On the Latecomer Disadvantages in Economic Integration and the Catch-up of New EU Member States—Based on an Analysis of the Catch-up of the Viseg-rad Countries from 1820 to 2018
The economic catch-up of the new EU member states between 1820 and 2018 was a failure.After having studied the three economic integrations in which Visegrad countries(Poland,Czech Republic,Hungary and Slovakia)have participated over the last two centuries,this article contends that economic integration is a major obstacle for the new member states see-king to catch up economically.The technology,markets and capital provided by West Eu-rope facilitated the industrialization and economic institutional reform of new member states prior to and during economic integration,resulting in short-term economic catch-up.How-ever,the protective markets and capital provided by the economic integration weakened the willingness of new member states to continue to promote industrial upgrading,transforma-tion and economic institutional reform,and made these countries fall into the path depend-ence of"participating in economic integration,relying on the protection of economic inte-gration,economic development being impeded and seeking protection once again",which eventually widened their gap with Western Europe.This article argues that this obstacle stems from the protection provided by economic integration,which takes the place of the role of technology and institution in the economic development of these countries,thus im-posing the latecomer disadvantages on them.In sum,the European economic integration may not be as lovely as the EU depicts it,nor is it a cure-all for promoting economic catch-up.In contrast,it may embody more serious latecomer disadvantages.
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