ABSTRACT
A distinctive feature of this book is the consideration of possible tensions between the EU's increasing global actorship and its relations to the near abroad. The two dimensions, regional and global, are not always easy to reconcile. Global responsibilities demand further integration, by representing the EU worldwide and also more centralized and efficient decision-making. The regional dimension however entails both issues, deepening and widening; enhanced ability to act at continental and Mediterranean level, but also a pressure for wider membership, up to now without any strategically defined borders. Since the size matters and the very nature of a regional organization interacts with the balance between deepening and enlarging, we will commence by analysing the evolving relationship of the EC-EU with the "near abroad", namely with the Eastern/continental dimension and with its southern neighbours.
