An EU summit in the Spanish Seville has ruled that the 2004 date for enlargement remains valid, and that member states will design a common asylum and immigration policy in the next 18 months, as well as a common position on agricultural aid for candidate countries by November this year.
The summit had been expected to yield tougher action on immigration after the recent successes of far-right parties across Europe, but a proposal to apply economic sanctions against countries seen as not cooperating in the fight against illegal immigration failed because of opposition from France.
Compiled by Tom Nicholson from press reports.
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