European Union Do Not Worry, Croatia Is Behind You: A Commentary on the Seventh Accession Treaty

Abstract

The aim of this article is to take a closer look at the Seventh Accession Treaty and the terms of membership it provides for. The starting point is an overview of the structure, the rules on entry into force, the legal character of the Seventh Accession Treaty as well as the accession of Croatia to the Founding Treaties forming the core of EU’s primary law and some of their most recent modifications. This section is followed by analysis of the institutional provisions facilitating the phasing in of the Croatian authorities into the EU decision making machinery. It is important to take a look at both - the institutional framework for the period between the signature of the Accession Treaty and following its entry into force. This will lead to the analysis of immediate effect of EU law and threats to the effective application of EU law after the accession. Adaptations to the existing EU acquis and transitional periods are analysed in turn. In the last part of the article the pre and post-accession conditionality is elaborated on, furthermore the safeguard clauses laid down in the Accession Treaty are discussed in detail.