The European Union and the Paradox of Enlargement. The Complex Accession of the Western Balkans

The book aims to shed light on the contradictions underlying the EU enlargement process, challenging the common assumption that the integration of an extended European space might be possible without mutual transformation of the institutions and agencies involved. The paradox lies precisely in the prevailing view that the EU can enlarge by transforming the new arrivals only, without changing the whole. Conversely, the enlargement process affects the European Union as such, and its Member States, which must, on each occasion, learn how to welcome new members and adapt its own institutions and narratives to the new situation. The research seeks to investigate the interrelations between the ongoing crisis of the European integration project and the patterns and effects of its transformative power towards accession states. The specific case study framing the field of the research focuses on the ‘Western Balkan’ countries and their different positioning within the EU accession process.