VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – A strong majority of Maltese support European Union membership for nine out of ten candidate countries, according to the latest Eurobarometer survey.
Malta shows absolute majority backing for Albania (57%), North Macedonia (57%), Moldova (54%), Montenegro (54%), Serbia (53%), Ukraine (53%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (51%) and Georgia (51%). Kosovo receives relative majority support at 47%, while Turkey’s bid is opposed by 47% of respondents. Although Turkey remains an official candidate, its EU accession process has been effectively frozen since 2018 due to concerns over democratic backsliding.
Across the EU, Ukraine emerges as the most supported candidate. Maltese support for Ukraine, at 53%, is lower than in 14 other member states, including Sweden (91%) and Denmark (81%), but higher than in 12 others, with Hungary (30%) and Bulgaria (31%) showing the least support. Malta stands out as the most optimistic EU country regarding enlargement, with 74% expressing a positive view. This surpasses Poland (72%) and Ireland (67%). Czechia (41%), France (43%), and Greece (44%) register the lowest optimism. Nearly half of Maltese respondents (47%) see the greatest benefit of EU enlargement as creating a larger market for businesses. Migration concerns top the list of worries (49%), followed by corruption, organised crime, and terrorism (42%), and erosion of European values (36%). Only 20% worry about the financial cost, compared with 37% across the EU.
– photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
