A wider Europe: The process and politics of European Union enlargement

Book abstract:

The European Union's historic enlargement into Central and Eastern Europe presents it with both an enormous opportunity and a tremendous challenge. The opportunity is to create a united Europe and extend the EU's zone of peace and prosperity eastward. The challenge will be managing an EU that is both considerably larger and more diverse so that it loses neither cohesion nor effectiveness.

Part of the 'Governance in Europe' series, this book examines the process and politics of the Union's Eastern enlargement, beginning with its initial response to the 1989 revolution up through the Helsinki summit decisions of December 1999. The author explores such topics as the EU's original decision to enlarge, the pre-accession strategy for prospective members, the key political decisions on launching and expanding the accession negotiations, and the actual progress of the negotiations. He also examines the EU's efforts to reform its policies and institutions in advance of enlargement and concludes by considering the limits of enlargement and its consequences for the EU's future development.

The chapters are: The Challenge of Enlargement; Opening the Door; The Pre-Accession Strategy; The Road to Luxembourg; Preparing the EU for Enlargement (I): Agenda 2000; Preparing the EU for Enlargement (II): Institutional Reform; Beginning the Accession Process; To the Helsinki Summit; The Accession Negotiations; Conclusion: Toward a Wider Europe

The author is Pizer Associate Professor of International Politics at Valdosta State University.