Justice and Home Affairs Cooperation (JHAC) in the perspective of enlargement

The purpose of this essay is to examine the development of Justice and Home Affairs Cooperation (JHAC) in order to demonstrate how it is the “political soul” of the European area of Freedom, Security, and Justice (FSJ). On the one hand, the JHAC has taken on a pivotal role in advancing the accession process of new States, especially those in the Western Balkans, in the adaptation to the Union’s values in the management of external borders and the fight against illegal immigration and human trafficking. On the other hand, it has brought attention to the Member States’ resistance with regard to the sector that is continuously expanding, pushing to rethink the tools used to safeguard values inside the Union.