Normalization

Focusing on the 2004 and 2007 Eastern enlargement of the European Union, this chapter traces the ‘normalization’ of differentiated integration after new countries become member states. The chapter explains pre-accession tensions between demands of member states to limit the membership benefits of the applicant countries, and demands of the applicants to help them deal with the burdens of joining a competitive European market. It also explores the post-accession process in which new member states are in a better position to avoid discriminatory differentiation but still have to cope with the repercussions of accession differentiation. The empirical analysis shows that almost all accession differentiation—both preferential and discriminatory—disappears within ten to fifteen years of membership.