ABSTRACT
The process of decolonization coupled with the end of the Cold War has created an environment that is conducive to an increase in regional patterns of interaction. A neo-regional alternative model of development is one that implies regional restructuring based on symmetrical and solidarity-oriented patterns of development which would consist of both intergovernmental and transnational patterns of relations. This model of development is manifesting itself across Western Europe as member states of the European Union become more closely integrated with one another. The evolution of the European Union's (EU's) common foreign and security policy (CFSP) and its more direct involvement in regional affairs such as its key role in the reconstruction of the Balkans are initial steps that could lead to an upgrade in EU status as an international actor. Such a development would allow the EU to wield more influence at a regional level of affairs as the twenty-first century unfolds.
