 This short video was inspired by a question from one of my fans. The European Union has been expanding since its inception, starting as a small economic community in Western Europe, expanding to a continent-wide political alliance and union. But what is next for the European Union and its expansion? I've already made a more detailed video about North Macedonia joining the Union, but that is only one country where the EU could expand to. Serbia and Montenegro seem to be the candidates that are currently closest to joining the Union, as they are the most democratic and economically stable countries. However, Serbia will need to resolve the situation in Kosovo before it's able to join. I predict that the issue will be resolved within the next 10 years as a result, though trying to predict the outcome of this resolution would require a video of appropriate length. Other candidates that are likely to join too are, as I've mentioned, North Macedonia and also Albania. These four countries could be in the EU by 2030. It's a safe bet, however, that Turkey will not join the Union for many factors that I've explained in several videos. The only countries that I could see joining beyond 2030 are Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Bosnia. However, this would require those countries to resolve their territorial disputes, in the case of the first three, and decreased corruption levels, in the case of all four. EU membership as a goal seems to make nations work towards democracy in a free market, as the short-term economic benefits of joining are great for less developed and novel member states. However, debates around EU membership in all of the countries I've mentioned, as fears of a loss of natural or cultural sovereignty, or anglings to join a different alliance, are both common arguments against membership. Thank you all for watching this short, next week I will be back with a full-length video, and I'll see you all then.