Nov 9

　　The prospect of a train wreck over Turkey has drawn attention from others heading hopefully towards the European Union. The European Commission this week reported on two official candidates, Croatia and Macedonia, and assessed progress in Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro and Serbia. Olli Rehn, the enlargement commissioner, said all were on track, but added that it is “no bullet train, no Eurostar, no TGV...it is a slow, slow train”.

　　Yet these smaller fry have been getting more positive signals than has Turkey. Earlier this year, European foreign ministers repeated a pledge that all Balkan countries had a future in the European Union. Even so, the promise came with a caveat: that the speed of enlargement must take account of the EU's “absorption capacity”.

　　The commission report tries to allay fears on both sides. It says firmly that the EU must not renege on its promise. Countries will also be given more money to help them on their way: over the next three years, Croatia will get around 436m ($560m) and Macedonia 210m. But the commission also wants to show that its support is not unconditional. It says both Croatia and Macedonia must do more to tackle corruption.

　　漫长的进程

　　土耳其“火车失事”引起其他有望加入欧盟国家的关注。欧洲委员会本周通报了两个正式候选国克罗地亚和马其顿的情况。另外，还评估了阿尔巴尼亚、波斯尼亚、黑山和塞尔维亚的入盟进程。扩盟特派员奥利·雷恩说，一切都在正常进行中，但是，他补充说，这不是“子弹头列车，不是欧洲之星，也不是高速列车，而是一趟慢车”。

　　然而这些比土耳其更小的国家却得到了更多肯定的信号。今年早些时候，欧洲的外交部长们再次保证，所有巴尔干国家都有望加入欧盟。即便如此，这个承诺还有一个前提：入盟的速度要看欧盟的“吸收能力”。

　　欧洲委员会的报告试图减轻双方的担忧。报告肯定地指出，欧盟决不会食言。 更多的钱将给候选国以帮助它们加速入盟进程。在今后三年中，克罗地亚将得到4亿3千6百万欧元（5亿6千万美元），马其顿将得到2亿1千万欧元。但是，欧洲委员会同时也想表明，这些支持不是没有条件的。报告指出，克罗地亚和马其顿必须加强反腐工作。