THEORIES OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION

Theories of European Integration

Theories of European Integration

Introduction

The European Union (EU) is the most successful attempt at regional integration in history. Founded by six countries in 1957, it had 27 members by 2007. Its origins lie in the reconstruction of Western Europe after World War II, made possible by the United States through the Marshall Plan. Although created by international treaties, several factors have combined to give it many features of a constitutional system: an ideology uniting integration and federalism, judicial interpretation, development of political institutions, citizenship, human rights, and establishment of common policies. In today's world, to grow and develop integration is the key. This paper revolves around the concept of European integration and covers its variegated concept. European integration can be considered as a process of interaction between social and political institutions of Europe, stimulating the creation of a new political system. The process of European integration is seen as an effective way to avoid war between different regions of Europe.

European Integration

The European integration is conceptually an ever closer union among the people of Europe. This notion was coined first in 1954 with the founding of the Western European Union (WEU). The establishment of the European Union by the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 set the process of European integration to reach a new level set. The European integration process began at the economic level, but also took the aim to reach at the level of the political system and specifically the Justice and Home Affairs as well as a common foreign and security policy. The guiding principle of European integration are important but not limited to the EU, because in addition to this already exists, in Europe a number of other international organizations that also play their part.

Origin of European Integration

Scholars often trace the origins of European integration to the declaration by French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, on May 9, 1950, of a plan for supranational management of the French and German coal and steel industries. The plan was encapsulated in the Treaty of Paris (1951) establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) for a period of 50 years. In 1957, two different Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC). In 1992, the Treaty of Maastricht established the EU, based on the ECSC, EEC (now called the European Community, EC), and EAEC as supplemented by intergovernmental policies and forms of cooperation. Expressed in the frequently used the metaphor of a temple, it combined supranational pillars and intergovernmental pillars. The Treaties of Amsterdam (1997) and Nice (2001) amended the Maastricht Treaty but retained its basic structure. In 2002, the EC absorbed the ECSC (Cini 2003, 36).

Federalism

Federalism is a form of political organization that is realized from several organizations (associations, states, unions, associations, individuals, etc.), which retain their freedoms, powers of its own, and join in mandating, delegating to other freedoms, powers to unifying the body (federal, or General Federation). Federalism is the principle, the doctrine underlying the political, ...