Finland's president says EU should expand to 40 states
Finnish President Alexander Stubb said the European Union needs to expand to project power on the global stage.
TL;DR
- Finnish President Alexander Stubb has proposed expanding the European Union to around 40 member states.
- He believes enlargement is crucial for the EU to "think big" and project power globally.
- Potential candidates for membership include the U.K., Canada, Turkey, Norway, and Iceland.
- Stubb highlighted a short "window of opportunity" for enlargement due to the war in Ukraine and potential changes in the U.S. administration.
- He noted that the EU is already pursuing its largest enlargement in a generation with nine candidate countries.
- Stubb specifically suggested reconsidering Turkey for membership due to security perspectives.
- He also pointed to the importance of the Western Balkans and Nordic countries like Iceland and Norway.
- The idea of Canada joining the EU was presented as an alternative to its current relationship with the United States.