EU Enlargement Forum 2026

Why Enlargement Matters?

EU Enlargement has moved to the centre of political debate in Europe. It is today part of a process of reshaping Europe’s political and security architecture to create a Europe capable of competing with other major global powers. We will only be successful when we firmly anchor our candidate countries in the EU. Different questions on how our continent could be structured are finding their way to the top of Europe’s political agenda.

What to Expect?

In this context, the EU Enlargement Forum on 15 and 16 November 2026: Wider Europe – Stronger Europe serves as a pivotal gathering for key policymakers both from the EU and partner countries and leading societal actors to discuss the future trajectory of the Union and its membership. The 2026 Forum aims to address the prospect of EU enlargement in the context of the ongoing geopolitical challenges and tectonic shifts, and to provide an impetus for action for all involved stakeholders - to keep course and drive the process forward. 

• How do current geopolitical shifts strengthen the strategic case for EU enlargement? 
• What lessons from previous enlargements should shape the EU’s approach to democracy and rule of law in current accession processes? 
• How can the EU combine a merit-based accession process with the need for greater speed and credibility?
• How can civil society organisations and local authorities enhance the credibility of the enlargement process and build stronger public support among citizens in both Member States and candidate countries?
• What reforms are most urgent to create a business environment in candidate countries that is ready for the Single Market?
• How can the enlargement process more effectively support reconciliation and good neighbourly relations?

Who’s Joining?

The event is hosted by Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos. It is aimed at key stakeholders, experts, opinion leaders and anyone active in advancing he discussions on EU enlargement and ensure ownership and alignment of key actors to drive the process forward, exploring concrete enlargement scenarios and their benefits, challenges, as well as potential risks, and contributing to creating and disseminating positive narratives on enlargement and the concerned countries. 

Satellite events

To enrich the discussion EU Enlargement: Wider Europe – Stronger Europe, showcase different perspectives and to extend the discussion beyond Brussels, we invite interested stakeholders to join the conversation:

If you are a civil society organisation, think tank, university, EUROPE DIRECT Centre or similar and you are organising a public event on topics addressed at this year’s Forum or would like to host a satellite event in the lead up to the Enlargement Forum, please get in touch and share more details about your event or idea: EU-ENLARGEMENT-FORUMec [dot] europa [dot] eu (EU-ENLARGEMENT-FORUM[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)

These can be presentations, workshops, discussions, big or small, hosted in an EU Member State or enlargement partner in the Western Balkans or Eastern Neighbourhood. We would be interested to hear your contribution to our conversation and will promote relevant events on the Forum website and social media. We count on your creativity and ideas to help make the discussion more accessible to citizens, and to communicate the opportunities and benefits that EU enlargement can offer.

We also aim to integrate key outcomes from select satellite events into the Forum discussion, for example by way of recommendations or through the participation of select satellite events representatives at the Forum.