Negotiating Unity And Diversity In The European Union

This book explores how the European Union has been responding to the challenge of diversity. In doing so, it considers the EU as a complex polity that has found novel ways for accommodating diversity. Much of the literature on the EU seeks to identify it as a unique case of cooperation between states that moves past classic international cooperation. This volume argues that in order to understand the EU’s effort in managing the diversity among its members and citizens it is more effective to look at the EU as a state. While acknowledging that the EU lacks key aspects of statehood, the authors show that looking at the EU efforts to balance diversity and unity through the lens of state policy is a fruitful way to understand the Union. Instead of conceptualising the EU as being incomparable and unique which is neither an international organisation nor a state, the book argues that EU can be understood as a polity that shares many approaches and strategies with complex and diverse states. As such, its effort to build political structures to accommodate diversity offers lessons to other such polities. The experience of the EU contributes to the understanding of how states and other polities can respond to challenges of diversity, including both the diversity of constituent units or of sub-national groups and identities.

"The overall themes of this book are past and present changes in European cooperation. Two such changes were at the top of the agenda in the summer of 2004: the Eastern enlargement and the constitutional treaty. A way to interpret these changes is to look at them as manifestations of the two core concepts, 'diversity' and 'unity'. The combination of the concept of unity with the apparently contrasting notion of diversity - the two extremes of a scale seems to amount to a contradiction. But that is exactly the nature of European cooperation. How to overcome this contradiction and make it fruitful and productive is the challenge faced by the nations of Europe in the 21st Century. The different chapters address different aspects of this challenge: from the problems faced by new member states of Central Europe, via the long and tortuous road towards a common European constitution and popular Euro-scepticism, to the role of Europe in the world as mirrored by its relations with the United States of America. Enlargement and constitutional treaty are the two keywords of the European Union in the 21st century. And they incarnate the two notions of 'diversity' and 'unity'. They both constitute major changes in the architecture of the European Union. The first change - enlargement - is a major step towards the overall goal of uniting all of Europe, of making the map of the Union congruent with that of geographical Europe. What began as a mere economic cooperation between six West European countries now almost covers the whole continent from the Atlantic to the Russian border. The chapters are the written versions of six of the lectures given at an international summer university under the theme ""Europe and the European Union - a Scenario for the Future"", held at Copenhagen Business School. The seminar was organized as a cooperation between the Centre for the Study of Europe at CBS and the European Studies Program at Malm^ University under the auspices of the Oeresund University."

At the end of the 20th century, the development towards a united European Community or European Union and the movement towards a post-bloc Europe are having to be combined. This study explores such subjects as the agendas of European integration and linguistic aspects of the European debate.

Focusing upon the emerging patterns of unity and diversity in the enlarged European Union, this study explores enlargement from the East and the impact this will have on the future identity of Europe.

This accessible and innovative book recognizes that the European Union is now of crucial importance to the whole continent, and analyses the situation in both the East and the West. It offers a thorough discussion of issues such as the euro, social policy, democracy and security, and includes areas that are often overlooked: cultural policy; language; policing; and the specific experience of small states. By analyzing past trends in European unity and disunity European Integration in the Twenty-first Century also offers stimulating insights into possible developments in the future. Finally, the book moves beyond a narrow preoccupation with the economic market to identify new ways in which to construct a broader, more meaningful political and socio-economic community. Bringing together experts from different fields, the book provides a comprehensive overview of the many challenges to the on-going European integration project.

The Case for Europe sets out the basic rationales and characteristics of the process of European integration that we have been witnessing for half a century. Philippe de Schoutheete, for ten years Belgium's permanent representative to the European Union, demystifies the structures of the EU, the basic forces and reasons that make it work, and the strengths and weaknesses of what has been achieved. He also points to the difficult questions the Union now faces: When to act? How best (and whether) to project power? How to respect diversity and reconcile competition and solidarity?

The 2004 enlargement of the European Union finally heals the rift opened up by the East-West confrontation and the Cold War. The newcomers from central and eastern Europe, together with Malta and Cyprus, are legitimate members whose peoples share the same goals of democracy, liberty and prosperity as other EU citizens. They have met the strict criteria for joining the Union. Enlargement will stimulate economic growth in EU countries both new and old for the benefit of all.The integration process is already well under way. Even before formal accession, the EU opened its markets to exports from the newcomers, who also benefited from the Unionœs assistance programmes. Enlargement has raised concerns among citizens from existing and new member states, but there are adequate responses to meet them. An EU of 25 will create new relationships with its neighbours and the wider world.

This book explores how the European Commission faced the challenge of enlargement. Based on extensive interviews, the work provides a lively and readable picture of life within the Commission, exploring how thousands of newcomers were recruited and socialized and how they changed the organization, including its gender balance.