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The Endgame of the Negotiations and the Future of an Enlarged European Union

Milada Anna Vachudova

in Europe Undivided: Democracy, Leverage, and Integration After Communism

Ten new members, eight of them post-communist states, joined the EU on 1 May 2004. This chapter takes up three issues that will shape the future of an enlarged EU. First, the EU’s active leverage has ... More

Ten new members, eight of them post-communist states, joined the EU on 1 May 2004. This chapter takes up three issues that will shape the future of an enlarged EU. First, the EU’s active leverage has had a substantial impact on the political and economic institutions of the new members: has it promoted robust democratic institutions and a vigorous economy, as I have argued, or did it in fact undermine them? Second, the endgame of the negotiations forced unfavourable terms of accession onto the new members: will these unfavourable terms translate into a permanent second-class status? Or will the new members, bargaining hard to improve their position and importing diversity, bring European integration to a standstill? I argue that both concerns are overblown. Third, why did the EU decide to enlarge to these eight post-communist states, and how much further it is likely to go? The EU’s active leverage has been working in parts of the Western Balkans and in Turkey, and it could work elsewhere. The costs of foreclosing future membership for countries such as Turkey, Ukraine, or Belarus could be substantial, yet EU elites and publics are far from reconciled to further enlargements.Less

Supranational Differentiation and Enhanced Cooperation

Daniel Thym

in Oxford Principles Of European Union Law: The European Union Legal Order: Volume I

The ‘unity dogma’ has long characterized European law discourse. In many of its landmark judgments, the European Court of Justice had recourse to the ‘unity argument’—such as in Costa v ENEL, where ... More

The ‘unity dogma’ has long characterized European law discourse. In many of its landmark judgments, the European Court of Justice had recourse to the ‘unity argument’—such as in Costa v ENEL, where the Court stated that ‘the executive force of Community law cannot vary from one state to another … without jeopardizing the attainment of the objectives of the Treaty’. Unilateral national deviations could not be tolerated without the common rules ‘being deprived of their character as Community law and without the legal basis of the Community itself being called into question’. Other expressions of the ‘unity dogma’ include the principle of non-discrimination or the uniform composition of EU institutions. This contribution demonstrates that the asymmetric non-participation of some Member States in selected policy areas can be embedded into the supranational legal order. The main danger seems to be a structural weakening of political legitimacy. Less

Building Fortress Europe

David Scott FitzGerald

in Refuge beyond Reach: How Rich Democracies Repel Asylum Seekers

The European Union since the 1990s has been engaged in a unique project of reducing mobility controls between members while strengthening the external borders and then shifting control outward. The ... More

The European Union since the 1990s has been engaged in a unique project of reducing mobility controls between members while strengthening the external borders and then shifting control outward. The individual pieces of the remote control strategies themselves are common, with the exception of the Frontex external border control coordinating agency, which does not have parallels in the North American or Australian cases. Europeanization has cross-cutting effects on remote control. The ubiquity of policies rooted in law, regulations, or formal agreements with other states—around readmission, visas, carrier sanctions, safe third countries, and safe countries of origin—is a result of Europeanization. However, Europeanization also includes built-in constraints derived from its supranational courts and institutions.Less

The Pursuit of New Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and Brussels

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter introduces some background information on the intergovernmental and EC initiatives. Then, it turns to the leading assumptions underlying the Schengen and Brussels cultures of border ... More

This chapter introduces some background information on the intergovernmental and EC initiatives. Then, it turns to the leading assumptions underlying the Schengen and Brussels cultures of border control. The Schengen Agreement was more of a working program than a detailed plan of action. Together with the 1985 agreement, the Schengen Implementation Convention became the cornerstone of a new approach to border control. The Schengen conventions redefined the traditional meaning of borders. They specifically redefined the meaning of European borders and their functions. They established who should be in charge of European borders. When the Brussels initiative was launched, the main focus was on the relations among existing members over matters of border control. The Schengen and Brussels initiatives developed in parallel. Although both shared the same goal of abolishing Europe's internal frontiers, in their early stages they did not directly clash with each other.Less

Amending the EU Treaties

Steve Peers

in Oxford Principles Of European Union Law: The European Union Legal Order: Volume I

One of the key features of the development of EU law is the amendment of its Treaties. These amendments often make significant changes to the primary law framework of the EU, for instance as ... More

One of the key features of the development of EU law is the amendment of its Treaties. These amendments often make significant changes to the primary law framework of the EU, for instance as regards the composition of EU institutions, the abolition of Member States’ vetoes, the conferral of more powers upon the EU and the protection of human rights. Owing to its fundamental importance to the development of EU law, the Treaty amendment process has always played a central role in European legal and political studies. Less

Migration in Hungary: historical legacies and differential integration

Ioana Rusu

in Migration and welfare in the new Europe: Social protection and the challenges of integration

This chapter summarises the main migration trends in Hungary ever since the fall of the Berlin Wall. The discussion is based on two main objectives. It examines the most striking characteristics of ... More

This chapter summarises the main migration trends in Hungary ever since the fall of the Berlin Wall. The discussion is based on two main objectives. It examines the most striking characteristics of the integration of migrant communities, and at the policy implications that followed the accession to the European Union in May 2004 and the Schengen Area in January 2008. A short theoretical discussion of the determinants of migration is provided, along with a detailed overview of migration in Hungary.Less

Chapter 1 General Provisions

Michael Wilderspin

in The EU Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights: A Commentary

Title V of Part Three TFEU is entitled ‘Area of freedom, security and justice’ and covers, broadly speaking, the issue of border controls at both internal and external frontiers, asylum, migration, ... More

Title V of Part Three TFEU is entitled ‘Area of freedom, security and justice’ and covers, broadly speaking, the issue of border controls at both internal and external frontiers, asylum, migration, combating of crime, police cooperation, and mutual recognition of judgments in both civil and criminal matters. Less

Chapter 2 Policies on Border Checks, Asylum and Immigration

Michael Wilderspin

in The EU Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights: A Commentary

The abolition of border controls on persons at the internal frontiers, i.e. the frontiers between the MS, has a clear link with free movement of persons, one of the cornerstones of EU law. ... More

The abolition of border controls on persons at the internal frontiers, i.e. the frontiers between the MS, has a clear link with free movement of persons, one of the cornerstones of EU law. Nevertheless, the original ToR, while recognizing the rights of nationals of MS to move and work in the other MS, still allowed MS to carry out border checks to verify the entitlement of persons crossing those borders to exercise free movement. Less

Introduction

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

Borders were a powerful symbol of identity and historical continuity, both for the state as institution and for the peoples they contain. Their protection was a matter of “national security” and the ... More

Borders were a powerful symbol of identity and historical continuity, both for the state as institution and for the peoples they contain. Their protection was a matter of “national security” and the exclusive responsibility of central governments. They have also continued to be a central feature of Europe's political landscape. Due to the regime's institutionalization and expansion, the term “Schengen” has entered the everyday vocabulary of European politics. The emergence of Schengen was connected to a change in the ideational context in which key actors dealing with border control in the region are inserted. Retelling the story of Schengen provided a vital opportunity to evaluate the origins of one of the most far-reaching events in recent European politics. Finally, an overview of the chapters included in this book is given.Less

Accounting for Schengen: Cultures of Border Control and Their Evolution

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter reviews the main tenets of the three cultures of border control that define the European case (“Westphalia,” “Schengen,” and “Brussels”). It also discusses the concept of “cultural ... More

This chapter reviews the main tenets of the three cultures of border control that define the European case (“Westphalia,” “Schengen,” and “Brussels”). It also discusses the concept of “cultural evolution” by offering the main mechanisms—variation and selection—accounting for the emergence of Schengen as a new dominant culture of border control in Europe. It describes some methodological issues that this work raises, particularly the operationalization of the concepts of culture and cultural evolution. Members of the border control community can belong to several communities at the same time, and “move” from one to the other according to the circumstances. “Schengen” referred to the intergovernmental initiative that resulted in the creation of the Schengen regime, while “Brussels” considered the parallel project developed in the context of the European Union. The final stage of the cultural process pertained to the mechanism allowing a newly selected culture to persist over time.Less

Selecting a New Culture of Border Control: Schengen

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter concentrates on Schengen, and in particular on the developments in four areas that characterized the policymaking process over the issue of border control in this period: internal ... More

This chapter concentrates on Schengen, and in particular on the developments in four areas that characterized the policymaking process over the issue of border control in this period: internal political dynamics, institutional issues, external relations, and the organization of the border control community. Practices of the Schengen border control community became more consistent with the main tenets of the pursued culture. The debate over the “preliminary conditions” during the negotiations over Schengen is addressed. The controversial diplomatic exercises of Italy and Denmark contributed to the further “testing” of the emerging Schengen culture of border control. The securitarian outlook that Schengen acquired over time had consequences not only for the national delegations represented at Schengen, but also for the European Commission.Less

Selecting a New Culture of Border Control: Brussels

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter covers the (failed) selection of the Brussels culture of border control. Maastricht significantly reshaped the structure of the border control policy community. The high hopes that ... More

This chapter covers the (failed) selection of the Brussels culture of border control. Maastricht significantly reshaped the structure of the border control policy community. The high hopes that Maastricht had created had clearly not been fulfilled, leaving the fate of the Brussels culture of border control in limbo. In the years that followed the signing of the Maastricht Treaty, the importance of the external dimension of border control in shaping the Brussels culture's trajectory grew significantly. The Brussels border control policy community included all European Union (EU) members since the very launch of the initiative. In the 1990s, the EU border control policy community clearly drifted away from the liberal tenets that defined the Brussels culture of border control when it was launched a decade earlier. Instead, it moved closer to Schengen.Less

From Selection to Retention: Schengen's Incorporation into the European Union

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter evaluates the selection process within both initiatives, explaining why Schengen was successful and Brussels was not. An analysis of the incorporation of the Schengen regime into the ... More

This chapter evaluates the selection process within both initiatives, explaining why Schengen was successful and Brussels was not. An analysis of the incorporation of the Schengen regime into the European Union (EU) is also reported. Schengen balanced the apparently contradictory requirements of freedom and security, proved itself to be more effective in considering the relevant practical and political problems that European policy makers faced. An agreement on the integration of Schengen into the EU was eventually reached at the Amsterdam summit. The incorporation of the Schengen regime in the EU implied the Schengenization of the newly established “Area of Freedom, Security and Justice” in the EU. The political squabbling over the “ventilation” of the Schengen acquis represented the last instalment of the process leading to the selection of the Schengen culture of border control.Less

Consolidating the New Culture of Border Control: Schengen in the European Union

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter explores the consolidation of Schengen culture by looking at the main events that followed Schengen's communitarization and at selected policy initiatives elaborated. Also, it analyzes ... More

This chapter explores the consolidation of Schengen culture by looking at the main events that followed Schengen's communitarization and at selected policy initiatives elaborated. Also, it analyzes how the consolidation of Schengen has involved the border control community. Schengen was able to consolidate its dominant position in the border control domain. The advances introduced by the Amsterdam Treaty had strengthened the European Union (EU)'s role as an active player on the international stage. The European Neighbourhood Policy appeared to be a promising development in the EU's foreign policy. The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) can be considered the latest “victim” of the Schengen culture's spread into new areas of EU policy. The “comprehensive” response to the terrorism adopted by EU governments and institutions has contributed to the further blurring of the distinction between internal and external security and to the deemphasis of the significance of national borders to guarantee Europe's security.Less

Conclusion: After Schengen

in Cultures of Border Control: Schengen and the Evolution of European Frontiers

This chapter reflects on current dynamics and possible future scenarios defining European borders and, more generally, Europe as a political project, taking as a cue the analytical framework ... More

This chapter reflects on current dynamics and possible future scenarios defining European borders and, more generally, Europe as a political project, taking as a cue the analytical framework elaborated in this work. Delegates from European Union (EU) member states and the European Commission celebrated Schengen's twentieth anniversary in June 2005. Schengen was awarded an honor generally reserved only to “historical” events. The vision underlying the Schengen initiative has shown a surprising resilience over the years, and today its central tenets have become part of the political landscape in Europe. Flexibility was one of Schengen's major strengths. Today, the Schengen model was in a phase of consolidation and expansion. As the Schengen experience has shown, “dramatic” projects in European politics can be conceived in a pragmatic and evolutionary fashion and be able to successfully withstand the future.Less

Conclusion

Luca Scholz

in Borders and Freedom of Movement in the Holy Roman Empire

The enclosure of movement in the Holy Roman Empire, studied here through the lens of safe conduct, engendered a highly contingent interplay of obstructive and accelerating factors that affected the ... More

The enclosure of movement in the Holy Roman Empire, studied here through the lens of safe conduct, engendered a highly contingent interplay of obstructive and accelerating factors that affected the geography and temporality of different forms of movement in different ways. Spatially, these efforts were not concentrated at territorial borders but at settlements, toll stations, and other choke points, indicating that late modern border talk is unsuitable for understanding the ordering of movement before the mid-eighteenth century. The fact that early modern freedoms of movement, however poorly enforced, did not exist by default but by deliberate design challenges the image of the early modern ‘state’ as a preventer of mobility. This conclusion places the book’s findings in a broader perspective and argues that the history of the Holy Roman Empire offers an alternative framework not just for understanding other parts of the early modern world but also for appreciating ambiguities inherent in the late modern border regime.Less

Assimilation, Security, and Borders in the Member States

Desmond King, Patrick Le Galès, and Tommaso Vitale

in Reconfiguring European States in Crisis

Territory-making and border control are fundamental state-making activities. Frontiers, their surveillance, and management, define the territorial base of a state, and help differentiate states from ... More

Territory-making and border control are fundamental state-making activities. Frontiers, their surveillance, and management, define the territorial base of a state, and help differentiate states from other states. Since 2015, Europe’s borders and Schengen programme have been the focus of discussions regarding migration and security. The mobilization of European-born citizens as Islamic extremists draws attention to the relative success of the US and Canada in assimilating new immigrants and their offspring. Largely confined into neighbourhoods and pockets of social housing, the children of North African and Middle Eastern immigrants in Europe are disaffected, alienated, and, in the cases of numerous 18–30-year-old males, willing to embrace extreme Muslim beliefs, volunteer in war zones, and return to Europe to instigate and commit jihad or to join other militants. These developments are discussed in this chapter with reference to immigration integration and assimilation, and the migration and security challenge to European state borders.Less

Assimilation

Peter Baldwin

in The Narcissism of Minor Differences: How Europe and America are Alike

Let Us Move, now, from the otherworldly to the extraterritorial. Until recently, the assimilation of foreigners would not have been considered part of a comparison between Europe and America. ... More

Let Us Move, now, from the otherworldly to the extraterritorial. Until recently, the assimilation of foreigners would not have been considered part of a comparison between Europe and America. America was a land of immigration; Europe was not. That is no longer the case. Overall levels of the foreign-born remain higher in the United States than in all European countries other than Switzerland and Luxembourg (figure 185). The difference is diminishing, however, as increasing numbers of foreigners make Europe their home. But the politics of counting foreigners is curious in Europe. In nations with virulent and powerful anti-foreigner political parties (Denmark, Austria, Norway, the Netherlands, France, and Switzerland) civil servants might wish to downplay the presence of those who could be regarded as an alien element. Bureaucracies in other countries might prefer to upscale the number of foreigners, perhaps to burnish their own multicultural qualifications. Consider the differences between two sets of OECD accounts of foreigners, from 2005 and 2007. The figures in these reports come respectively from 2003 and 2005, though numbers for a decade earlier, i.e., 1993 and 1995, are given as comparisons. As might be expected, in all European countries the number of foreigners increased between 2003 and 2005. But in some nations, the reported number of foreigners grew so startlingly over a two-year period that it must be due to a rejiggering of the figures rather than to any actual inflow. In many cases, too, the numbers for 1995 given in the later publication are higher than those given for 2003 in the earlier one. For example, the Austrian figures for the foreign part of the population in 1995 presented in 2007 are 11.2%, while those for 2003 presented in 2005 are only 9.4%. Similar discrepancies hold for Belgium, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, and several other nations. The mystery only deepens if we look at what precisely the OECD claims to measure. In 2005, it was Europe’s “foreign population.” Of the nations we are looking at, only the numbers from the United States are for “foreign-born.” In 2007, however, also the European figures are for “foreign-born,” except those for Greece, Italy, and Spain, which are for “foreign.” “Foreign-born” is, of course, a narrower and more precise category than “foreign.” Excepting only lapses of record keeping, “foreign-born” can be determined by standard-issue statistics. Less