Final Word from Monday, June 8, 2026
Despite all the policy differences between PM Andrej Babiš and Pres. Petr Pavel (ammunition for Ukraine, euro adoption, relations with China), they see eye to eye on EU enlargement. At least up to a point. Babiš said at an EU enlargement meeting in Montenegro on Fri. that now is the time for Balkan leaders to force Brussels to accept Albania and Montenegro into the fold as of 2028. Pavel would no doubt agree, but he has long wanted to link enlargement to improving EU efficiency and governability, which boils down to a debate about a shift to qualified majority voting in some areas. Giving up the EU veto is anathema to the Babiš government. What's more, Babiš declared in the Financial Times on May 31 that, "The EU is now probably on the same road as the end of the Roman empire." Rather than dealing with the EU's existing problems, Babiš is recruiting more countries to go down that same road. It might make sense if he's more interested in integrating Central and Southeastern Europe than enlarging the EU as such. [ expansion European Unity ]
Glossary of difficult words
to see eye to eye - to agree;
into the fold - into a group, organization or community;
to boil down to - to reduce a complex situation, problem or idea to its core essence, most basic factor or primary cause;
anathema - something or someone that one vehemently dislikes.