EU Enlargement and CFSP

ENThe successive enlargements of the EC/EU have been, and still are, quintessential security policy. Focusing on the Central/Middle European candidates for accession, this article aims to evaluate their impact in the broader context of the Union’s CFSP/ESDP (and European security at large) in the wake of the parallel enlargements of NATO and the EU decided in the autumn of 2002. CFSP and ESDP will be affected by the presence and input of the ‘acceding’ countries in various ways, although the overall spectrum of sensitivities and inclinations will change only marginally. While the issue of the foreseeable/desirable future borders of the Union will become ever more important, a viable compromise will have to be struck between the rights and interests of all member States, the means of some, and the overarching imperative of effectiveness and credibility on the regional and international scene.