Research funding might look very different in a 34-nation EU

Raft of new members could shift priorities away from excellence, says Peter Fisch

In her state of the union address last month, Commission president Ursula von der Leyen called for the EU to begin preparing to admit new member states. It was the strongest sign yet that after a decade of almost zero progress, EU enlargement is back on the political agenda. 

The list of official candidate countries includes Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine. Most are already preparing for membership, although the EU itself, whatever von der Leyen might say, does not look well-prepared for an envisaged target date of 2030.