Third-country economic relationships with the European Union


The European Union has a number of relationships with nations that are not formally part of the Union. According to the European Union's official site, and a statement by Commissioner Günter Verheugen, the aim is to have a ring of countries, sharing EU's democratic ideals and joining them in further integration without necessarily becoming full member states.

EFTA and EEA

The European Free Trade Association was created to allow European countries to partake in a free trade area with less integration as within the European Communities. Most of the countries initially in EFTA have since joined the EU itself, so only four remain outside, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
The European Economic Area agreement allows Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein to have access to the EU single market. The four basic freedoms apply. However, some restrictions on fisheries and agriculture take place.

Norway

is a member of the EEA, therefore it participates in the single market, and most EU laws are made part of Norwegian law. Norway has signed the Schengen treaty, which means border checks are no longer made.

Iceland

Like Norway, Iceland joined the EEA, and is considered part of the EU single market. Iceland has also signed the Schengen treaty. On 16 July 2009, Iceland applied to join the European Union.

Liechtenstein

joined the EEA in 1995 and participates in the EU single market.

Switzerland

The Swiss referendum to join the EEA in 1992 failed, so Swiss products do not participate in the European single market. However the country negotiated two series of bilateral agreements with the Union. The first series, Bilateral Agreements I, consists of seven bilateral agreements and was signed in 1999, the main part being Free Movement of Persons. The second series, Bilateral Agreements II, relates to nine areas and was signed in 2004 and includes the Schengen treaty and the Dublin Convention .

Eurozone-related

There are countries which, though not official members of the Eurozone, still use the euro as legal or de facto currency, through official agreements with the EU. These are European microstates which are largely economically dependent on their larger Eurozone-member neighbours.
Some other countries unilaterally decided to use the Euro without having currently a formal agreement with the EU.

Customs unions

Certain countries are in customs union with the EU. These are:
EU has concluded free trade agreements with many countries in the world, and negotiating with more through Stabilisation and Association Process, Association Agreements and Economic Partnership Agreements.

European Neighbourhood Policy

Covers Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Moldova, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Russia.
According to the European Union's official site, the objective of the European Neighbourhood Policy is to share the benefits of the EU's 2004 enlargement with neighbouring countries. It is also designed to prevent the emergence of new dividing lines between the enlarged EU and its neighbours. The vision is that of a ring of countries, drawn into further integration, but without necessarily becoming full members of the European Union. The policy was first outlined by the European Commission on March 2003. The countries covered include all of the Mediterranean shores of Africa and Asia, as well as the European CIS states in the Caucasus and eastern Europe. Russia insisted on the creation of the four EU–Russia Common Spaces instead of ENP participation. Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry has expressed interest in the ENP . Some MEPs also discussed Kazakhstan's inclusion in the ENP.
The European Neighbourhood Instrument, came into force in 2014. It is the financial arm of the European Neighbourhood Policy, the EU's foreign policy towards its neighbours to the East and to the South. It has a budget of €15.4 billion and provides the bulk of funding through a number of programmes.
The ENI, effective from 2014 to 2020, replaces the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument – known as the ENPI.
The Euro-Mediterranean Partnership or Barcelona Process is a wide framework of political, economic and social relations between member states of the EU and countries of the Southern Mediterranean. It was initiated on 27–28 November 1995 through a conference of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, held in Barcelona. Besides the 27 member states of the European Union, the remaining "Mediterranean Partners" are all other Mediterranean countries without Libya. Since the establishment of the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument in 2007 the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership initiative will become fully a part of the wider European Neighbourhood Policy. The Association Agreements signed with the Mediterranean states aim at establishing of a Euro-Mediterranean free trade area.

Financial cooperation and assistance programmes

For the 2000–2006 budgetary period

CARDS programme

CARDS, short for "Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation", was established on 5 December 2000 through Council regulation Number 2666/2000.
Its scope is the Western Balkans countries. The programme's wider objective is to support those nations in the Stabilisation and Association Process.

TACIS programme

The TACIS programme, established in 1991, was a programme of technical assistance that supports the process of transition to market economies for the 11 CIS countries and Georgia. Until 2003, Mongolia was also included in the programme but is now covered by the ALA programme.

MEDA programme

The MEDA programme was the principal financial instrument for the implementation of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, offering technical and financial support measures to accompany the reform of economic and social structures in the Mediterranean partner countries.
The first MEDA programme was established for the period of 1995–1999. On November 2000, a new regulation established MEDA II for the period of 2000–2006.

ACP programme

ACP stands for "Africa, Caribbean and Pacific". The programme applies to 71 countries, among which are all African nations with the exception of the Mediterranean countries of northern Africa. The ACP is currently covered by the Cotonou Agreement, which replaces the Lomé Convention.
External links:

ALA programme

ALA, standing for "Asia and Latin America" is a programme for financial aid and cooperation with those regions.

For the 2007–2013 budgetary period

Below is a table and three graphs showing, respectively, the GDP, the GDP per capita and the GDP per capita for some of the third countries that the European Union has relations with. This can be used as a rough gauge to the relative standards of living among member states.
The table is sorted by GDP per capita to show the relative economic development level of the different countries. Reference values for the EU average, highest and lowest are included.
Source: CIA World Factbook , IMF