http://english.pravda.ru/world/20/91/365/16462_EU.html
European Union gradually loses the point of its existence
11/14/2005 16:41
The idea to use the opportunity of EU membership as an impetus for democratic reforms in candidate-countries has proved to be wrong
What is the point of the EU's existence? Even specialists may find themselves at a loss when answering this question. When the idea of European integration appeared, it became clear that European nations launched the unification process to overcome the destructive legacy of WWII. The current existence of the European Union is based on political mythology.
The answer to the question can be found in the situation, which was formed with the EU membership for Romania and Bulgaria. It may seem at first sight that these two countries can fit in the minimum criteria for the EU membership, which differs them from Turkey, for example. Both Bulgaria and Romania are situated entirely in Europe and were not noticed for ethnic cleansing like it happened in the case with Croatia and Serbia. Moreover, Western politicians and diplomats continue to praise the development of the democratic society both in Bulgaria and in Romania. However, the two countries do not have the EU membership and they are not likely to obtain it during the forthcoming several years either.
European politicians said before that Bulgaria and Romania would become EU members in 2007, although they pushed back such a probability later - to 2008. Why can't they just say that the governments of Bulgaria and Romania have not done enough to bring their countries to the levels of the European Union membership? ...