POST-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY
AND
GLOBALIZATION
DR. PETROS KOSMAS
LECTURER
VARNA FREE UNIVERSITY
A C A D E M I C Y E A R 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 1
L E C T U R E 3
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Ultimate expression of integration
Sovereignty
The primary problem of international organization is the achievement of a stable peace among nation-states.
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European integration is the process of political, legal, economic (and in some cases social and cultural) integration of states wholly or partially in Europe.
In the present day, European integration has primarily come about through the EU and the
Council of Europe.
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History of
European Integration
Pan-Europa Manifesto (1923)  the first to conceive of a union of European nations was Richard Nikolaus.
League of Nations (1929)  Aristide Briand, who gave a speech in favor of a European Union and in 1930 who wrote his
"Memorandum on the Organization of a Regime of European
Federal Union" for the Government of France.
At the end of WWII, the continental political climate favoured unity in Western Europe, seen by many as an escape from the extreme forms of nationalism which had devastated the continent.
"The United States of Europe"
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The idea of European integration led to the creation of the Council
of Europe in Strasbourg in 1949.
The most important achievement of the Council of Europe is the European Convention of Human Rights of 1950 with its European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which serves as a de facto supreme court for human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout Europe.
In accordance with its Statute of 1949, the Council of Europe works to achieve greater unity among its members based on common values, such as human rights and democracy.
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Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) in July
1973  is a trans-Atlantic intergovernmental organization whose aim is to secure stability in Europe.
The OSCE develops 3 lines of activities, namely the:
(i) Politico-Military Dimension, mechanisms for conflict prevention and resolution
(ii) Economic and Environmental Dimension, the monitoring, alerting and assistance in case of economic and environmental threats;
(iii) Human Dimension, full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
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Baltic region
 Low Countries region
 British Isles
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Central Europe
 Nordic region
 European Free Trade Association
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 European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC)  in the
Treaty of Paris, which came into force on 23 July 1952. a few
Western European states agreed to confer powers over their steel and coal production to the (ECSC)
 European Atomic Energy Community (or Euroatom) 
This transfer of national powers to a "Community" to be exercised by its Commission was paralled under the 1957
Treaty of Rome .
 European Economic Community (EEC)  in 1967, the
Merger Treaty (or Brussels Treaty) combine the institutions of the ECSC and Euratom into that of the EEC
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In 1987, the Single European Act (SEA) was the first major revision of the Treaty of Rome that formally established the single European market and the
European Political Cooperation.
 The Communities still had independent personalities although were increasingly integrated, and over the years were transformed into what is now called the
EU.
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The European Union (EU) is an association of 27 sovereign member states , that by treaty have delegated certain of their competences to common institutions, in order to coordinate their policies in a number of areas, without however constituting a new state on top of the member states.
 Officially established by the Treaty of Maastricht in
1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing EEC.
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 The institutions of the EU, its parliamentarians, judges, commissioners and secretariat, the governments of its member states as well as their people, all play a role in European Integration.
 Nevertheless, the question of who plays the key role is disputed as there are different theories on European
Integration focusing on different actors and agency.
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Free Trade Area (FTA)
Customs Union
Single Market
Eurozone
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Education
(European Region Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students)
Health
Charter of Fundamental Rights
Right to vote
Visa policy in EU
Schengen zone
Military
Space
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Staff of 24,000
HQ in Brussels, Belgium
Commission has 27 individual members – one from each member state
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Chosen for 4-year renewable terms
Lacks formal autonomous power except for day-to-day
EU operations
Reports to, and implements policies of, the Council of
Ministers
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Meeting of the relevant ministers of each member state – politicians who control the bureaucrats
Reflects states’ resistance to yielding sovereignty
Voting system is based on each state’s population, but in practice it operates by consensus on major policy issues.
Has a rotating presidency
(with limited power)
European Council (1970s)
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Falls somewhat short of a true legislature passing laws for all of
Europe
At present, it operates partly as a watchdog over the Commission, but with some power to legislate.
Must approve the Commission’s budget but no item by item control.
Shares power with the Council under a “co-decision procedure.”
Economic and Social Committee
European Court of Justice
(Luxembourg)
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Future of European Integration
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There is no fixed end result of the process of integration. Integration and enlargement pf the EU are major issues in the politics of Europe, both at
European, national and local level.
 Integration may conflict with national sovereignty and cultural identity by eurosceptics.
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Euroscepticism or Euroskepticism is a general term used to describe criticism of the EU, and opposition to the process of European Integration, existing throughout the political spectrum.
 the main source of euroscepticism has been the notion that integration weakens the nation state.
 eurosceptic include perceptions of the EU being undemocratic or too bureaucratic.
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There are two different strains of Eurosceptic thought:
Hard euroscepticism is the opposition to membership of, or the existence of, the European Union in its current form as a matter of principle.
Soft euroscepticism is support for the existence of, and membership of, a form of European Union, but opposition to particular EU policies, and opposition to a federal Europe.
Harmsen, Robert; Spiering, Menno (2005). Euroscepticism: Party Politics, National Identity
and European Integration. Rodopi.
ISBN 9789042019461 .
Szczerbiak, Aleks; Taggart, Paul A. (2008). Opposing Europe?. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
ISBN 9780199258307 .
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