engleski

Catching-up and integration in new and future EU member states through FDI

The experience of the recent enlargement within the European Union is unique if we consider both the number of countries, the population, the level of economic development, the systemic characteristics of most of these countries, the speed and the cost. Those countries have supported in less than twenty years, three major shocks: a systemic shock with the implosion of the socialist system, an economic shock with the adjustment to the new market environment, an institutional shock with the membership to the European Union (EU) for those who have applied to become members. A fourth shock, for some last comers and further EU members has been the violent disintegration of the Former Yugoslavia, which has delayed and hampered negotiations for future membership of the former Republics involved in the conflict (Croatia, Serbia…) The EU enlargement to 12 new members, of which 10 were communist economies under the control of the Soviet Union, took place in 2004 (10) and in 2007 (2), it has been the outcome of a long transformation process which started right after the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989. During this process, the leaders of those economies had to handle and manage to reach two main objectives: the transition from a socialist economy to a market economy, on the one hand and the upgrading of these economies in order to allow them to become future members of the EU on the other hand. Following the June 2003 EU summit in Thessaloniki other candidates are crowding in at the door, all, except Turkey, from the Western Balkans (ex- Yugoslavia States, Albania), some being very close to the requirement to become a member (Croatia will officially join in January 2013), other have been admitted as “accession States” and are discussing with the European Commission the fulfilment of conditions and the timing to become officially members.

EU enlargement ; integration ; FDI

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