EU start nieuwe onderhandelingen met direkte buren (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Brussels has been given the go-head to restart talks with the EU's neighbours on deepening ties, after an internal dispute forced negotiations to be delayed.

At a meeting yesterday in Brussels, ambassadors agreed to restart negotiations aimed at developing closer ties with seven countries that border the Union.

A previous round of talks had been delayed after EU members complained that the Commission - which carries out the negotiations - was not supplying them with enough information.

A new round of negotiations with Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Moldova, Morocco, Tunisia and Ukraine are now scheduled to start shortly.

Sphere of influence

The talks aim to lay the groundwork for a series of agreements with the countries surrounding the EU designed to strengthen ties in the area.

The main short term aim is to create joint action plans with each of the countries, setting out areas of increased co-operation.

The plans will be tailored to each individual country but come under an overarching European Neighbourhood Policy

The EU hopes this policy will eventually mean that neighbours will share 'everything but institutions' with the EU - meaning, for example membership of the single market.

The Action Plans are due to be concluded in the summer, with the Irish presidency of the Council aiming for a June completion of the documents.

Working together

However, the talks were recently put on hold after member states expressed their unhappiness that the Commission was not doing enough to keep them informed.

Diplomats say that the Commission's reports presented to the member states lacked detail leaving governments without a clear picture of what was going on.

Although it is the Commission which carries out the negotiations on wider Europe, their mandate comes from the Council of member states.