site.btaBulgarians Show Measured Support for EU Enlargement, Support Split by Candidate Country – Eurobarometer

The largest group of Bulgarians (40%) are somewhat in favour of further enlargement of the EU, according to a new Eurobarometer survey released Tuesday by the European Commission. The like figure for the EU in general is 46%. The survey looked into the attitudes to EU enlargement by asking questions about the perceived benefits of enlargement, the areas that respondents believe to benefit the most, the level of awareness and the attitude to the accession of each of the candidate countries.

The survey shows that 23% (and 26% of Europeans in general) are not very much in favour of enlargement. 10% (and 15%, respectively) are very much in favour, 11% (and 12%) are not in favour at all and 11% (and 6%, respectively) don’t know.

Asked how much they believe Bulgaria will benefit from further EU enlargement, 31% say “A little”, 26% say “Not much”, 17% say “A lot”,  as many say “Not at all” and 9% don’t know.

When it comes to the areas they believe have benefited the most from EU enlargement, 41% of Bulgarians (33% of Europeans) say it is employment and jobs; 40% (45%) say economy and competitiveness; 38% (37%) say the EU’s influence in the world; and 29% (35%) say security and defence.

Asked what would be the biggest benefit of future EU enlargement, the largest group of Bulgarian respondents 46% (31% across the EU) say it is more work opportunities and skilled labour for EU businesses.  40% (30%) say it is more solidarity between countries (for example, in case of a disaster or pandemic), and 35% (37%) say it is stronger EU influence in the world.

Considering each of the current candidates and potential candidates for EU membership, would you be in favour or opposed to them joining the EU once they have met all the membership conditions?

Support among Bulgarians is strongest for the EU accession of Serbia: 63 are in favour, 27 are opposed and 10 don’t know. The attitude to the other candidate countries are:

Bosnia and Hercegovina: 53% are in favour, 31% opposed, 16% don’t know;

Montenegro: 52% in favour, 32% opposed, 16% don’t know;

Moldova, 51% in favour, 32% opposed, 17% don’t know;

Georgia: 47% in favour, 36% opposed, 17% don’t know;

Turkiye: 46% in favour, 44% opposed, 10% don’t know;

Albania: 43% in favour, 41% opposed, 16% don’t know;

Kosovo: 40% in favour, 45% opposed, 15% don’t know;

North Macedonia: 32% in favour, 58% opposed, 10% don’t know (against 48%, 40%, 12% among Europeans in general);

Ukraine: 31% in favour, 59% opposed, 10% don’t know (against 52%, 41% and 7%, respectively, among Europeans in general).

Bulgarians’ concerns about potential future enlargement of the European Union are mostly about corruption, organized crime and terrorism (40%, against 39% in the EU in general); cost to European taxpayers (38% and 37%, respectively); increased vulnerability to security challenges (36% and 30%, respectively); and increased economic and financial disparity between EU countries and regions (36% and 30%, respectively).

Half of Bulgarians (and 47% of Europeans in general) are not very well informed about enlargement. 25% of Bulgarians (and 20% of Europeans in general) are not at all informed. 21% of Bulgarians and 29% of Europeans are well informed.

TV is the key source of information that Bulgarians (as well as the other Europeans) use to form their opinion on EU enlargement (76% of respondents in Bulgaria and 64% in the EU in general).