Has the European Union’s Boundaries Finished Expanding?

Another question I posted in last week’s article is whether the European Union has finished expanding. The question is important to consider because there are some people who believe the European Union will serve as a “revised Roman Empire” during the End Times.

• If the European Union has finished expanding then its current boundaries may serve as the boundaries of a potential “revised Roman Empire”.
• If the European Union has not finished expanding then the start of the End Times may be delayed at least until the time when the remaining countries are finally integrated into the European Union.

If you examine a current map of the European Union you’ll notice a few things:

• The European Union has expanded to the edge of Eastern Europe
• Switzerland and Norway are two significant Western European countries which have not joined the European Union.
• The European Union has not yet expanded into the Western Balkans, which include Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, and Kosovo.

The following map displays the current members of the European Union in light blue and non-members in grey. If you’re unable to see the map below, you can access the map at the following link



European Union officials believe that there is room for expansion into the Western Balkans and have even stated publicly that European “reunification” (interesting word choice…) will not be completed without the incorporation of the Western Balkans. For instance, current European Commission President José Manuel Barroso recently stated:

"The reunification of Europe will not be completed without the Western Balkans as part of the European Union...But each of these countries holds its European future in its hands. And the pace of accession depends on progress on key reforms. They have to deliver on their commitments"

In addition, the current President of the European Parliament Jerzy Buzek recently stated:

"The European Parliament remains strongly committed to the European future of the Western Balkans"

The European Union’s enlargement website lists the countries that are currently candidates to join the European Union and the countries that have been promised the opportunity to join the European Union when they are ready or “potential candidates”. The following is a current list of candidate countries and potential candidate countries, including (where available) an estimate of when each country may become a member of the European Union:

Candidate Countries

• Montenegro 2016 (at the earliest)
• Macedonia: 2012 (at the earliest)
• Croatia: 2012 (Likely)
• Iceland (Unclear, but could be soon)
• Turkey: 2020 (at the earliest)

Potential Candidates

• Albania: 2015 (at the earliest)
• Bosnia Herzegovina: 2015 (at the earliest)
• Serbia: 2015 (at the earliest)
• Kosovo (N/A)

If you believe that the European Union has already expanded enough or do not believe that European Union officials are serious about incorporating the Western Balkans into the European Union, then the incorporation of the Western Balkans is probably not an important issue when assessing where we are in relation to the End Times. However, if you believe the European Union must incorporate the Western Balkans and believe that European Union officials actually want to incorporate the Western Balkans into the European Union, then you may conclude that it might be some time before the European Union reaches its final form/boundaries…

• One potential detail to consider when gauging the relevance of the Western Balkans is that the Western Balkans were a part of the Roman Empire. If the European Union is a revised Roman Empire-as some believe-then one would think that the Western Balkans will probably be incorporated into the European Union’s boundaries eventually...

I hope today's article is helpful and informative in some way for you.