The European Union expanded by adding ten new countries in 2004, including Cyprus, Malta, and eight countries from Central and Eastern Europe. This was followed by the accession of Bulgaria and Romania in 2007. The EU's history has been shaped by successful enlargement rounds, with the goal of uniting different parts of Europe. The fall of the Soviet Union in 1989 allowed for the integration of Eastern European countries into the EU. The EU has since focused on consolidating democracy and European integration in the Western Balkans and Turkey. The chapter analyzes the EU's enlargement process in the two decades following 1989.