The enlargement of the European Union. Issues and strategies

Abstract:

Number seven in the series Routledge Studies in the European Economy, this volume looks at the process of enlargement currently being undertaken by the European Union, focusing on both the economic and political dimensions of the subject. The volume examines how enlargement has evolved and looks at the roles and relations of the different actors - Member States, applicant states and EU institutions. With contributors coming from different disciplinary backgrounds, the volume offers an unusually rich array of perspectives on one of the most significant political developments of recent years. Part one provides an overview of the formal enlargement process and describes the progress the applicant states have made on their economic transition. Part two analyses the completion of questionnaires by applicant states, a significant stage in the application process. Part three explores the Intergovernmental Conference that formally opened in 1996. Part four looks at the geo-political consequences of enlargement. A postscript details the method and the conditions of the enlargement negotiations at the present time.

Victoria Curzon Price is Professor of Economics at the University of Geneva. Alice Landau is Senior Lecturer in International Relations at the University of Geneva and Richard G. Whitman is Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Diplomacy and Jean Monnet Lecturer in European Union Studies at the University of Westminster, London.