Since its foundation the European Union has expanded several times. At the beginning only 6 member states were part of the EU. In more than 50 years a lot more European states joined the European Union. Each expansion changed the European Union regarding cultural, economical and geographical aspects. Enlargement has always been an important topic for the EU and will also be important in the near future.
Enlargement has a high impact on the European Union. This causes both positive and negative effects for the organization. The following seminar paper focuses on challenges and negative effects caused by the EU enlargement. Based on the potential challenges, it will focus on the question, whether further EU enlargement will cause a crisis in the European Union.
The seminar paper is structured in four chapters.
The first chapters give a short overview about the history of the EU Enlargement and explain the process of enlargement in detail. Following this, selected economic challenges and effects on the running of the EU caused by enlargement will be presented and discussed against the backdrop of the question, whether further EU enlargement can cause a crisis in the EU.
The seminar paper will only focus on selected economic challenges and challenges for the institutions of the EU because of the limited number of pages.
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS OF EU ENLARGEMENT
2.1 FROM SIX STATES TO 28 – SHORT HISTORY OF THE EU ENLARGEMENT
2.2 POTENTIAL CANDIDATES AND CANDIDATE COUNTRIES
3 THE ACCESSION PROCESS
3.1 CONDITIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP AND IMPORTANT STEPS OF THE ACCESSION PROCESS
3.2 LEGAL BASIS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
4 SELECTED CHALLENGES FOR THE EU CAUSED BY ENLARGEMENT
4.1 EFFECTS ON THE RUNNING OF THE EU INSTITUTIONS
4.2 . SELECTED ECONOMIC CHALLENGES CAUSED BY ENLARGEMENT
4.2.1 . DEMANDS ON STRUCTURAL FUNDS
4.2.2 UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE EU
4.3 THE FUTURE OF EU ENLARGEMENT: WILL FURTHER EU ENLARGEMENT CAUSE A CRISIS IN THE EU?
5 CONCLUSION
Research Objectives and Key Topics
This paper examines the institutional and economic challenges arising from the continued expansion of the European Union, specifically addressing whether further enlargement is likely to precipitate a crisis within the organization.
- Historical evolution of EU enlargement
- Formal accession criteria and negotiation processes
- Impact of enlargement on EU institutional functionality
- Economic implications including structural fund demands
- Unemployment trends and labor migration concerns
Excerpt from the Publication
4.1 Effects on the running of the EU institutions
The enlargement of the EU has effects on the decision-making processes and the working of the EU institutions. First of all, each enlargement of the European Union causes an increase of employed officials and of the MEP’s. It is a logical consequence, that further EU enlargement will also enlarge the institutions of the EU.
If we take a closer look at the past enlargements, especially the 5th enlargement of the European Union, it can be identified that enlargement increased the number of employed officials. The 5th enlargement caused an increase of employed officials about 19 per cent. Because of the fact that the majority of employed officials are linguists, the number of official languages and language combinations also increases with each enlargement. The increasing number of employed officials and MEP’s and the new languages will especially have consequences for the work of the European Parliament (EP). The meetings and the legislative work will take longer and might be more complex in future, because of more new languages and language combinations. A potential risk is, that the quality of the meetings and the legislative in the European Parliament will suffer and the holding of meetings will have greater constrains, with some working languages not available. The day-to-day impacts of the new languages are greater for the European Parliament than for other institutions. The EP might expect a certain slowing-down of business as a result of enlargement. Another aspect is the enlarged administrative work, especially for the EP. Regarding the accession of Turkey and the Balkan states, the EU will be confronted with much more MEPs. The EP has currently 751 members. Turkey is likely to be entitled to more MEPs than any other country but Germany. If the Balkan states would also come in, the size and the structure of the EP would increase significantly and the EP will have more than 751 MEPs.
Summary of Chapters
1 INTRODUCTION: This chapter introduces the historical context of EU enlargement and outlines the paper's focus on the economic and institutional challenges associated with future expansions.
2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS OF EU ENLARGEMENT: This section provides a brief history of the European Union's growth from six founding members to 28, while identifying current candidate and potential candidate countries.
3 THE ACCESSION PROCESS: This chapter details the legal requirements, Copenhagen criteria, and the multi-step negotiation process necessary for a country to join the European Union.
4 SELECTED CHALLENGES FOR THE EU CAUSED BY ENLARGEMENT: This section analyzes the institutional pressures, structural fund requirements, and unemployment issues that may arise from further enlargement, concluding with an assessment of potential crisis risks.
5 CONCLUSION: The final chapter summarizes the primary findings, acknowledging that while enlargement poses significant economic and institutional challenges, the EU is likely capable of managing these, provided the accession process is handled carefully.
Keywords
European Union, Enlargement, Accession, Structural Funds, Unemployment, Institutions, European Parliament, Turkey, Balkan states, Economic growth, Labour migration, Crisis, Membership, Negotiation, Copenhagen criteria.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this seminar paper?
The paper focuses on the economic and institutional challenges associated with the enlargement of the European Union and investigates the question of whether further expansion could trigger a crisis within the EU.
What are the core thematic areas covered in the document?
Key areas include the history of EU enlargement, the formal accession negotiation process, the strain on EU institutions, and the economic impact related to structural funding and unemployment.
What is the central research question?
The central research question is whether further EU enlargement will cause a crisis in the European Union.
Which scientific approach does the author use?
The paper employs a descriptive and analytical approach, utilizing existing literature, EU progress reports, and statistical data (such as Eurostat and World Bank figures) to evaluate the consequences of enlargement.
What topics are discussed in the main body of the text?
The main body covers the history of previous enlargement phases, the specific steps of the accession process, institutional impacts such as increased MEP numbers, and economic challenges like GDP disparities and high unemployment in candidate countries.
Which keywords define the research?
The research is characterized by terms such as EU enlargement, accession, institutional reform, structural funds, and economic integration.
How does the accession of Turkey differ from other candidate countries?
The accession of Turkey is noted as being particularly influential due to its large size and population, as well as its unique geopolitical location bordering regions of instability, which presents distinct risks compared to the Balkan states.
What role does the Europe 2020 strategy play in this analysis?
The strategy is used to illustrate potential conflicts, specifically highlighting the risk that the employment rate target of 75 percent might be compromised by the integration of economies with high unemployment rates.
What is the significance of the 2014 pause in accession negotiations?
The pause announced by Jean-Claude Juncker serves as a period for internal consolidation and allows candidate countries more time to perform necessary economic and political reforms without the immediate pressure of an imminent accession.
- Quote paper
- Julian Rudolf (Author), 2016, Will further EU enlargement cause a crisis in the EU? An analysis, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/341967
