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Briefing Paper 39: Protecting Democracy in EU Member States

The democracy crisis in Hungary has triggered considerable soul-searching in the EU about the “Copenhagen dilemma”. While aspiring member states are vetted on the basis of the 1993 Copenhagen criteria – including commitment to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law – once a state becomes a member, the EU does little to monitor that these standards are upheld and to enforce remedies if a crisis occurs.

Photo: Michael Thaidigsmann

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