The following countries are classified as Candidate countries and Potential candidate countries:
Candidate countries: Croatia and Turkey, following the official launch of negotiations on the accession to the European Union on 3 October 2005. In December 2005, the European Council granted the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia the status of a candidate country; accession negotiations have not started. The European Council granted Iceland candidate status in June 2010 and negotiations were formally opened in July 2010.
Potential candidate countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia as well as Kosovo under UN Security Council Resolution 1244/99. The EU has repeatedly reaffirmed at the highest level its commitment for the European perspective of the Western Balkans, provided they fulfill the accession criteria.
