Peculiarities of the negotiation process for the European Union accession

Abstract

The aim of the work is a comprehensive analysis of the procedure peculiarities of the negotiation process during the accession of the candidate state to the European Union.
The methodological basis of the study was the official EU treaties, in which the procedure of the negotiation process was prescribed, and the official websites of the EU institutions appeared, which contain provisions relating to negotiations.
Results. According to the results of the conducted research, it was found that the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union serves as the legal basis during the negotiations. The following negotiation procedure is specified in this Treaty: the Council of the European Union is responsible for negotiations. It initiates the beginning of the negotiation process, adopts the directives that were concluded during the negotiation process, and authorizes the signing of contracts. In addition, it was found that the official start of negotiations begins with the adaptation of domestic legislation to the EU acquis, as well as the implementation of judicial, administrative, economic, and other reforms that must be implemented in the candidate state to fulfill the Copenhagen criteria. According to the results of the study, membership negotiations with the candidate state begin after the unanimous consent of all EU member states, which is highlighted in an official document of the Council of the European Union. These negotiations take place at various intergovernmental conferences between the governments of the EU member states and the candidate state. The article also found that no one chapter of the EU acquis is considered closed until the government of each member state of the alliance is satisfied with the progress made by the candidate state, as the negotiation process is finally completed after the closure of each chapter. At the final stage, all member states of the European Union sign the treaty, where the candidate state receives a special status, and the ratification process between the parties to the treaty begins, following the constitutional norms adopted in the states.
Conclusions. As a result of the study, it was found that the EU accession procedure has a clear structure, which can generally be formed into seven main stages. Each of these steps is important and must be unanimously agreed by EU member states.