Press Release: EU must build on its internal strength to gain external power

The EU enlargement policy is a reflection of the Union's global role, said the Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn on 3 November 2009 when he addressed the French senate. 'The global credibility of the EU rests on its capacity to shape its neighbourhood,' Rehn said, 'the 2004 enlargement, reuniting European countries after decades of division into blocks, is a sterling example of the pull of the EU's soft power.'