The EU Member States

At the end of 2012, the EU had 27 member states with Croatia expected to join the Union on 1 July 2013. States that were admitted into the Union had to fulfil political and economic conditions, collectively known as the Copenhagen criteria. These along the rule of law require from a candidate to have a democratically elected, free market government and corresponding institutions and freedoms.

Currently, the EU consists of the following member states:

As mentioned earlier, Croatia is set to become a full member of the EU on 1 July 2013. But the Treaty of Accession (signed in 2011) needs to be ratified by all EU member states which hasn’t happened yet.