Copenhagen criteria

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The Copenhagen criteria must be fulfilled by an official candidate country in order to become a full member of the European Union .

history

The Copenhagen criteria were adopted by the European Council on June 22, 1993 at the EU summit in Copenhagen in preparation for the first EU expansion to the east . More precisely, there are three sets of criteria that all candidate countries must meet: political, economic and acquis . The criteria must be met at the latest when the negotiations are concluded, i.e. before actual accession. The Copenhagen criteria were formulated primarily to lay down official and objective requirements for potential candidate countries, which would take away the fear of enlargement critics among the member states that the EU might suffer from the accession of politically and economically unstable countries.

With the entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty in May 1999, the political criteria established in Copenhagen were largely incorporated into the EU Treaty as a constitutional principle . Article 2 of the EU Treaty (consolidated version of Lisbon) states: “The values ​​on which the Union is founded are respect for human dignity , freedom , democracy , equality , the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons and minorities belong. These values ​​are common to all Member States in a society that is characterized by pluralism , non-discrimination , tolerance , justice , solidarity and equality between women and men . ”Article 49 accordingly states:“ Every European state that has those mentioned in Article 2 Respects values ​​and works to promote them, can apply to become a member of the Union. ”These principles were emphasized in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union , which was proclaimed at the European Council in Nice in December 2000 and with the Treaty of Lisbon on Came into force on December 1, 2009.

text

“As a prerequisite for membership, the candidate country must have achieved institutional stability as a guarantee for a democratic and constitutional order, for the protection of human rights and the respect and protection of minorities; it also requires a functioning market economy and the ability to cope with competitive pressures and market forces within the Union. Membership also requires that the individual candidate countries take on the obligations arising from membership and that they can adopt the goals of political union as well as economic and monetary union ... "

Three criteria to be met by the states

The Copenhagen criteria, which the states have to meet in order to join the EU, are also presented as three overarching criteria: the “political criterion”, the “economic criterion” and the “acquis criterion”.

Political criterion

  • Respect for human rights
  • Institutional stability
  • democratic and constitutional order
  • Respect for and protection of minorities

Economic criterion

  • The ability to withstand competitive pressures within the EU internal market
  • Functional & competitive market economy
  • Openness of the markets to foreign countries

Acquis criterion

  • The ability to embrace the commitments and goals of EU membership. This means practically taking over the " acquis communautaire " (the acquis communautaire).

EU absorption capacity

  • In addition, the EU must be receptive. This is currently being discussed with regard to a possible accession of Turkey . Ultimately, however, this is not a condition that the third country has to meet, but an internal political matter for the EU. This criterion would also make a potential accession of Russia more difficult, since the absorption capacity would probably not be given due to Russia's size alone.

EU common criteria

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ European Council Copenhagen 21. – 22. June 1993: Presidency conclusions ; P. 13 (pdf; 276 kB)
  2. ↑ Copenhagen Criteria. The Federal Government, accessed on July 21, 2017 .
  3. ↑ The Copenhagen criteria are formally met. In: World N24. September 30, 2005, accessed July 21, 2017 .