Thanking the Greeks. The Crisis of the Rule of Law in EU Enlargement Regulation

Abstract

This paper showcases the weaknesses of EU enlargement law and demonstrates how one Member State is notable for abusing this weakness, harming the candidate countries, the EU and the institutions alike, stripping EU position of predictability and undermining EU Commission’s efforts, thus severely decapacitating the key procedural rule of law component of EU enlargement regulation, turning it into a randomised political game and ignoring any long-term goals of stability, prosperity and peace the processes is to stand for. Following a walk through Greece’s engagement throughout a number of enlargement rounds, the paper concludes that the duty of loyalty, presumably able to discipline Member States undermining the common effort, should find a new meaning in the EU enlargement context.

Keywords: asymmetry, bilateral, conditionality, cooperation, disputes, enlargement, EU law