Republic of Macedonia – Theoretical and Practical Approach to the European Integration

Author(s):  
Suzana Mehmedi Ph.D ◽  
Ilir Mehmedi Ph.D

The problem of research is very current for several reasons. Namely, the dominant approach on the basis of which are based all have developed and established theories of European integration, developing modern theories of international relations is a realistic basis. Neo-functionalism, inter-guvernmentalism, neo-liberalism, institutionalism (in most of its variants) as the most developed branches of the theory of European integration, despite differences in their settings to keep the basic premise that states are rational, unitary actors, whose interest stems from the assessment of their position in the system of states. For our study caused a special interest model of constructivism using Habermas theory of communicative action according to which entities in mutual interaction is open to other arguments and their validity appreciate having regard to the outgoing reasons and norms on which they are based, thereby seeking consensus as a common goal. Apply to the European Union, this approach allows European institutions were perceived as a place of discussion to reach consensus on solving common problems, rather than just the arena for bargaining. Functional adaptation to the numerous petitions which sets the European Union, requires thorough and integrated activities in the economic, institutional, administrative and legislative spheres. This process should be understood as a continuous, painstaking and long process, not a single radical surgery. Republic of Macedonia, as countries aspiring for membership in the European family must meet the political and economic criteria and to adapt political institutions in the country with those of the European Union and their needs and requirements. The aim of this paper is to perceive the key features and trends in the politics of enlargement and to make a comparison between the policy of expansion applied in the process of accession Central and Eastern Europe and the policy of expansion in the process of stabilization and association, with special emphasis on the Republic of Macedonia. Of course, previously been necessary to develop theoretical and practical approach to the concept of policy integration, development and its major elements and modalities.

Author(s):  
Suzana Mehmedi ◽  
Ilir Mehmedi

The problem of research is very current for several reasons. Namely, the dominant approach on the basis of which are based all have developed and established theories of European integration, developing modern theories of international relations is a realistic basis. Neo-functionalism, inter-guvernmentalism , neo-liberalism, institutionalism (in most of its variants) as the most developed branches of the theory of European integration, despite differences in their settings to keep the basic premise that states are rational, unitary actors, whose interest stems from the assessment of their position in the system of states. For our study caused a special interest model of constructivism using Habermas theory of communicative action according to which entities in mutual interaction is open to other arguments and their validity appreciate having regard to the outgoing reasons and norms on which they are based, thereby seeking consensus as a common goal. Apply to the European Union, this approach allows European institutions were perceived as a place of discussion to reach consensus on solving common problems, rather than just the arena for bargaining. Functional adaptation to the numerous petitions which sets the European Union , requires thorough and integrated activities in the economic, institutional, administrative and legislative spheres. This process should be understood as a continuous, painstaking and long process, not a single radical surgery. Republic of Macedonia, as countries aspiring for membership in the European family must meet the political and economic criteria and to adapt political institutions in the country with those of the European Union and their needs and requirements. The aim of this paper is to perceive the key features and trends in the politics of enlargement and to make a comparison between the policy of expansion applied in the process of accession Central and Eastern Europe and the policy of expansion in the process of stabilization and association, with special emphasis on the Republic of Macedonia. Of course, previously been necessary to develop theoretical and practical approach to the concept of policy integration, development and its major elements and modalities.


2020 ◽  
pp. 6-24
Author(s):  
Andriy Hrubinko

The article is devoted to study history of formation mechanisms of foreign policy of the European Communities in the period before creation of the European Union (40s – 80s of the XXth century). The dynamics formation of the foreign and security component of European integration from the first postwar projects of political association of the leading states of Western Europe (France and Great Britain) to creation in the early 1970s of a mechanism of European political cooperation (EPC) and its further activity are traced. The article analyzes political and legal status, evolution of the organizational structure, main activities, international achievements and miscalculations in the work of the EPC. Positions of Member States of the European Communities on development of their foreign policy and security components have been taken into account. The conclusions stated that the processes of European integration in the post-war period began precisely from the political sphere. However, due to differences in the strategic views of the states of Western Europe, their unwillingness to surrender state sovereignty in favor of European political institutions, as well as the position of the United States, it very quickly moved into the formation of a purely economic regional association. At the same time, the scale of economic integration and international policy tendencies have led to the formation of the system of political cooperation, which has become commonplace in the work of the Community institutions and the interaction of the Member States. On the whole, the EPC remained a weak and declarative practice of regular inter-state meetings at various levels, because it was outside the system of institutions and the regulatory framework of the European Communities. National ambitions of the Member States, each of which often favored the established priorities of its own foreign policy over the common interests of the union. Achieved level of political unification positions and actions of the Member States of the European Communities did not significantly increase the influence of integration in the international space until the formation of the European Union.


2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 344-378
Author(s):  
Vanessa Capistrano Ferreira

A partir da análise da ordem jurídica da União Europeia, este trabalho busca identificar a  representação normativa vigente dos grupos culturais europeus – majoritários e minoritários – e, o projeto político de construção de um espaço público comum. Com a utilização da Teoria da Ação Comunicativa, de Jürgen Habermas, e da Teoria da Luta por Reconhecimento, de Axel Honneth, será possível evidenciar os limites e as possibilidades da afirmação de uma cidadania supranacional — calcada no estabelecimento de uma identidade comum europeia e na ideologia de harmonização social no interior do bloco — bem como, os paradoxos que perpassam o âmbito multicultural da integração. Esta investigação constitui-se como um esforço teórico essencial para a compreensão dos atuais empecilhos sociais europeus causados por medidas político-jurídicas implementadas pelos órgãos coordenadores da integração na sociedade civil. Deste modo, esta pesquisa utiliza-se da corrente crítica do pensamento social fundamentada, basicamente, nos estudos habermasianos e honnethianos. Outros importantes autores contribuirão com o fornecimento de concepções teóricas alternativas, com o objetivo de complementar a análise inicialmente proposta.Ao fim, pretende-se, como resultado esperado, questionar as concepções correntes acerca da possibilidade de criação de uma identidade comum europeia através da efetivação da cidadania supranacional e da manutenção da harmonia social por meios exclusivamente político-jurídicos. Arguir-se-á, desta maneira, os efeitos colaterais de tal implementação normativa nas sociedades europeias contemporâneas e a necessidade iminente de reestruturação político-institucional no atual projeto integracionista.   Abstract: From the analysis of the legal system of the European Union, this work aimed at identifying the current normative representation of European cultural groups – majority and minority – and, the political project of building of a common public space. Using the Theory of Communicative Action by Jürgen Habermas and the Theory of the Struggle for Recognition by Axel Honneth, it was possible to evidence the limits of the affirmation of a supranational citizenship, based on the establishment of an European identity and ideology of social harmonization, as well as the popular acceptance of this legislative framework. In addition, to further the paradoxes that pervade the multicultural context of European integration. This research constituted as an essential theoretical effort to understand the possible social obstacles caused by political and legal measures, implemented by bureaucratic agencies of the  integration in civil society. Thus, this study used the critical current of social studies based primarily on studies of Habermas and Honneth. Other important authors contributed to the provision of alternative theoretical concepts, in order to complement the analysis initially proposed. At the end, it was intended as expected outcome, questioning current thinking about the possibility of creating a common European identity through effective supranational citizenship and maintaining social harmony by political and legal means. It is argued in this way, the side effects of such implementation rules in contemporary European societies and the imminent need for political and institutional restructuring in the current European integration project. 


Author(s):  
Tracey Raney

This paper is about the ways that citizens perceive their place in the political world around them, through their political identities. Using a combination of comparative and quantitative methodologies, the study traces the pattern of citizens’ political identifications in the European Union and Canada between 1981 and 2003 and explains the mechanisms that shape these political identifications. The results of the paper show that in the EU and Canada identity formation is a process that involves the participation of both individuals and political institutions yet between the two, individuals play a greater role in identity construction than do political institutions. The paper argues that the main agents of political identification in the EU and Canada are citizens themselves: individuals choose their own political identifications, rather than acquiring identities that are pre-determined by historical or cultural precedence. The paper makes the case that this phenomenon is characteristic of a rise of ‘civic’ identities in the EU and Canada. In the European Union, this overarching ‘civic’ identity is in its infancy compared to Canada, yet, both reveal a new form of political identification when compared to the historical and enduring forms of cultural identities firmly entrenched in Europe. The rise of civic identities in both the EU and Canada is attributed to the active role that citizens play in their own identity constructions as they base their identifications on rational assessments of how well political institutions function, and whether their memberships in the community will benefit them, rather than on emotional factors rooted in religion or race. In the absence of strongly held emotional identifications, in the EU and Canada political institutions play a passive role in identity construction by making the community appear more entitative to its citizens. These findings offer new theoretical scope to the concept of civic communities and the political identities that underpin them. The most important finding presented in the paper is that although civic communities and identities are manufactured by institutions and political elites (politicians and bureaucrats), they require thinking citizens, not feeling ones, to be sustained.   Full text available at: https://doi.org/10.22215/rera.v2i4.179


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 80
Author(s):  
Eva Eckert ◽  
Oleksandra Kovalevska

In the European Union, the concern for sustainability has been legitimized by its politically and ecologically motivated discourse disseminated through recent policies of the European Commission and the local as well as international media. In the article, we question the very meaning of sustainability and examine the European Green Deal, the major political document issued by the EC in 2019. The main question pursued in the study is whether expectations verbalized in the Green Deal’s plans, programs, strategies, and developments hold up to the scrutiny of critical discourse analysis. We compare the Green Deal’s treatment of sustainability to how sustainability is presented in environmental and social science scholarship and point out that research, on the one hand, and the politically motivated discourse, on the other, do not correlate and often actually contradict each other. We conclude that sustainability discourse and its keywords, lexicon, and phraseology have become a channel through which political institutions in the EU such as the European Commission sideline crucial environmental issues and endorse their own presence. The Green Deal discourse shapes political and institutional power of the Commission and the EU.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 351-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon J. Bulmer

ABSTRACTThe analysis of European integration has tended to use a toolkit drawn from international relations. But since the revival of integration in the mid-1980s, the governance of the European Community and European Union has increasingly come to resemble that of a multi-tiered state. Accordingly, this article analyzes the governance of the European Union from a comparative public policy perspective. Using new or historical institutionalism, three levels are considered. In the first part, attention is focused on the EU's institutions and the available instruments of governance. The second part examines the analysis of governance at the policy-specific or sub-system level, and puts forward an approach based on governance regimes. The final part considers the institutional roots of the persistent, regulatory character of governance in the European Union.


2007 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANTONIS ANTONIADIS

Ranging from the denial of direct effect to WTO law by the Court of Justice to a WTO-friendly legislative culture currently booming in the EU's political institutions, different approaches towards WTO law have been adopted within the EU. This article classifies the different approaches into reactive, coactive, and proactive by drawing on their common characteristics. The principal aim is to explore the considerations shaping the development of the different approaches and to argue that these stem from the interaction between the judiciary and the legislature. In doing so, this article purports to provide a comprehensive view of the application of WTO law within the Community legal order.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maistro S. ◽  
Kropyvnytskyi V. ◽  
Krykhtina Yu. ◽  
Treskov A.

The article describes the peculiarities of the formation and implementation of state policy for the development of various branches and spheres in the context of European integration of Ukraine. The degree of effectiveness of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union in various branches and spheres has been determined. The problematic aspects and contradictions of the state policy of development of various branches and spheres in the context of the implementation of the Association Agreement are highlighted. The ways of transformation of the state policy of development of various branches and spheres in the conditions of European integration of Ukraine are determined.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-154
Author(s):  
João Gualberto Marques Porto Júnior

A relação entre o Reino Unido e os países do continente foi marcada ao longo da história por diversos desencontros e disputas. Não foram poucas as guerras travadas entre os britânicos e outras nações europeias. A própria integração europeia inicia-se sem o Reino Unido que apenas na década de 1960 decidiu integrar as comunidades, sendo durante anos impedido pela Franca de Charles de Gaulle. A adesão tardia em 1973 não minimizou as diferenças, tendo novamente havido tensões na década seguinte durante a gestão Margaret Thatcher. As diferenças do casal estranho continuaram após a criação da União Europeia em 1992 e tiveram na decisão do Brexit apenas o desfecho de uma relação distante e tumultuada.ABSTRACTThe relation between the United Kingdom and the countries from "the continent” has been characterized by several disputes and differences along history. A large number of wars were fought between the British and other European nations. Even the European integration started without the United Kingdom, that only decided to take part in the communities in the sixties, being, however, blocked by de Gaulle’s France. Britain’s late accession to the European Communities in 1973 did not reduce the differences with its European neighbors and several tensions emerged during Margaret Thatcher’s government during the eighties. The differences between the odd couple continued after the creation of the European Union in 1992 and the “Brexit” simply represents the natural outcome of a distant and tumultuous relationship.Palavras-chave: Integração europeia, Reino Unido, BrexitKeywords: European integration, United Kingdom, BrexitDOI: 10.12957/rmi.2015.24641Recebido em 08 de Julho de 2016 / Received on July 8, 2016.


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