With 10 new countries joining the European Union last May, many opportunities and challenges have arisen for both the new and old member states. David Berry takes a look at the situation eight months on
The European Union (EU) made a step-change in size in May 2004 with the admittance of an additional 10 countries bringing the number of member nations up to 25. From its beginnings as essentially a free-trade area of the six founding nations in 1957, EU membership now comprises a population in excess of 400 million people with a GDP similar in size to that of the US at around U$12 trillion. The potential for further future expansion, notably to include Turkey, suggests a potential population approaching 600 million, assuming that such countries are able to institute the necessary economic a...
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