Three Seas Initiative & European Unity

European integration since European Union expansions from 2004 has for years meant connecting large parts of a continent long divided by the Iron Curtain. Although undoing this division with an east-west was an understandable focus, infrastructure projects with a north-south orientation have lagged behind in international transport and other infrastructure. This has resulted in a wheel-and-spoke character to European integration rather than a spider web development of European community. As newer EU members continue to develop policies toward each other and the EU and direct financial support from western members decreases, these countries will need more than cash infusions to help them not only catch up to the rest of the continent, but remain active members of European institutions. Recent tensions between Brussels and newer members over domestic institutions, human rights, and social issues add to tensions. The Three Seas Initiative is an example of regional efforts at growth and integration with the potential to strengthen unity, in particular as center-periphery tensions threaten the foundations of European institutional unity. This paper thus contributes to analysis of foreign policies and regionalism in the context of the European Union.