ABSTRACT
Chapter 5 aims at exploring the rule of law-trade liberalization nexus in the realm of the EU’s application of its unilateral trade, financial and technical assistance instruments to support the implementation of its RTAs with the Western Balkans, the “associated” Eastern Neighbourhood and the CARIFORUM countries. We find that, although the unilateral instruments in question extensively support both the implementation of the RTAs norms and provide for the rule of law reforms, the nexus between trade liberalization and the rule of law is barely addressed. Such a phenomenon is most probably conditioned by the EU’s “politics-only” understanding of the rule of law, as well as a the strict delimitation between the values and acquis conditionality in the Copenhagen criteria that do not only constitute the foundation for the EU-Western Balkans relations but inspired the ENP design.
