Remaking Europe - the Accession of Transition Economies

This article focuses on the accession of the eastern European countries to the European Union in light of the ongoing Intergovernmental Conference, whose outcome will be critical in accommodating them any time soon. After a brief sketch of the governance and institutional backdrop to the Conference, the article draws the broad canvas against which the accession of transition economies needs to be viewed. The economic and political rationale for entertaining yet another round of accessions is dealt with next. Then it examines the salient elements of the negotiations revolving around the eventual entry of the ten eastern countries with a Europe Agreement. It discusses in particular the criteria for accession, the political economy of accession negotiations, the probable date of entry, the complexity of the issues at stake, the number and diversity of potential entrants, and the desirability of creating a longer term facility to accommodate the transition economies. Before concluding with some critical policy issues, the final section points to the need for putting into place a coherent pre-transition strategy.