Conditions for joining the EU

Kazakhstan to join European Union must achieve a free market economy, democracy and an improvement of human rights situation. These norms are the main criteria for an entry into the EU. This opinion has been expressed today, on 18 June in Almaty when the referendums on the entry of Greece, Hungary, Poland, Lithuania and Czech Republic by the ambassador of the European Union, head of the office of European Commission in RK Alan Vaddams, KZ-today correspondent reports.

A.Vaddams noted that "currently any state that has even a small part on the European continent can join the EU". According to А. Vaddams, "a recent statement of the government of Kazakhstan about the final stage of EU standards review, in order to approach those norms, means a step towards the international standards of the jural state and towards joining the EU".

As it was reported earlier, currently 15 the EU includes 15 countries, on 1 May 2004 other 10 countries will join it (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia).