Meeting of the 6 Negotiators in Estonia (11-13/6/1999)

The Negotiators of the six applicant countries, which will form the first wave of countries to accede to the EU, discussed the further coordination of their action at a meeting in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, from 11 to 13 June.

During the three-day meeting, discussions were held on issues concerning the candidate countries, in view of the negotiations which will take place during the Finnish presidency in the second half of this year. There was discussion in particular about the EU requirement for every future member-state to have 90 days energy supplies. There was also discussion of environmental issues, the transitional periods to be sought by each applicant country and the right to own immovable property.

The Negotiators exchanged views regarding the conclusions of the European Council in Cologne and noted that at the end of the year the European Council will assess the process of Enlargement.

After the conference, the Cyprus Negotiator, Mr George Vassiliou, visited Finland where he discussed the island’s accession course and the Cyprus problem with the Finnish Prime Minister, Mr Paavo Tapio Lipponen. He also had talks with the Finnish Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Erkki Tuomioja, and the special representative for Cyprus, Mr Jakko Blomberg. Returning from his trip to Estonia and Finland, Mr Vassiliou gave a press conference in which he stressed that he had concluded from the contacts he had had that the Enlargement process would be intensified in the coming months.

Mr Vassiliou also referred to the cost of harmonisation, following media reports on the matter. Referring to figures given about the cost of harmonisation until 2003, which puts it up to C£550 million, Mr Vassiliou said that C£380 million concern the construction of sewage systems in the towns and communities. These will have to be carried out irrespective of the accession course of Cyprus and are directly related to the quality of life and the protection of the environment.

Mr Vassiliou also said that a further C£58 million concern support programmes for industry and other sectors.

He said, moreover, that an expenditure of C£18.3 million will be needed for the next four years for setting up new organisations and institutions required by harmonisation. An amount of C£62 million will also be required for the same length of time, for strengthening existing public services and organisations. Mr Vassiliou said that according to preliminary calculations, the actual cost of harmonisation will not exceed C£20 million annually.