The State of European Integration provides scholars, practitioners, experts and students with a comprehensive account of the state of the European Union (EU) today. With contributions from leading scholars, this book examines the EU in a theoretically informed and empirically grounded manner. Beginning with an exploration into the nature of the European Union as an international actor, it moves on to assess the impact of enlargement on institutions, policies and identity. Furthermore, after investigating issues related to the degree of convergence and cohesion among members, it analyzes the economic and monetary state of integration. This volume comes at a timely interval when there is a need to understand the present and future of the European Union.