COPENHAGEN, Dec 14: Ending the cold war division of their continent, European Union leaders late on Friday agreed to open the doors to 10 mainly east European states in 2004.
The historic redrawing of Europe’s borders came after four years of complex membership negotiations and last-minute haggling between leaders on money and farm subsidies.
The deal was won, however, after the EU agreed to raise its initial 40.3 billion euro financial package for the 10 newcomers.
“A new Europe is being born,” declared Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen who steered the milestone summit to its successful conclusion. Brushing off eleventh-hour haggling over cash, Rasmussen said leaders had closed “one of the darkest and bloodiest chapters in European history.”
Added German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer: “It’s the definite end of the cold war.”
Future EU members will be Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia.
As Europe opened its arms to the 10 future members, Turkey was rebuffed by EU leaders over its demands for a 2003 date for entry negotiations.
The EU said it would wait until December 2004 before deciding whether or not to set a date for starting Turkey’s accession talks.
In a last-minute improvement, however, Ankara got a promise that these negotiations would begin “without further delay” — provided Turkey implemented key political reforms.
