CIAO DATE: 12/2009
September 2009
Istituto Affari Internazionali
The process of European integration has traditionally advanced through two distinct, although strictly interlinked processes: a) in institutional terms, either through a reform of the Treaties (formal deepening) or through pragmatic ways and ad hoc mechanisms (informal deepening), intended to consolidate and enhance integration among its members; b) via enlargement (widening), through the accession of new members into the EU and their integration of the policies and institutions of the Union. The impact of these two processes is not uniform and may actually greatly vary, according to the policy area that we consider. The aim of this report– that summarises the research work carried out within the framework of EU-Consent project, and notably within work package VII “Political and security aspects of the EU’ external relations” - is to study the interplay between deepening and widening in the specific area of European foreign and security policy ( including both CFSP and ESDP) and more specifically the impact of widening on this area.
Resource link: Deepening and widening in European foreign and security policy [PDF] - 62K