CENTRO DI DOCUMENTAZIONE SUI DISPOSITIVI MEDICI

Kosovo:  This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence. Membership status Potential candidate Background In 2008 the EU repeated its willingness to assist the economic and political development of Kosovo through a clear European perspective. The EU helps contribute to stability in Kosovo through the  EULEX rule of law mission in Kosovo  and  Special representative in Kosovo  . More information on the country's relations with the EU

Membership status Potential candidate Background Bosnia and Herzegovina - along with other Western Balkans countries – was identified as a potential candidate for EU membership during the Thessaloniki European Council summit in June 2003. Since then, a number of agreements between the EU and Bosnia and Herzegovina have entered into force - visa facilitation and readmission agreements (2008), Interim Agreement on Trade and Trade-related issues (2008). The Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) has been ratified and enters into force on 1 June 2015. Common Foreign and Security Policy and the European Security and Defence Policy The EU continues to deploy considerable resources in Bosnia and Herzegovina within the framework of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). The current EU Special Representative (EUSR), Lars-Gunnar Wigemark, is also Head of the Delegation of the European Union. The EUFOR/Althea mission ...

Membership status Candidate country Background In 1987, Turkey applied to join what was then the European Economic Community, and in 1997 it was declared eligible to join the EU. Turkey's involvement with European integration dates back to 1959 and includes the Ankara Association Agreement (1963) for the progressive establishment of a Customs Union (ultimately set up in 1995). Accession negotiations  started in 2005, but until Turkey agrees to apply the Additional Protocol  of the Ankara Association Agreement to Cyprus, eight negotiation chapters will not be opened and no chapter will be provisionally closed. Turkey is seeing an unprecedented and continuously increasing influx of people seeking refuge from Syria which has exceeded 2.2 million to date. Overall, Turkey is the country in the world hosting the highest number of refugees, and has already spent more than 7 billion EUR of its own resources on addressing this crisis. The Commission has engaged with Turkey...

Membership status Candidate country Background The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia – along with other Western Balkans countries – was identified as a potential candidate for EU membership during the  Thessaloniki European Council  summit in 2003. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia applied for EU membership in March 2004. The Commission issued a favourable opinion in November 2005, and the Council decided in December 2005 to grant the country candidate status. In October 2009, the Commission recommended that accession negotiations be opened.

Membership status Candidate country Background Serbia – along with 5 other Western Balkans countries – was identified as a potential candidate for EU membership during the Thessaloniki European Council summit in 2003. In 2008, a  European partnership for Serbia  was adopted, setting out priorities for the country's membership application, and in 2009 Serbia formally applied. In March 2012 Serbia was granted EU candidate status. In September 2013 a  Stabilisation and Association Agreement  between the EU and Serbia entered into force. In line with the decision of the European Council in June 2013 to open accession negotiations with Serbia, the Council adopted in December 2013  the negotiating framework  and agreed to hold the 1st Intergovernmental Conference with Serbia in January 2014. On 21 January 2014,  the 1st Intergovernmental Conference  took place, signaling the formal start of Serbia's accession negotiations. More information ...

Membership status Candidate country Background In 2006 Montenegro's parliament declared independence from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. In 2008, the new country applied for EU membership. In 2010, the Commission issued a  favourable opinion on Montenegro's application , identifying 7 key priorities that would need to be addressed for negotiations to begin, and the Council granted it candidate status. In December 2011, the Council launched the accession process with a view to opening negotiations in June 2012. The accession negotiations with Montenegro started on 29 June 2012. More information on the country's relations with the EU

Albania Membership status Candidate country Background Albania – along with other Western Balkans countries – was identified as a potential candidate for EU membership during the  Thessaloniki European Council   summit in June 2003. In 2009, Albania submitted its formal application for EU membership. In its Opinion on Albania's application (in 2010), the Commission assessed that before accession negotiations could be formally opened, Albania still had to achieve a necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria and in particular to meet the 12 key priorities identified in the Opinion. In October 2012, Commission recommended that Albania be granted EU candidate status, subject to completion of key measures in the areas of judicial and public administration reform and revision of the parliamentary rules of procedures. In June 2014, Albania was awarded candidate status by the EU. More information on the country's relations with the EU

The United Kingdom (UK) consists of England, Wales, Scotland (which collectively make up Great Britain) and Northern Ireland. The UK’s geography is varied, and includes cliffs along some coastlines, highlands and lowlands and hundreds of islands off the western and northern coasts of Scotland. The most important sectors of the UK’s economy in 2014 were public administration, defence, education, human health and social work activities (18.3 %), wholesale and retail trade, transport, accommodation and food services (18.4 %) and industry (13.5 %). The UK’s main export partners are Germany, the US and the Netherlands, while its main import partners are Germany, China and USA. Capital:  London Geographical size:  248 528 km² Population:  64 308 261  (2014) Population as % of total EU population:  12.7 %  (2014) GDP:  € 2.223 trillion  (2014) Official EU language(s):  English Political system:  parliamentary ...

Sweden has the largest population among the Nordic countries and is the third-largest country in the European Union by surface area. To the west, Sweden is separated from Norway by mountains and is connected to the south by a road and rail bridge to Denmark. The most important sectors of Sweden’s economy in 2014 were public administration, defence, education, human health and social work activities (24.5 %), industry (19.7 %) and wholesale and retail trade, transport, accommodation and food services (17.4 %). Sweden’s main export partners are Norway, Germany and the UK, while its main import partners are Germany, Norway and the Netherlands. Capital:  Stockholm Geographical size:  438 574 km 2 Population:  9 644 864  (2014) Population as % of total EU population:  1.9 %  (2014) GDP:  € 430.258 billion  (2014) Official EU language(s):  Swedish Political system:  parliamentary constitut...

High plateaux and mountain ranges such as the Pyrenees and the Sierra Nevada dominate much of mainland Spain, which is on the Iberian Peninsula. To the north, the country is bordered by France and Andorra, and to the west by Portugal. Spain also includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, and two autonomous exclaves in North Africa: Ceuta and Melilla. The most important sectors of Spain’s economy in 2014 were wholesale and retail trade, transport, accommodation and food services (24.1 %), public administration, defence, education, human health and social work activities (18.6 %), and industry (17.5 %). Spain’s main export partners are France, Germany and Portugal while its main import partners are Germany, France and China. Capital:  Madrid Geographical size:  505 970 km 2 Population:  46 507 760  (2014) Population as % of total EU population:  9.2 %  (2014) GDP:  € 1.05...