The Impact of the Economic Crisis on the Western Balkans and their EU Accession Prospects

Abstract

The European Union’s enlargement towards the Western Balkans may be facing its most difficult challenge since its launch in Zagreb in 2000. The prospect of Balkan enlargement has been hard-hit by the deterioration of the European economy, and particularly the Greek sovereign debt crisis. The countries of the region have been deeply affected by the shock waves emanating from the Greek and eurozone crises: the negative repercussions include a deterioration of their economies, their prospects for growth, their capacity for reform, their social, political and institutional structures, and their ability to fulfill the accession criteria. Crucially, the EU’s hitherto undisputable symbolic role as an “anchor” of stability, as a one-way path to prosperity and as a goal to be aspired to, may be losing its credibility and appeal for some of these countries.