**5. Conclusions**

EU integration of the Central and Eastern Europe countries had positive effects on their rural areas economy of the new union members. These are represented by direct economic advan‐ tages by increasing investments in the rural economy in order to develop the production means, to create new production structures that would better exploit the resulted products from agriculture or forestry which now have a higher added value and a better quality according to the EU standards.

Also the access to EU structural funds offers multiple facilities for the development of rural economies, creating and modernizing of specific infrastructure, creating new jobs for rural areas residents of Eastern European countries and improving their life standards.

By joining the EU, the identities and traditional values of each nation individually from Eastern European countries were not affected, but were especially ensured an active participation to achieve the reunification of the European heritage which now totals all values from each specific area.

The economic criterion stimulated the option for EU enlargement, in order to fulfil the primary objective of becoming one of the strongest economies in the world and the most extensive and developed consumer market that exists in the world today.

Countries of Central and Eastern Europe bring now their contribution to the attaining of the EU strategic objectives, participation at their establishment from the position of full members and the way which they started in the European family is one that ensures a good future in which they have the possibility to develop their economies in an accelerated manner based on active participation at the common market.

Rural areas will become those areas that will retain their labour force employed in agriculture, forestry and processing of raw materials derived from these domains, where income levels are satisfactory and provides the opportunity of a higher standard of living similar to urban areas.
