Detailed EU expansion plan calls for treaty to be signed by early 2003

European Union (EU) Enlargement Commissioner Guenther Verheugen revealed to the European Parliament on Friday a detailed plan for EU expansion. For the first time he admitted that the treaty regarding EU accession will be signed at the beginning of 2003 at the earliest and the 15 candidate countries will have less than a year for its ratification. "I hope that we will be able to sign the treaty with the candidate countries by spring 2003," Verheugen said. EU Budget Commissioner Michaele Schreyer, who visited Poland over the weekend, guaranteed that Poland will receive more from the EU coffers than it will contribute. She also announced that the EU will not accept the proposal that money from structural funds for agriculture be transferred into direct subsidies. Additionally, Poland will have to pay full contributions to the EU treasury. Schreyer also confirmed that with EU accession Poles will not become net payers, meaning that they will not contribute more into the EU budget than they will receive. (Gazeta Wyborcza, April 6-7, p. 25; Rzeczpospolita, April 6-7, p. A3) M.T.K.