On March 16 the European Parliament accepted the report, in which it appealed to the European Commission to clearly define the "character and geographic borders of the EU" by the end of 2006. In the opinion of parliamentarians, it is only after this is done that the issue of further expansion of the EU can be discussed. Ukraine is mentioned among those countries that will be offered "close multilateral relations" with a possibility of joining the European economic space. The new program of EU expansion will not influence the accession to the EU of Romania and Bulgaria in 2008. However, it could become an obstacle for such potential members as Turkey, Croatia and other Balkan countries.