Mapping The World Episode 35.12 European Union: a tilt towards the East?

Founded in 1954 in the form of the ECSC, the European Union has continued to expand, particularly towards the east since 2004. With the war in Ukraine, the EU's centre of gravity seems to have shifted towards Eastern Europe. Poland, Hungary, Slovakia: attention is focused on these countries on whose borders the Russo-Ukrainian war is being played out.

It is also in the East that the most critical voices regarding the European project are raised. Hungarian Viktor Orban, leader of the Eurosceptics and close to Vladimir Putin, is a key player in the EU, notably opposing military aid to Kiev. In December 2023, his abstention allowed Ukraine and Moldova to open accession negotiations with the EU. Two new members that would tilt Europe even further towards the East.