The Expansion of the Union at a Standstill?

Since the official entry of Romania and Bulgaria in 2007, the European Union has had 27 members. Other countries are in contention to join the European Community, some of them, like Turkey, having been so for quite a long time. Nevertheless, the process of enlargement of the European Union seems to be marking time, and this is attributable as much to the candidate countries (Turkey, the Balkan states etc.), whose resolve to conform to European requirements is not always very convincing, as it is to the member states. Jean-François Drevet assesses where the enlargement process stands at the moment, identifying the obstacles that lie in its way and the prospects for further development. He also shows that, following the upheavals produced by the financial crisis of Autumn 2008, some countries could, with a high probability of success, add themselves to the list of potential candidates (Iceland and Norway, for example).