Finnish President Alexander Stubb has called for a major expansion of the European Union to as many as 40 member states. He argued that after the accession of current candidate countries, including Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia, the bloc should consider further enlargement and deeper integration with the United Kingdom, Turkey, Norway, Iceland, and even Canada, CNBC reports.
Speaking at an energy conference in Helsinki, Stubb said the EU should “think big” and take advantage of the current “window of opportunity” for enlargement, which he warned could be short-lived due to global political developments and the eventual end of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“The window of opportunity for EU enlargement is quite short because when the war in Ukraine ends and perhaps when the U.S. administration changes, I don’t know, then people are going to take their foot off the gas pedal and start heckling about unnecessary stuff again,” Stubb said.
He emphasized that the EU’s strategic strength depends on its scale and proposed more flexible forms of participation.
“In this moment, we need to think big and geographically, we need to enlarge or at least create memberships which are flexible enough to bring in a sum total of 40 European states — or even non-European,” the Finnish president said.
Stubb added that the enlargement agenda should include Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia, while also considering future arrangements involving Iceland and Norway.
He further called for closer ties between the EU and the United Kingdom, which left the bloc in 2020, or at least ensuring that Britain remains “as closely connected as possible” to the Union.
Stubb also mentioned Canada, saying: “Wouldn’t it be lovely if Canada was the 28th state of the European Union rather than the 51st state of the United States?”
In addition, he argued that the EU should engage more actively with Turkey and the countries of the Western Balkans, which he described as “the hottest spot in Europe.” He specifically named Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
