Finland’s journey to the European Union

Book abstract:

This publication provides a comprehensive and first-hand account of an insider's views on the process that brought Finland into the European Union. The overall process of accession is extensively reviewed starting from the submission of the Finnish application for EU membership, then the preparations for and the conduct of the accessions negotiations, the drafting of accession instruments and finally the referendum in Finland and the completion of the ratification procedure.

The author, who was a career diplomat in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland and a Member of the Finnish team that negotiated Finland's accession to the EU, has relied mainly on notes he made during the negotiations, his personal papers, the Accession Treaty and other instruments attached thereto, the Finnish Government's proposition to Finnish Parliament on the approval of the Accession Treaty and his personal recollections. His account of the events aims to provide an overall picture of the journey to membership that is easy to understand for an expert as well as for the interested layman.

Although the book reflects the views and experiences of its main author, the manuscript has been extended so that it concludes with an assessment of the issues and potential lessons that are relevant to the countries currently involved in the process of enlargement. The additional chapter, 'The relevance of Finland's Journey to the EU to the present candidate countries', has been prepared by Phedon Nicolaides and Frank Bollen, two members of the European Institute of Public Administration's faculty.