EU sets 2002 expansion target date

France's Jacques Chirac, the EC's Romano Prodi and Spain's Jose Maria Aznar are among leaders at the summit

GOTHENBURG, Sweden -- European Union leaders have set a conditional target date of late 2002 to wrap up entry talks with nations seeking membership.

The announcement was made by the 15-nation bloc in a draft document summarising two days of talks at a summit in Gothenburg.

The setting of a firm target date was aimed at reassuring leaders of the 12 candidate countries - mostly ex-Communist eastern and central European states - that the EU remains committed to enlargement, despite recent setbacks.

Six countries -- Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus and Slovenia -- are already in the late phases of negotiations.

The aim is to bring their laws and institutions into conformity with those of EU members. They hope to enter the Union by 2004.

Those hopes were dampened earlier this month when Irish voters rejected the Nice Treaty which was designed to help the EU accommodate the expected addition of dozens of new members in the next decade.

AUDIO CNN's Robin Oakley: EU leaders say there will be no delays in admitting Eastern countries 600 Kb / 56 secs AIFF or WAV sound

The Irish rejection came closely on the heels of calls by Germany and Austria to impose curbs on the free movement of workers from new EU members into their markets for up to seven years after they join.

Those countries, seen as magnets for westward migration, fear the effects an influx of cheap labour might have on their domestic workforces.

ALSO Three protesters shot at E.U. summit

Other countries, notably Spain, and even Italy, are concerned that EU subsidies earmarked for the Union's poorer regions may be jeopardised when newer, even needier, nations enter the fold.

IN-DEPTH   •  Pushing ahead on Kyoto   •  Three shot in protest   •  EU reassures applicants   •  Expansion tops agenda   •  EU, applicants at odds   •  Protests hit Bush tour   •  EU faces thorny issues   •  Bush charm drive fails   •  Damage-control summit   •  Irish defeat looms   •  What kind of Europe?   •  Key leaders' views   •  History of EU growth   •  EU enlargement map   •  Changing face of Europe

Saturday's draft statement was issued as the EU leaders prepared to hold talks later on Saturday with leaders from the 12 candidate countries.

The document outlined the participants' main conclusions on issues ranging from anti-ballistic missile defence to the Middle East Peace process to enlargement, a process that the leaders called "irreversible."

"Provided that progress towards meeting the accession criteria continues at an unabated pace," the document said, "the road map should make it possible to complete negotiations by the end of 2002 for those candidates that are ready."

Addressing another thorny issue, the leaders called for a "global and multi-lateral approach" to curbing the proliferation of anti-ballistic missiles, Reuters reported.

"As for the particular challenge posed by the proliferation of ballistic missiles, we consider that this commitment should be complemented by a global and multilateral approach," the draft document said.

The document said the EU would try to hammer out common positions, with an eye on drawing up a global code of conduct, Reuters reported. Elsewhere, the news agency said, the European Union voiced concern about about media Freedoms in Russia and the situation in Chechnya.

"The situation in Chechnya gives rise to serious concern," the document said. "A political solution to the conflict is urgently needed. Reported violations of human rights should be thoroughly investigated in order to bring perpetrators to trial."

On Russian media freedom, the draft said: "A strong civil society is necessary in a modern democratic society. Freedom of speech and pluralism in the media are essential democratic principles and core values for a genuine EU-Russia partnership."

The EU leaders also offered their backing to support talks Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski is holding with representatives of his country's Slav majority and the sizable ethnic-Albanian minority, Associated Press reported.

Those talks focus on Trajkovski's call for a ceasefire and a proposal to offer a partial amnesty to insurgents who voluntarily lay down their arms. The talks also aim to better integrate minority ethnic Albanians, who comprise up to a third of Macedonia's 2 million population, into Macedonian society.