, free expression, and an inclusive democracy.” (November 13, 2025)
