Central and Eastern Europe already has the scale of a major global economy. It simply does not present itself as one. Eleven EU economies between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black Seas mean almost 100 million people and roughly $2.5 trillion in GDP. By 2030, the region should present itself to the world as a $3-trillion-plus economic space built on manufacturing, technology, logistics, energy and defense. And Ukraine could turn CEE from Europe’s former periphery into one of its principal geoeconomic centers. The region does not need another institution or treaty. It needs aggregation, ambition and a common narrative.
The method, not the numbers
In 2025, ASEAN did something CEE should study. It adopted an Economic Community Strategic Plan for 2026-30 – six goals, 44 objectives, 192 measures – as part of a longer ambition to become the world’s fourth-largest economy by…
