Unlike the Arab countries, Eastern Europe and the Balkans benefited from a common starting point and a common path forward: all are part of a continent that has taken historic steps toward integration since World War II. That has given them a common destination as well, both politically (accession to the European Union) and in terms of their security (through NATO).
事实上，与欧洲相比，这些转型所处的环境是——并且一直是——不利的。与阿拉伯国家不同，东欧和巴尔干国家有一个优势，它们拥有共同的起点和共同的前进道路：它们都处在二战后走向一体化的历史进程的大陆中。这给了它们同样的命运，不管是政治上（加入欧盟）还是安全上（通过北约）。