The Political Criteria for Accession to the EU in the Experience of Croatia

Abstract

Croatia became the twenty-eighth member of the European Union following an intense preparation process that was heavily influenced by adherence to the so-called political criteria set for the fifth enlargement of the Union, but that were implicit also in previous phases. The additional conditions laid down in the criteria applied to the preparation process of the Western Balkan Countries reflecting the historical and political context of what was characterized, in the 1990s, by bloody ethnic conflicts. The strict application of the political criteria and the careful monitoring of their application by the European Institutions have spurred in Croatia a number of significant reforms, both at legislative and constitutional level, particularly concerning the judiciary. The outcome of the preparation process not only led to Croatia's accession to the EU, but also benefitted the Country itself. However, the management of this process and the overall EU scenario pose