European Integration as A Process of Deperipheralisation

This chapter will examine how structural processes rooted in the beginnings of European integration have turned accession to the EU into a means through which states fearful of becoming a strategic periphery could transform their geopolitical position. Though they still face significant imbalances after joining the EU, for new member states, the accession framework marks the beginning of a process of deperipheralisation that can provide them with access to strategic opportunities that only equal legal status within a global centre of power can offer. In examining how the EU's expansion process has enabled a succession of European societies to reposition themselves within global geopolitical hierarchies, this chapter will also outline how centre–periphery dynamics along the EU's borders are experiencing a dynamic process of transformation whose trajectory will continue to evolve for some time to come.