The present section is rather a container of students' personal reflection carried out in a classtest format.

Object of Reflection

A)
In 1993, at the Copenhagen European Council, the Union took a decisive step towards the current enlargement, agreeing that "the associated countries in Central and Eastern Europe that so desire shall become members of the European Union." Thus, enlargement was no longer a question of "if", but "when".
At the same time, it defined the membership criteria, which are often referred to as the "Copenhagen criteria".
Such membership criteria require that the candidate country must

• have achieved stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities;
• the existence of a functioning market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive
• pressure and market forces within the Union;
• the ability to take on the obligations of membership including adherence to the aims of political, economic & monetary union

from: http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/intro/criteria.htm

EU enlargement is a process still going on and will certainly take a long time to come true. In a short essay format, discuss the problem with reference to:

• the extract above
• your experience in interviewing young people from the surrounding area
• the interpretation of data carried out by the different groups in your class.

Conclude your essay with your personal opinion and some practical proposals that may promote integration among European young people.