Thus Der Spiegel today. “Croatia is set to join the European Union next summer,” explains the newspaper, “but after a recent progress report exposed problem areas, several leading German conservatives have placed the timeline in doubt.” In short, the Union does not need another Bulgaria or Romania, riddled as they are with corruption and organized crime. The two were accepted on purely geopolitical grounds, of course. The Union was a bit too exposed to Russia back then. Now it is safe, that is. But is it? And how about the rest of the Balkans? Well, keeping Croatia out of the Union is sure to have an effect on the unsettled countries in the region, and the region is only a bit less problematic than Russia. This is what the German conservatives are forgetting at this juncture. At their peril, no doubt. The Balkan countries are inside the Union already, at least geographically, and it will take some intelligence on its part to understand the political consequences, corruption and organized crime included. I can already see the title of another newspaper article coming up soon: “Croatia Doubts whether Germany is Ready for EU Leadership.”