La solidarietà nell'allargamento dell'Unione europea oltre i Balcani occidentali

This article investigates the principle of solidarity in the EU enlargement processes with specific reference to Western Balkans’ accession, also in light of the new requests for EU membership from Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia. After a brief reconstruction of the previous enlargement processes, the article will show that the approach toward the Western Balkans is specifically aimed at securing the region and EU borders, giving top priority to respect of the rule of law. This suggests some critical conclusions concerning the EU’s potential rapid enlargement enthusiastically supported by EU institutions and some Member States, as well as differentiations with regard to Member status and pre-accession status.