Free Trade Areas in Europe - CEFTA

CEFTA

Following the fall of the Iron Curtain, two FTAs were created in Central Europe, the Baltic Free Trade Area (BAFTA) and the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA), in order to stabilise these countries for membership of the EU. With the 2004 EU enlargement, the original members of both of these have left these agreements and joined the EU.

CEFTA has expanded into southern Europe with members from the Western Balkans and Moldova. All of the new CEFTA countries, except for Moldova, are prospective members of the EU and hence EFTA is the only FTA with a long term future, as there are no immediate plans for these countries to change their present status. However, CEFTA may gain new members in the form of countries neighbouring the present EU.