EU enlargement: meeting the challenges of the global security and trade environment

Introduction:...European integration has been an extraordinary and visionary enterprise, built on practical steps towards unity. The European Union is not only a complex work in progress, harmonising the internal policies of its members, but a force in world politics. This sixth wave of enlargement is one of the great moments in its evolution. This conference has an ambitious agenda and brings together a body of experts intimately concerned with the engineering of this grand design. And the conference is timely and relevant for Australia, because it is important to our relationship that Australians comprehend the dynamics and changing nature of the EU. My theme today is the opportunity that the imminent expansion of the EU offers for tackling global security and trade challenges. I want to expand particularly on areas where Australia’s interests are strongly engaged.