Small States and the European Union
Economic Perspectives
Europa Economic Perspectives Series

The Economies of European Union Small Member and Candidate States deals with the small states and candidate states of the EU, with a focus on their economic structure and performance, and the impact of EU membership (past, actual and potential) on the economy. The small states to be covered are those with a population of 3 million or less, namely: Cyprus, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovenia.

This title adds to the literature on the EU, on regional integration generally and on small states. It delves into the special constraints of small economic size, and examines why and how the small states of Europe manage to compete, albeit not without difficulty, with the larger states in the block, where free trade prevails.

The book answers the following research questions:

1. What are the special economic development constraints faced by the small states of the EU?
2. What policy options have been used by, or are available to, these small states to address these constraints?
3. How can the economic resilience and competitiveness of these states be enhanced?
4. Has EU membership been mostly advantageous for these small states?
5. What are the economic prospects for these states as EU member states?

The book is aimed primarily for students of EU affairs and of regional integration in general. It will also be useful for students of subjects relating to small states. It may also appeal to policy makers of small states, and to officials of international and regional organisations that have a constituency that includes small states.

1. Introduction: Small States and the European Union – Lino Briguglio
2. Cyprus: From an Economic Miracle to a Systemic Collapse and its Aftermath
3. The Estonian Economy: Structure, Performance and Prospects
4. Iceland and the Challenge of European Integration: Is European Union Membership Feasible?
5. Latvia after European Union Accession: Weathering the Storm? – Aleksandrs Cepilovs and Lauma Muižniece
6. The Lithuanian Economy as a European Union Member State: Structure, Performance and Prospects
7. The Economy of Luxembourg
8. The Macedonian Economy and the European Union
9. Malta: The Role of European Union Membership within Five Decades of Economic Development
10. Montenegro: A Small Economy on the Road to European Union Membership
11. The Slovenian Economy: The Road to European Union Accession, the Crisis and Beyond

Lino Briguglio possesses a PhD (Economics) from the University of Exeter, United Kingdom. Professor Briguglio is the Director of the Islands and Small States Institute of the University of Malta. He is known internationally for his seminal work on the `Vulnerability Index’, which led to a worldwide interest and to many quantitative studies on economic vulnerability. He has also pioneered work on the measurement of economic resilience. He has acted as consultant, mainly on matters related to small states, to various international organizations, including the Commonwealth Secretariat, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the World Bank.