Changing Borders: The Politics of the EU

Author(s):  
Gönül Tol

Migration has always been a feature of human affairs, though in recent decades it has become a major phenomenon. In fact, the growing diversity of the European population as well as the inevitable changing of borders within the European Union (EU) reveal that Europe has become an immigration continent. These developments have, however, prompted concerns over the EU’s external borders and control of immigration, as well as the need for further inquiry by international relations scholarship. Although the regulation of immigration has received a European dimension only recently, the EU has taken steps to cooperate on the issue of immigration. The changing nature of immigration had, after all, led to a perception among European electorates that immigration was not only a demographic or an economic issue but had other dimensions. It could have multiple impacts on their societies, including welfare, social services and social cohesion. Furthermore, until recently, theories of international migration have paid little attention to the nation-state as an agent influencing the flow of migration. When the nation-state has been mentioned, attention has focused primarily on immigrant-receiving countries. Little has been written about the regulation of emigration in countries of origin. As a result, the role of the state in limiting or promoting migration is poorly understood. Though there is a growing body of scholarship attempting to address these gaps in understanding the EU’s case for immigration, there are still further avenues of research many have yet to pursue.

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-282
Author(s):  
Tomasz Łachacz ◽  
Sylwester Zagulski

Unemployment is classified today as one of the main threats to society. The phenomenon affects the lives of individuals, the functioning of families and society and development of the state. It is often the source of other social problems such as poverty, violence, or social pathologies. The article presents the scale and nature of unemployment occurring after 1989 in Poland and in selected European Union countries, i.e. the Netherlands, Spain, Slovakia and Latvia. It attempts to show the characteristic trends of the phenomenon over a period of more than two decades. Examples from the European countries analysed show that the situation in the labour market and the approach to employment are radically different. Individual countries are characterised by very different unemployment rates, which reflect their different size, economic and demographic potential, or are associated with the tradition of employment. The existence of differences seems to be normal, but their scale may give rise to concern. A characteristic feature of unemployment in the period analysed is its regional diversity, both in Poland and in the whole of the European community. Important factors that determine the level of unemployment are age, sex, education and people’s qualifications. The effects of long-term unemployment are very painful for the whole of society. Such a situation can lead to, amongst others, poverty, societal antagonism, violence and migration. The latter is an issue that the whole of Europe is currently struggling with. The uncontrolled influx of immigrants, including those migrating for economic reasons, causes fear of losing their job among Europeans, which in turn translates into the radicalisation of society. A role of the state and the EU institutions is to create an effective mechanism for the protection and support of the unemployed. This is a prerequisite for Europeans to continue the project which is a common united Europe.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 31-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beata Piskorska

The purpose of the article is to try to outline whether the EU is still an attractive actor in international relations, which is conceptualised as a specific soft, normative and the same transformative power and the centre of attraction for states located outside this organisation. The credibility of the European Union on international arena was undermined by global changes taking place in the 21st century, including emergence of new non-European powers, and particularly a series of crises (financial, migration, identity) that have affected the EU recently. In the article the following analysis will be made: the basic components consisting of attractiveness of the EU and evolution of its perception on the international arena, and the main challenges that the EU has to cope with in order to become a significant power again. It is assumed that the European Union certainly lost its attractiveness and prestige as a result of recent transformations that affected it within the system, but also due to the dynamics of the international environment.


2011 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 29-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shay Cannedy

Being a citizen means more than simply possessing proper legal documents. It also entails notions of belonging that are defined and cultivated in large part by the nation-state. As Aihwa Ong (2003) observes, citizenship is a ‘social process,’ which, in the context of the United States, is tied to wealth accumulation and self-reliance. The role of the state in this process is clearly visible in refugee resettlement, where newly arrived refugees come into contact with a host of social services designed to create citizens who are appropriately "American."


Author(s):  
Ludwig Krämer

The European Union (EU), through the European Community (EC), is the only regional organisation that has the declared policy to pursue both the objectives of economic growth and environmental protection. At the international level, the EC has the competence to negotiate and conclude treaties with states that are not members of the EU. EU member states also participate in the negotiation and conclusion of international environmental agreements. As the EU increasingly tries to speak at the international level with one voice in environmental matters, it has the potential of progressively growing into the role of an important negotiator, initiator, and actor that influences the evolution of international law. This article first describes the EU's institutions and procedures, and then traces the development of EC environmental law. It also explores the characteristics of EU environmental law and policy, regulatory tools and approaches (command and control, economic instruments, etc.), concepts and principles in EU environmental law, sustainable development, and environmental rights. Finally, the article addresses lessons to learn from the EU environmental experience.


2021 ◽  
Vol 106 (6) ◽  
pp. 155-166
Author(s):  
Anatoliy Boyashov ◽  

Having developed into a political and ideological concept since the 1990s, global governance has evolved as a priority of the European Union. Although the EU promotes the idea of state decentralization within global governance at the UN, in the EU itself the state is paramount. This article examines the structure of the complex networks of the UN Human Rights Council. The scholarly problem of the article is the contradiction between the key decision-making role of the state in the HRC and increasingly complex social networks of the UN system. The Council is structured in a way that ensures the active participation of transnational corporations, NGOs, and EU supranational institutions in its agenda. Does this hypothetically mean that the role of the state in the UN system and in international affairs is declining? The focus of this article is on the ties between states, NGOs, and international organizations in the UN Human Rights Council. These ties suggest that the state is included in complex networks and enhances their sustainment.


1987 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lenore Manderson

This article is concerned with the establishment and extension of health care and medical services in British colonial Malaya. Initially, medical care was provided for the colonial elite and those in their direct employment. With the expansion of colonial control beyond trade centers into the hinterland and with the growth of agriculture and mining, Western medicine was extended both to labor involved in these export industries and to others whose ill health might jeopardize the welfare of the colonists. Public health programs in the twentieth century continued to focus on medical problems that had direct impact on the colonial economy, but programs were extended to ensure the reproduction as well as the maintenance of the labor force. This article develops the notion of a legitimation vacuum, and the role of the state provision of social services, including medical services, in legitimizing colonial presence and control.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 163-179
Author(s):  
Francesco Battaglia

Abstract The Libyan crisis is the largest and closest crisis on the southern borders of the EU. It is therefore reasonable that the stabilization of this country and the engagement of international relations and partnership with an independent and effective government of Libya is a central point of the EU’s foreign policy since the outbreak of the crisis in 2011. The consolidation of peace in Libya is of primary importance not only because of political and economic reasons. The engagement with Libya is essential for the EU even to strengthen its role as global actor in the field of foreign and security policy. Finally, the Libyan crisis is closely connected with the migration emergency that is weakening European political cohesion. The purpose of this article is thus to carry out a legal analysis on the role of the EU in promoting peace/state-building in Libya, to make some considerations on the main lesson learned.


2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mit'a Castle-Kanĕrová

This article follows earlier discussions about the current status of Romani refugees and migrants within Europe and the role of human rights in the process of accession of Central European states to the European Union (EU), in the Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Volume 13, Number 2. Romani migration opens up central issues of democratisation in Eastern Europe and of the role played by the EU in shaping that process. Human rights appear to have been accorded secondary importance and were replaced by the political doctrines of accession as efforts to manage and control migration, particularly of so-called undesirable migrants, such as the Roma, have reached a hiatus. The argument offered here is that discrimination of the Roma has been defined as no more than a social problem so that governments, both East and West, can proceed with the political agenda of enlargement. To demonstrate this point, the article reviews some Czech governmental documentation related to the treatment of Roma and places it within the context of the debate around accession within the broader framework of EU harmonisation of immigration policies.


2008 ◽  
Vol 60 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 199-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dusko Lopandic

The author analyses the development of EU in the new international surroundings during the last decade, also exploring the development of the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP). The first part treats the changes in international relations, the role of USA and the NATO evolution. With the changes in international relations that are characterized by the relative weakening of USA, the rise of the powers such as China and Russia as well as the process of globalization within the multipolar frameworks, the European Union and its members states are facing the problem of adjusting to the new conditions. The second part of the article overviews the EU development, its geostrategic priorities as well as the development of ESDP. In the last dozen of years, the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the ESDP development have gone through a dynamic evolution. The attempts of the EU countries to emancipate from USA and become a serious factor in international relations imply that it should strengthen its international identity, and the political and military components, in particular.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (Vol 18, No 4 (2019)) ◽  
pp. 439-453
Author(s):  
Ihor LISHCHYNSKYY

The article is devoted to the study of the implementation of territorial cohesion policy in the European Union in order to achieve a secure regional coexistence. In particular, the regulatory and institutional origins of territorial cohesion policy in the EU are considered. The evolution of ontological models of cohesion policy has been outlined. Specifically, the emphasis is placed on the key objective of political geography – effectively combining the need for "territorialization" and the growing importance of networking. The role of urbanization processes in the context of cohesion policy is highlighted. Cross-border dimensions of cohesion policy in the context of interregional cooperation are explored. Particular emphasis is placed on the features of integrated sustainable development strategies.


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