BRUSSELS - The European Union's constitution crisis could complicate provisional plans to welcome a string of Balkan countries into the bloc, a spokeswoman conceded Friday.
EU foreign policy head Javier Solana's spokeswoman, Cristina Gallach, said the mainly former Yugoslav states have to make themselves "attractive" to the bloc, perhaps more so amid the crisis sparked by French and Dutch "no" votes on the EU charter.
"Things are not going to be easier. They might be a little bit more complicated, but not impossible," she added.
The European Union has since 2003 held out the possibility of a "European perspective" to five Balkan countries: Croatia, Serbia-Montenegro, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Macedonia and Albania.
Brussels has made it clear that this could include eventual membership of the bloc itself, so long as the countries continue reforms and work to come up to EU standards. It has also declined to set a timeframe.
The EU's enlargement plans could be a key victim of the turmoil into which has been plunged by the French and Dutch rejections of its constitution, designed to prevent decision-making gridlock in the expanding bloc.
Those plans also include Turkey, which is due to start membership talks in October; and Romania and Bulgaria, which signed accession treaties in April and which are due to join the EU in January 2007 if all goes well.
Croatia's planned start of membership talks in March has already been postponed because the EU says Zagreb is not helping enough in the hunt for a key war crimes suspect.
Solana's spokeswoman said the Balkan states need above all to press ahead with economic and political reforms.
"The message for the Balkan countries is that now it is even more important than ever that you work, and you work hard," said Gallach. "You have to make yourselves very attractive," she said.
06/03/2005 13:58 GMT