Baltic accession to the European Union

Abstract

The in reforming Baltic states their have economies. made extraordinary A decade ago, progress few during dreamed the that 1990s the in reforming t eir economies. A decad ago, few d eame tha the Baltic states would be negotiating membership in the European Union in the year 2000. Yet, here we are. The success of the Baltics testifies to their commitment to reforming economic structures and pursuing consistent economic policies. This tough policy line has largely compensated for their disadvantageous starting conditions. Even so, significant differences among the Baltics persist. These differences illustrate the importance of holding to coherent economic policies in building a market economy. Estonia followed radical but consistent reform policies, while Lithuania's commitment to reforms has lapsed at times and been indecisive. Latvia, which once fell squarely between the two Baltic extremes, rapidly closed the gap with Estonia over the past two years. Estonia's efforts were rewarded in 1997 with an invitation from the European Union to start membership negotiations. Latvia and Lithuania were invited to negotiations in 1999. If compared with Central and Eastern European transition economies generally, Estonia and Latvia have fared well with their reforms.