European Union Enlargement: Prospects and Potential Pitfalls Along the Way

[From the Introduction]. Enlarging the European Union (EU) is a multi-faceted process, marked by the milestones of the application for membership by a state, issuance of the opinion of the European Commission on that application, a decision by the Council on whether or not to open accession negotiations, conducting those negotiations, and ultimately the entry of the state into the Union. While these are impressive tasks in any situation, the magnitude of the current challenge is reflected in the fact that thirteen states have applications for EU membership pending. The size of this group of applicant states has intensified the debate over how to enlarge, and what level of preparedness is required before a state can join the EU. This article will focus on how this challenge is being met. The enlargement process has moved forward to the stage of negotiations. The results of the negotiation exercise are reflective of the issues and challenges of enlargement in the broader sense. The influence of factors, such as the division of the applicant states into two groups, and the follow-up to the Agenda 2000 process (including the Commission’s progress reports on the applicant states and the status of internal EU reform), will also be addressed