ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews both logics and concludes that it would be a serious mistake to ignore, as is currently the case, the economic logic. This is a massive task that deals with a huge range of issues, from the essential to the mundane. It is also largely a mechanical task, since there is not much to be discussed: the accessing countries must take on board all the acquis communautaires, as was decided a decade ago in Copenhagen. The design of the Maastricht convergence criteria reflected the fact that most European Union countries had achieved a high degree of real convergence, but exhibited, for a sustained period, serious nominal divergence. This process of real appreciation can be achieved through stable prices and nominal exchange rate appreciation, through a stable exchange rate and higher inflation, or through a combination of both. This effect, the Balassa-Samuelson effect, is well documented.
