Integration Before Membership: The Under-Recognised Role of EU Research and Education Programmes in Gradual Integration
Keywords:
European integration, Erasmus+, Horizon Europe, knowledge-based integration, political conditionality, differentiated integration, gradual integration, EU enlargementAbstract
Introduction: The European Union’s enlargement policy has traditionally relied on political conditionality to promote reforms in candidate countries. However, prolonged accession processes and the declining effectiveness of conditionality have increased interest in gradual integration as a complementary approach. Although EU research and education programmes facilitate institutional cooperation and professional networks before accession, their contribution to gradual integration remains insufficiently recognised in the EU’s strategic enlargement framework. Methods: The study employed structured qualitative document analysis of five European Commission policy documents: the annual Enlargement Policy Communications for 2022–2025 and the 2024 Communication on pre-enlargement reforms. References were analysed according to four dimensions: political conditionality, gradual integration, market and regulatory integration, and knowledge-based integration. Particular attention was given to the strategic positioning of Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, and Jean Monnet Actions within the Commission’s enlargement policy discourse. Results: The findings reveal a shift in the strategic recognition of research and education programmes. In 2022, the Commission explicitly identified participation in EU programmes, including research and education, as a mechanism for accelerating integration. From 2023 onwards, gradual integration became increasingly associated with single market access, regulatory alignment, and sector-specific cooperation. Although all ten enlargement countries participate in Horizon Europe as associated countries, the programme was no longer explicitly mentioned in the main text of the Communications after 2022. Erasmus+ was primarily presented as a means of promoting interpersonal exchanges rather than as a strategic instrument of integration. This pattern indicates the declining visibility of knowledge-based integration within the Commission’s strategic enlargement framework. Conclusion: EU research and education programmes constitute an established but insufficiently recognised dimension of pre-accession integration. Their institutional, professional, and socialisation mechanisms can complement political conditionality and market-oriented integration. Explicitly incorporating knowledge-based integration into the EU’s gradual integration framework could strengthen existing cooperation and enhance the strategic value of investments in research and education without requiring substantial additional resources.
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