International Relations and Area Studies: Focus on Western Balkans

The enlargement policy of the European Union is arguably one of the most impactful from a variety of standpoints, including that of perceptions of the appeal that the unification project has always been in dire need of. Apart from this, enlargement has constantly prompted prominent change in the functioning of the decision‐making processes of the Community/Union, which inherently turns more intricate proportionally to the number of members that join the club. Without a doubt, the most spectacular episode in the history of this policy occurred in 2004, when the symbolic and inherently political gesture of opening the doors of what had often been ironically referred to as “fortress Europe” were slammed open to no fewer than 10 East‐Central countries, with more waiting in line.1 Whether this event happened ahead of its time or was a logical reparatory action remains the topic of heated debates in the literature, with notable variations between more complacent attitudes from countries that have made a point of encouraging the openness of the EU, and openly hostile views on the part of those that have been critical of the consequences and price to pay (sometimes literally) of the broadest enlargement wave to date.