The EU’s Stealthy Hegemony and Ambiguous Neighbors

2021 ◽  
Vol 120 (824) ◽  
pp. 112-117
Author(s):  
Alexander Clarkson
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
European Integration ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Control ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

European integration based on a supranational form of pooled sovereignty has taken on increasingly state-like qualities. With every move toward absorbing additional members, the European Union system has expanded its geographic reach. The state-like power of the EU is apparent in the impact its integration processes have had in societies just outside its borders. Its growing influence is most notable in misfit border territories, from Kaliningrad to Transnistria, and from Cyprus to Northern Ireland, that are tenuously under the political control of neighboring geopolitical powers.

Russia - European Union: The continuation ofthe sanctions standoff

2017 ◽  
pp. 114-127
Author(s):  
M. Klinova ◽  
E. Sidorova
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Economic Recession ◽  
Economic Sanctions ◽  
Current Data ◽  
The State ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Year 2013

The article deals with economic sanctions and their impact on the state and prospects of the neighboring partner economies - the European Union (EU) and Russia. It provides comparisons of current data with that of the year 2013 (before sanctions) to demonstrate the impact of sanctions on both sides. Despite the fact that Russia remains the EU’s key partner, it came out of the first three partners of the EU. The current economic recession is caused by different reasons, not only by sanctions. Both the EU and Russia have internal problems, which the sanctions confrontation only exacerbates. The article emphasizes the need for a speedy restoration of cooperation.

Germany and the European Union

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Bulmer
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
West Germany ◽  
The Political ◽  
Federal Republic Of Germany ◽  
The European Union ◽  
European Policy ◽  
Political Climate ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
The Eu

The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) was a founder member of the European integration process, namely the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) created in 1952. However, the circumstances were very different from the 2010s. Germany was a divided and defeated state until 1990. Integration provided important political and economic support to West Germany. From the 1970s, it strengthened the FRG’s foreign policy reach, for the new state was constrained by Cold War politics as well as other legacies, notably the Holocaust. European integration provided a framework for building trust with western neighbors, particularly France. The collapse of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in 1989 and its absorption into the FRG through unification in 1990 brought about significant change to Germany’s relationship to European integration. The unified Germany became the largest member state. Initial concerns about German power in Europe were allayed by Chancellor Helmut Kohl pursuing deeper integration to bind the unified Germany further to integration: through creating the European Union (EU) itself and setting a course toward monetary union. Specific concerns about German power only really emerged in the 2010s, as the EU was bedeviled by several crises. In seeking to offer a comprehensive understanding of Germany’s relationship with the EU, coverage is organized around four broad themes: the historical dimension of the relationship; the substance of Germany’s European policy; the sources of Germany’s European policy; and Germany’s role and power in the EU. The historical dimension of Germany’s relationship with European integration is important as a first theme. It is no exaggeration to suggest that European integration helped emancipate the FRG from the historical legacy of turbulent relations with France, Nazi tyranny, and the opprobrium of the Holocaust. European integration afforded a complementary framework for Germany’s political and economic order. The importance of embedding German unification in a context of European integration should not be underestimated. Germany’s European policy has displayed considerable consistency up to the contemporary era. Support for further integration, for enlargement, the market order, and the development of an EU “civilian power” have been key components. These policies are important contributors to understanding Germany’s role in the EU: the second theme. The political and economic system of the FRG forms an important backdrop to understanding Germany’s policy and role in the EU: the third theme. From the 1960s until the 2010s, EU membership was subject to cross-party consensus and permissive public support. These circumstances allowed the federal government autonomy in pursuing its European policy. However, the political climate of European policy has become much more contested in the 2010s. Germany’s role was placed in the spotlight by the succession of crises that have emerged within the EU and in its neighborhood in the 2010s, particularly the eurozone and migration crises. The fourth theme explores how the question of German power re-emerged. These four themes are important to understanding Germany’s role in the EU, especially given Berlin’s centrality to its development.

scholarly journals The political system of European Union after European Parliament Election of 2019

2019 ◽  
pp. 15-30
Author(s):  
Andrii Martynov
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Political System ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

The politics of the European Union are different from other organizations and states due to the unique nature of the EU. The common institutions mix the intergovernmental and supranational aspects of the EU. The EU treaties declare the EU to be based on representative democracy and direct elections take place to the European Parliament. The Parliament, together with the European Council, works for the legislative arm of the EU. The Council is composed of national governments thus representing the intergovernmental nature of the European Union. The central theme of this research is the influence of the European Union Political system the Results of May 2019 European Parliament Election. The EU supranational legislature plays an important role as a producer of legal norms in the process of European integration and parliamentary scrutiny of the activities of the EU executive. The European Parliament, as a representative institution of the European Union, helps to overcome the stereotypical notions of a “Brussels bureaucracy” that limits the sovereignty of EU member states. The European Parliament is a political field of interaction between European optimists and European skeptics. The new composition of the European Parliament presents political forces focused on a different vision of the strategy and tactics of the European integration process. European federalists in the “European People’s Party” and “European Socialists and Democrats” consider the strategic prospect of creating a confederate “United States of Europe”. The Brexit withdrawal from the EU could help the federalists win over European skeptics. Critics of the supranational project of European integration do not have a majority in the new composition of the European Parliament. But they are widely represented in many national parliaments of EU Member States. The conflicting interaction between European liberals and far-right populists is the political backdrop for much debate in the European Parliament. The result of this process is the medium term development vector of the European Union.

The Challenge of European Union

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Bellamy
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
International Politics ◽  
The Political ◽  
Nation State ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Constitutional Treaty ◽  
Intergovernmental Organization ◽  
New Form ◽  
The Eu

This article examines the political challenges of the European Union (EU). It explains that political theorists and scientists alike have viewed European integration as a laboratory for exploring how far the nation state, and the forms of domestic and international politics to which it gave rise, has been affected by the various processes associated with globalization. It discusses the Charter of Rights and Constitutional Treaty of the EU and suggests that the EU can be plausibly characterized as an intergovernmental organization of an advanced kind, a nascent federation of states, and a new form of post-national and post-state entity.

scholarly journals To leave or not to leave? Understanding the support for the United Kingdom membership in the European Union: Identity, attitudes towards the political system and socio-economic status

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 255-277
Author(s):  
Nicola Pensiero
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Political System ◽  
The Political ◽  
High Educational Level ◽  
Economic Interest ◽  
The European Union ◽  
British Identity ◽  
Disadvantaged Groups ◽  
The Eu

This article proposes a decision model of the British support for leaving the European Union (EU) that includes both identity aspirations, attitudes towards the political system and economic interest and test it on the Understanding Society 6th, 7th and 8th surveys. Current studies tend to interpret the British Euroscepticism as a combination of attachment to British identity, lack of economic opportunities and dissatisfaction with the political class. Using this approach where factors are additive, it is not possible to account for the substantial portion of socio-economically advantaged individuals which prefer to leave the EU, and for those who, despite their low attachment to their British identity, the relatively high educational level and satisfaction with domestic democracy, prefer to leave the EU. I use a theoretical approach which considers both economic and cultural considerations as rational considerations and conceptualise their interaction in terms of trade off. I use classification tree analysis to evaluate the relative importance of the main explanatory factors and of their interaction. The results show that the negative evaluation of the political system makes certain groups, which otherwise tend to support European integration, lean towards Euroscepticism. It helps to explain the Euroscepticism of those who are less attached to their British identity and of advantaged classes. The results have also showed that anti-establishment attitudes are not associated with disadvantaged socio-economic groups. The dissatisfaction with domestic democracy is relevant mostly for the advantaged classes, and the lack of political efficacy affects equally the attitudes of advantaged and disadvantaged groups. Last, disadvantaged groups’ support for European integration is driven by identity aspirations not by economic interest.

scholarly journals The EU external policy and the 2015–2018 refugee relocation system in the light of historical institutionalism

2021 ◽  
pp. 41-52
Author(s):  
Zbigniew Czachór
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
European Commission ◽  
Historical Institutionalism ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Main Research ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Integration Rules

The main research objective of the text is to analyse the refugee relocation system in the light of historical institutionalism in 2015–2018. Historical institutionalism refers to the interaction between European integration actors in the European Union system, analysed in retrospect from a documentary perspective. The time factor is particularly important, since it enables to follow the institutional process defined by EU norms, procedures and integration rules and their sequential impact on favoured treatment or disavowing of integration visions, preferences, needs and interests. In view of the above, the refugee relocation system proposed and introduced in the period 2015–2018 confirms the above research assumption that the political decision on relocation made by the European Commission and the European Council resulted in a relevant legal act adopted by the EU Council to regulate the issue. Although under the pressure of the situation Member States agreed, some of them began to contest the decisions later.

Epilogue: Brexit, the border and nationalism’s bounceback

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paddy Hoey
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Sinn Fein ◽  
Good Friday ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Eu

By the end of the 2010s, Sinn Féin was by far the strongest republican voice was rapidly building a stronger base in the Republic of Ireland where it had become the third largest party in the Dáil. But, the structures of the Peace Process and the Stormont Assembly meant that it was no further to significantly challenging of the political status quo in Northern Ireland. The vote for Brexit, based as it was on a binary notion of British sovereignty that had been fudged by the Good Friday Agreement, changed that. The nature of Britain’s exiting of the European Union had massive ramifications of the Irish border. With a majority of people in Northern Ireland voting to remain (with 85% of the nationalist population doing so), the unionist veto over the wishes of the wider population came under deeper scrutiny. For Sinn Féin, which had been a long-term critic of the EU, this provided an opportunity putting the border back on the agenda. For dissidents, they found themselves in the unlikely position of sharing the same political standpoint as Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, and, allegedly, the Queen.

Droga Polski do Schengen – osiągnięcia i wyzwania w zakresie zmiany systemu ochrony granicy zewnętrznej UE

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 123-140
Author(s):  
Ryszard Suduł
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Political Science ◽  
The State ◽  
State System ◽  
Border Security ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Basic Objective ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Eu

Author analyses in the article the problem of functioning of the external borders of the Republic of Poland in the Schengen area. The text frames the analysis in the context of the political science. The author discusses the changes in state system of protection of the state border of the Republic of Poland resulting from the integration of the Republic of Poland with the European Union, in particular with the Schengen area. The basic objective of the article is the analysis of the scope and type of organisational and administrative-logistic undertakings in the field of border protection after Poland’s participation in the Schengen Area. The analysis is started with characterisation of changes in the system of management of the state border and the ways of functioning of border services in connection with the accession to the EU were characterised. EU requirements for strengthening border infrastructure and the system of cooperation between institutions responsible for border security were also analysed. As a result, the accession of the Republic of Poland to the Schengen area entailed a complete change in the strategy of managing the state borders.

scholarly journals The current state of investment and financial cooperation between Ukraine and the European Union

2020 ◽  
pp. 183-191
Author(s):  
Tetiana Rybakova
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Financial Support ◽  
The State ◽  
Investment Climate ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Financial Cooperation ◽  
Eu Countries ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Eu

Relevance of research topic. Nowadays the Ukraine's relations with the European Union are extremely important. European integration for Ukraine is a strategic choice for the future, and it makes a great influence on the place and role of the state in the new system of international relations, including economic, monetary and financial ones. Formulation of the problem. Ukraine's reform agenda is comprehensive and requires significant financial resources that cannot be raised solely from domestic sources. This determines the importance of attracting foreign funds, including those from the EU as a strategic partner of Ukraine, as well as the creation of a favourable investment climate and therefore the intensification of foreign investment. Analysis of recent research and publications. In the background of Ukraine's European integration intentions, a significant number of scientists study the problems and prospects of investment and financial cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. This cooperation is the subject of constant monitoring by European government agencies and central executive bodies of Ukraine as well. Selection of unexplored parts of the general problem. In the conditions of unstable global political and economic environment, new challenges in the region and the extreme dynamism of investment and financial processes, it is necessary to conduct the research reflecting the current state of investment and financial cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. Setting the task, the purpose of the study. Highlighting the state of investment and financial cooperation between Ukraine and the EU at the current stage of Ukraine's European integration. Method or methodology for conducting research. System and structural approach, method of logical analysis, statistical method, method of graphic analysis, method of comparison, method of structuring. Presentation of the main material (results of work). The paper describes the political background for investment and financial cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. The analysis of foreign direct investments in Ukraine by countries of origin and by areas of attraction is carried out; the dynamics of direct investments from EU countries in Ukraine's economy for 2010-2019 is described. The current state of application of the valid instruments of investment and financial support given to Ukraine by the EU is analyzed. The areas of priority attention in the process of implementing reforms in terms of attracting the investment from the EU are identified. The field of application of results. Research of Ukraine’s European integration problems, educational process (in the preparation of the relevant sections of textbooks and tutorials for courses “International Economics”, “Global Economics”, “Finance”). Conclusions according to the article. The EU sustainable financial support covers many sectors of the economy and public life in Ukraine, including agriculture, infrastructure, transport and energy, small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as democratic reforms, overcoming the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, research and innovation, the environment, support for military conflict victims, etc. The EU supports Ukraine through various instruments, including macro-financial assistance, the European Financial Institutions (EBRD and the EIB), bilateral support from EU member states, the EU External Investment Plan, the European Neighbourhood Instrument, and the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace. The volumes of EU foreign direct investment in Ukraine still remain low, and their structure by country of origin is not optimal. It is important for Ukraine to attract investments from the most developed EU countries, which is possible only if an attractive investment climate is formed, and the rule of law and the fight against the corruption are ensured.

Belgium's Adaptation to the EU : Does Federalism Constrain Europeanisation ?

Res Publica ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 575-597
Author(s):  
Peter Bursens
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
General Public ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Federal System ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Dominant Focus ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

This article starts from the observation that the Belgian level of adaptation to the requirements posed by its membership of the European Union is surprisingly low. Following an institutionalist line of thinking, it is argued that the impact of the European Union is seriously constrained by the characteristics of the Belgian federal system. This results into defining both cultural (1) and structural (2) indicators for the degree of Europeanisation: (1) European opinions and awareness of political elites and the general public and (2) the Belgian domestic organisation of European co-ordination mechanisms. The article more concretely argues that the European opinions and European awareness of the political elites and the public opinion are coloured by an inwards-looking mentality that stems from the dominant focus on the ongoing federalisation process. In addition, it is also found that the limited Europeanised installation and outcomes ofthe European co-ordination mechanisms are at least partly shaped by hard and soft federal elements

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