Slovakia: membership application and partnership, 27 June 1995

PURPOSE: presentation of the second accession partnership for Slovakia. CONTENT : Like its previous version, this partnership for the accession of Slovakia resembles a work programme proposing priorities and objectives to be attained by the country in the short and the medium-term in order to become a member of the Union. These objectives take into account the regular report on Slovakia (1999). The short-term priorities (end of 2000) concern political criteria (improvement of the situation of the Roma) and economic criteria (re-establishment of budgetary stability, improvement in competitiveness of companies); the internal market (principally progress in the alignment process); agriculture; transport; energy (drawing up of a decommissioning plan for the Bohunice nuclear plant and re-establishing the safety of the Mochovke plant); environment (overall realistic plan for alignment with EU legislation); social affairs and employment; justice and home affairs (implementation of the Schengen agreement) and the strengthening of administrative and judicial capacity (in particular the management and control of European Union Funds). In the medium term, the measures concern the follow up of the implementation of legislation regarding minority languages. On the economic front, the reforms concern the privatisation process and the introduction of a budget monitoring process. With regard to the internal market, data protection legislation is priority, as well as alignment and the strengthening of the customs administration. Other measures are awaited which will deal with agriculture, fishing, energy (in particular, in the nuclear sector), transport, environment and improvement in the operation of the legal system. With regard to the programming of financial resources, the partnership confirms aid granted in line with AGENDA 2000 and the various instruments provided therein (Phare, SAPARD and ISPA) in accordance with the rules already foreseen. It should be noted that assistance is only granted if the country respects the provisions of the EC-Slovakia Association Agreement, makes progress towards satisfying the Copenhagen criteria and assures in the year 2000 the achievement of the specific priorities of this accession partnership.�