EU should not leave new members behind, says Dombrovskis on enlargement anniversary – POLITICO

“We are facing the green and digital transformation of our economies… and it is very important that in this process we do not leave countries and regions behind,” Dombrovskis said, speaking ahead of the 20th anniversary celebrations. from Cyprus, the Czech Republic and Estonia. , Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia join the EU.

Richer European countries trying to compete with US and Chinese subsidies risk destroying the single market’s level playing field, he added.

“Not all countries have the same opportunities. Southern and Eastern countries will not be able to subsidize their businesses as massively as Germany or France,” Dombrovskis said.

He added that the EU should consider Union-wide financing instruments to protect this level playing field. “From my point of view, the more flexibility there is in state aid, the more flexibility there should be for redistributions via the EU budget,” Dombrovskis said.

Speaking about the geopolitical impact of EU expansion, the Latvian commissioner said it had “made the EU a stronger and more important global player. And this placed the new member states firmly in the Western democratic world.”

Dombrovskis said enlargement was possible in the case of the Baltics in 2004 because it occurred during a short period when Russia was less authoritarian.