Central and Eastern Europe

Central and Eastern Europe is a special part of the world that includes many countries in Northeast Europe, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Europe. This area mostly talks about places that used to be ruled by big empires and were once part of groups like the Eastern Bloc and the Warsaw Pact. Some people also call these countries the Central and Eastern European Countries, or CEECs, when talking about their work and money matters.

These countries have a rich history, having been between powerful empires like the Holy Roman Empire, Austro-Hungary, the German Empire, and the Russian Empire. Because of this history, the cultures and stories from these places are very important and interesting to learn about. Today, many of these countries are working together to grow stronger and help each other.

Definitions

The term CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) includes countries that were once part of groups like the Warsaw Pact and the states that were once in Yugoslavia. It also includes the three Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

These countries joined the European Union at different times. Eight joined on May 1, 2004. Two more joined on January 1, 2007, and one more joined on July 1, 2013.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development uses the term CEECs (Central and Eastern European Countries) for a group of countries that includes Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the three Baltic states.

Country	European Union	NATO
Albania	Candidate negotiating	Member state
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Candidate	Membership Action Plan
Bulgaria	Member state	Member state
Croatia	Member state	Member state
Czech Republic	Member state	Member state
Estonia	Member state	Member state
Hungary	Member state	Member state
Kosovo	Applicant	—N/a
Latvia	Member state	Member state
Lithuania	Member state	Member state
Montenegro	Candidate negotiating	Member state
North Macedonia	Candidate negotiating	Member state
Poland	Member state	Member state
Romania	Member state	Member state
Serbia	Candidate negotiating	Individual Partnership Action Plan
Slovakia	Member state	Member state
Slovenia	Member state	Member state
Abkhazia	—N/a	—N/a
Armenia	—N/a	Individual Partnership Action Plan
Azerbaijan	—N/a	Individual Partnership Action Plan
Belarus	—N/a	—N/a
Georgia	Candidate	Intensified Dialogue
Moldova	Candidate negotiating	Individual Partnership Action Plan
Russia	—N/a	—N/a
South Ossetia	—N/a	—N/a
Transnistria	—N/a	—N/a
Ukraine	Candidate negotiating	Intensified Dialogue