ABSTRACT
No established insiders are to be found in the ‘east’ as conceived in this volume. However, of the ten states that became EU insiders on 1 May 2004, five belong to this part of the continent (Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia). By 2005, four remaining would-be insiders also rest in this domain (Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and perhaps Macedonia). EU membership, whether recently attained, or a definite or a likely prospect, does not end the necessity for non-pole states to exert their interests on this massive multilateral entity. And many outsiders, including aspiring outsiders, remain in this part of the continent (see Figure 7.1).
