Western Balkans' Accession to the European Union. Political and Economic Challenges

Abstract

Since the launch of the EU Stabilization and Association Process in 2000, substantial progress has been achieved in bringing Western Balkans (WB) countries closer to the EU. Still, there are a number of remaining political and economic constraints preventing their full integration into the EU. Although presently all WB countries are already economically integrated with the EU through trade, FDI, financial flows, and banking systems, the process of economic transition is far from complete. In addition, there are important political problems to be resolved in a number of WB countries, which have delayed ongoing systemic changes and are currently blocking progress in their relations with the EU. This volume addresses some of the more controversial issues, including the WB countries’ readiness for EU membership, EU conditionality and its compatibility with the WB countries’ development needs, alternative EU approaches that could provide stronger incentives for continued economic and political transition, and how to raise the effectiveness of EU assistance, especially in view of the high vulnerability of the WB countries to the current global economic crisis.