New Geopolitical Alignments and the Enlargement Debate

Ioannis Armakolas, Head of the South-East Europe Programme at ELIAMEP and Director of the think nea – New Narratives of EU Integration initiative, was a guest on the ERT program SYNORA  with journalist Kalli Zarali, where he discussed developments in EU enlargement in light of recent geopolitical shifts.

Focusing on the challenges facing enlargement under the new international conditions, Armakolas noted that the timeline of 2028 or 2030 for Albania and Montenegro’s accession to the European Union remains realistic.

Drawing on the latest report from the think nea initiative, which analyzes the rise of far-right Eurosceptic parties and their stance on enlargement, he highlighted that while the far-right shift in Europe creates obstacles for the process, the traditional political forces that control the EU’s institutional bodies and hold power in key member states or participate in governing coalitions continue to support enlargement.

He also emphasized that, for the first time in many years, the European Union is sending the right signals to candidate countries, recognizing that enlargement can strengthen its geopolitical role. However, he pointed out that candidate countries still struggle to clearly define their European orientation, which remains a significant obstacle to their accession process.

You can watch Ioannis Armakolas’ remarks (in Greek) here.