Has Europe Solved the Problem of War? Explaining the ‘Long Peace’ of the Post-1945 Era

2010 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 365-377
Author(s):  
David Michael Green
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
International Politics ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
60Th Anniversary ◽  
Causal Factors ◽  
Empirical Question ◽  
Successful Experiment ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of

May 9, 2010, marks the 60th anniversary of what is arguably the boldest and ostensibly the most successful experiment in the history of international politics. On that date, in 1950, the Schuman Declaration1 was issued, seeking to release Europe from its centuries of fratricidal war, those conflagrations having just previously reached near suicidal proportions. The process of European integration – culminating in today’s European Union – was launched by six states at the heart of the continent, for the purposes of making war ‘not only unthinkable, but materially impossible.’ There is today little empirical question of Europe’s success. War between former bitter enemies has never been even remotely near the horizon during the period that has now become known as ‘The Long Peace,’ and, looking forward, such militarized conflict remains all but inconceivable. But was it the process of European integration that produced this achievement? And if so, is the model exportable to other regions? This essay catalogues the factors that account for Europe’s success in ending the scourge of war on a continent where it had been a commonly employed extension of politics for centuries. I conclude that the integration process represents an important contribution, but is only one of a plethora of causal factors that massively over-determined Europe’s long peace of our time, and that the European experiment is mostly non-exportable to other parts of the world.

Unia Europejska w stanie krytycznym. Nowe sytuacje – nowe konstelacje – nowe orientacje

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zbigniew Czachór
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Scientific Thinking ◽  
Specific Situation ◽  
European Research ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The World ◽  
The Eu

The crisis in the European Union is forcing the world of science, mainly representatives of European research and studies, to change thinking, and thus to the need to search for new patterns of scientific thinking. Such formulas and views that will allow to explain and understand the dynamics of the construction and deconstruction of European integration. The paradigm of situationism is helpful here, which refers to the postulate of identifying and defining critical situations leading to changes in the EU. We define the situation here as a set of conditional circumstances and the state of the matter in which the European Union is located. The situation is also a fragment of the action (reconstruction of activities) taking place in the European integration process. Situationism may aspire to an integrative metatheory, because rejects all generalisation and universalisation of reality. It makes European integration actors (mainly policy-makers) connected with their actions (interactions – transactions) dependent on instruments (procedures) and requirements of the specific situation in which they found themselves.

11. The United Kingdom: Towards a Parting of the Ways

2020 ◽  
pp. 257-279
Author(s):  
Anand Menon ◽  
Luigi Scazzieri
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Institutional Development ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
History Of ◽  
Long Term Trends ◽  
The Uk

This chapter examines the history of the United Kingdom’s relationship with the European integration process. The chapter dissects the long-term trends in public opinion and the more contingent, short-term factors that led to the referendum vote to leave the European Union. The UK was a late joiner and therefore unable to shape the early institutional development of the EEC. British political parties and public opinion were always ambiguous about membership and increasingly Eurosceptic from the early 1990s. Yet the UK had a significant impact on the EU’s development, in the development of the single market programme and eastward enlargement. If Brexit goes through, Britain will nevertheless maintain relations with the EU in all policy areas from agriculture to energy and foreign policy. Europeanization will remain a useful theoretical tool to analyse EU–UK relations even if the UK leaves the Union.

scholarly journals Racial sovereignty

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 39-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerem Nisancioglu
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
International Politics ◽  
17Th Century ◽  
Constitutive Relationship ◽  
World Today ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of

This article explores how International Relations (IR) might better conceptualise and analyse an underexplored but constitutive relationship between race and sovereignty. I begin with a critical analysis of the ‘orthodox account’ of sovereignty which, I argue, produces an analytical and historical separation of race and sovereignty by: (1) abstracting from histories of colonial dispossession; (2) treating racism as a resolved issue in IR. Against the orthodox account, I develop the idea of ‘racial sovereignty’ as a mode of analysis which can: (1) overcome the historical abstractions in the orthodox account; (2) disclose the ongoing significance of racism in international politics. I make this argument in three moves. Firstly, I present a history of the 17th century struggle between ‘settlers’ and ‘natives’ over the colonisation of Virginia. This history, I argue, discloses the centrality of dispossession and racialisation in the attendant attempts of English settlers to establish sovereignty in the Americas. Secondly, by engaging with criticisms of ‘recognition’ found in the anticolonial tradition, I argue that the Virginian experience is not simply of historical interest or localised importance but helps us better understand racism as ongoing and structural. I then demonstrate how contemporary assertions of sovereignty in the context of Brexit disclose a set of otherwise concealed colonial and racialised relations. I conclude with the claim that interrogations of racial sovereignty are not solely of historical interest but are of political significance for our understanding of the world today.

The United States and the European Union

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Dominguez ◽  
Joshua Weissman LaFrance
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
European Union ◽  
Cold War ◽  
European Integration ◽  
The United States ◽  
Marshall Plan ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Transatlantic Relationship ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Eu

The history of the European Union (EU) is closely associated with the development of the United States. As the process of European integration has produced institutions and gained a collective international presence, the United States has been a close observer, partner, and often critic of the policies and actions of the EU and its member states. A steady progression of events delineates this path: the Marshall Plan, origins of European integration, the Cold War, the post–Cold War, 9/11 and its effects on the international system, the Great Recession, and the deterioration of global democracy. All throughout, the EU and the United States have both cooperated and collided with one another, in line with the combination of three main factors: (a) the evolution of the EU as an independent, international actor; (b) American strategies for engagement with Europe and then with the EU; and (c) the adaptive capacity and cohesion of the overall transatlantic relationship. The EU–U.S. relationship is significant not only for the influential role of the EU in world affairs but also because, as opposed to China or Russia, the transatlantic area hosts one of the most solid relationships around the world. Crises surely have been, and will be, a frequent aspect of the intense interdependences on both sides of the Atlantic; however, the level of contestation and conflict is relatively low, particularly as compared with other areas that smoothly allow the flow of goods, services, people, and ideas. Taken altogether, then, the transatlantic relationship possesses a strong foundation: it is integral, resilient, and enduring over a history of diplomatic disagreements and conflicts. The primary question remains just how this steady stream and confluence of shared challenges ultimately will fare in face of evolving crises and systemic disruptors. In any case, the answer is determined by the enduring nature, and foreign policy choices, of the primary actors on each side of the Atlantic.

Europe's history of integration and diversity

2006 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 241-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
WIM BLOCKMANS
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
European Identity ◽  
European Citizenship ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Creation

The process of European integration, the complexity of the problems involved and even the resistance it raises, astonishes observers in other parts of the world, especially in large states that have a long history of centralized government behind them. Is there really so little unity in Europe? If so, how can this be explained? Has European diversity generated only problems or has it, in fact, created new and unique opportunities? Is there a chance that growing concerns at EU-level about the cultural dimensions of European citizenship could, in fact, consolidate a sense of community? And, finally, how can historians contribute to the creation of a common European identity, if this is so weakly developed?

scholarly journals Les Conditions D’Approfondissement de L’Union Européenne

Federalism-E ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-44
Author(s):  
Jonathan Gagnon
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
European Community ◽  
Political Integration ◽  
Economic Factors ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
Political Factors ◽  
Main Assumption ◽  
The Creation

Since the creation of the first European Community in 1951, countries of Europe have somewhat integrated somewhat their political and economic realms into one supranational entity. It has been observed by some that throughout the integration process, economic factors, rather than political factors, have dominated the integration of Europe. This main assumption is challenged by the author in this article. However, if the alleged predominance of the economy in European integration is proven, further questions regarding the conditions for a authentic political integration of the European Union, more than 50 years after its creation, will be assessed.[...]

scholarly journals THE EUROPEAN UNION’S ROLE AS AN INTERNATIONAL ACTOR IN THE ACEH MONITORING MISSION

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 115
Author(s):  
Indriana Kartini
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Significant Role ◽  
International Politics ◽  
Peace Process ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The World ◽  
The Eu ◽  
As If

The European Union (EU) involvement in the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) was one of the successful story in the peaceful conflict settlement. In this mission, the EU has been able to show the world that it is one of significant actor in international politics. Admittedly, the EU represents uncertain image in international politics as if it can not be seen at the same level of sovereign-states. This article examines whether the EU played a significant role as an international actor in the peace process in Aceh through an indepth-look at the work of the AMM. By viewing the EU as an evolving entity which engaged in particular issues and by addressing its international presence in the context of its involvement in the AMM, it can be concluded the EU has played significant role as an international actor. Keywords: the European Union, international actor, the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) AbstrakKeterlibatan Uni Eropa (UE) dalam Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) merupakan salah satu cerita sukses dalam penyelesaian konflik secara damai. Dalam misi ini, UE mampu menunjukkan kepada dunia bahwa mereka merupakan salah satu aktor signifikan dalam politik internasional. Harus diakui bahwa UE merepresentasikan uncertain image (gambaran yang kurang jelas) dalam politik internasional yang tingkatannya tidak dapat disejajarkan dengan negara-bangsa. Artikel ini menganalisis apakah UE memainkan peran signifikan sebagai aktor internasional dalam proses perdamaian di Aceh melalui pendalaman terhadap kerja AMM. Dengan memandang UE sebagai entitas yang terlibat dalam isu-isu khusus dan dengan menekankan pada kehadiran UE di kancah internasional melalui keterlibatannya dalam AMM, maka dapat disimpulkan bahwa UE memainkan peran siginifikan sebagai aktor internasional.Kata kunci: Uni Eropa, aktor internasional, Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) 

scholarly journals The Impact of the European Integration Process on the Banking System – an Overview

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bogdan Ilut
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Banking Sector ◽  
Banking System ◽  
Main Channel ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
Fully Integrated ◽  
Is Integration ◽  
The Impact

<p>In the last decade the European integration process was the main focuses of the European Union, as its completion could bring a huge step toward a fully integrated European Union. As the banking sector is the main channel for funding of the European economy, it has become now more clearly than ever that is integration is of the up more essence. The aim of this paper is to quantify the progresses registered by the main European Union’s economies in the process of banking integration, as their example is generally followed by the other member states. First we underline the necessity of the European integration and the progress made using an extended literature review doublet by an analysis of the main indicators for the banking systems of these countries. We also present, in a non-exhaustive way, the main trends that have characterised the banking sectors of these countries in the last decade: diversification, vertical product differential and consolidation underlying their impact on the sectors architecture.</p>

scholarly journals El procedimiento de elección del Parlamento Europeo: un reflejo de la histórica doble visión del proceso de integración y la dificultad de llegar a consensos

2020 ◽  
pp. 533
Author(s):  
Covadonga Ferrer Martín de Vidales
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Integration Process ◽  
Democratic Institution ◽  
Universal Suffrage ◽  
El Sistema ◽  
History Of ◽  
British Case

El Parlamento Europeo es la institución más democrática de todas las que integran el marco institucional de la UE, elegido desde 1979 directamente por sus ciudadanos. La historia de construcción del procedimiento de elección del Parlamento Europeo es un fiel reflejo de la historia de la evolución del proceso de integración y de las dos diferentes visiones a la hora de avanzar en el mismo (intergubernamentalidad vs. supranacionalidad). Proceso en el que las dificultades para llegar a consensos han requerido que los avances se realicen paso a paso, muchas veces de forma lenta. Consensos aún más complejos de lograr cuando de lo que se trata es de acordar los elementos claves de un procedimiento electoral y, más en concreto, el sistema electoral a adoptar. Aspectos en los que tiene una importante influencia las distintas tradiciones constitucionales y visiones que respecto de los sistemas electorales tienen los distintos Estados miembros, como bien ejemplifica el caso británico y las reticencias que surgieron para el abandono de su tradicional sistema mayoritario para las elecciones al Parlamento Europeo.The European Parliament is the most democratic institution of the institutional framework of the UE, elected since 1979 by direct universal suffrage. The history of the construction of the European Parliament’s electoral procedure is clear reflection of the European integration process evolution and the different views with regard to it (intergovernmentalism vs. supranationalism) Process where the reach of consensus is not always easy and, therefore, requires progress to be made stepwise. Consensus that is even more difficult to attain when talking about the essential elements of an electoral procedure and, in particular, of the electoral system to adopt. Elements in which the different constitutional traditions and understandings of the Member States have a great influence, as the British case clearly exemplifies with the strong opposition that arose against the abandonment of their traditional majoritarian system.

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