The enlargement of the European Union towards the East from May 2004 has generated an increase of about 100 million inhabitants in the EU population, and has especially brought along major challenges and important opportunities both for the "new" countries and for the "old" member states. That is the main focus of this volume, which is divided into three sections. The first analyses the effects of the enlargement on the functioning of Community institutions, on the relations with the other Eastern European countries, and finally on regional and global economic dynamics; the second section analyses in detail the role of the monetary politics of the European Central Bank and the activities of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; and the third deals with the importance of the entrepreneurial class in ensuring the success of the transition process of the Eastern European economies.

Inhalt
Cooperation, Integration, and Enlargement of Europe.- The EU-27 Integration and Economic Relationships with the East: An Introductory Analysis.- The Economic Goals of the Enlargement and the Challenges to the 27 EU Countries.- Great Europe: A Pan-European Perspective on the Future of Europe.- Trade and Foreign Direct Investment: Italy, Germany, and the New Europe.- Integrating the Balkans with the European Union.- European Banking Institutions and Eastern Europe.- The European Central Bank, Italy, and the Integration of Eastern Europe.- The Role of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in the Transition of the Banking and Financial Systems.- Enterprises and Economy in the Transition Process.- The Importance of Entrepreneurship for Democratic Development in Central and Eastern Europe.- EastWest European Integration: Patterns of Catching-Up and Labour Market Implications.- Trade and Foreign Direct Investments: The Point of View of Central Eastern European Countries.- The European Enterprise of General Interest: A Tool for Balanced Development.