Discussion Responses Required - 10 To 12 Hours At The Maximum

Discussion Board: European Union

Liberty University

Key Term and Why You Are Interested in It

I chose the topic of the European Union because I plan to do my Global Business Cultural Analysis on France, and I thought having a better understanding of France’s involvement in this supranational organization would aid me in my research. I understood that France was one of the first six countries included in the preliminary organization that would soon be replaced by the EU (Satterlee, 2014, p.167), and I figured I should study how France participates in European integration and hopefully gain insights into France’s political and economic climate to better conduct a Business Cultural Analysis.

Explanation of the Key Term

The European union today can be described as the economic union of Europe. The pinnacle of economically integrating Europe was the production of the euro, which standardized the currency in Europe with the exception of the United Kingdom and Denmark (Satterlee, 2014, p. 166). The European union currently has 28 members, not including candidate nations and potential candidates. These members must adhere to the EU's membership requirements which include: price stability, sound public finances, sustainable public finances, durability of convergence, and exchange rate stability (Satterlee, 2014, pp. 166-167). The purpose of the European Union is to maintain a customs union, economic union, and further integrate the peoples of Europe toward harmony (Spolaore, 2013, p. 131). However, many argue although the European Union predominately concerns itself with economic interests, it has positioned itself as a political construct (for example, Spolaore, 2013). 

Major Article Summary

Spolaore (2013) begins the article by addressing both political sides of European integration. Those saying European integration has gone too far with the establishment of the euro and those that believe the system has not been integrated enough. He makes the point that although the EU concerns itself with finances primarily, that the EU is a political construct (Spolaore, 2013, p.125). He then starts to break down the history of the EU and where ideas of European integration were first introduced. After World War II, there was still lingering fear of unconstrained nations and the immense damage they were capable of enacting. The first document that featured this kind of European integration was the Schuman Declaration of May 9, 1950, and this idea was further ingrained with the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951. This declaration proposed that, "Franco-German production of coal and steel as a whole be placed under a common High Authority," (Spolaore, 2013, p.126). This high authority was comprised of six countries, and what our textbook refers to as the first European union of 1952 (Satterlee, 2014, p.167). The author goes on further to state that there were efforts to create a European Federation that failed because of the political economy of heterogeneous populations, or to say simply: the European federation that would have provided defense and security measures for the entire euro-zone was vetoed due to differing interests and cultures across European nations (Spolaore, 2013, p.127). Through this discussion, Spolaore explores how culture can be changed by policies and institutions and vice versa. These narratives culminate into a discussion of the tension between the supranational organization and the power of national governments. Here, he presents two schools of thought: the intergovernmentalists and the functionalists.  The intergovernmentalists has the stance that the nations themselves are in charge and simply use organizations like the EU as tools to accomplish their own goals; however, the functionalist theorize European integration is not actualized by its citizens but by, "elites and interest groups that transcend national boundaries" (Spolaore, 2013, p.132). He then presented the idea of Jean Monnet's chain reaction, where in the name of creating a close union between the peoples of Europe,  partial integration is carried out by members of the organization fueled by their own interests which propagates more integration due to the irreversibility of the initial integration. A metaphor of this chain reaction is presented as follows: "The road toward the single currency looks like a chain reaction in which each step result a pre-existing contradiction and generated a new one that in turn required a further step forward" (Spolaore, 2013, p. 135). While all these steps in this chain reaction point to a more unified Europe, I ask the question will it be as a federation? or just as the ultimate integration of all the nations of Europe? In addition, Spolaore touches on the limits to the chain reaction, putting significant emphasis on the willingness of cooperation of all the member nations. To conclude, the author revisits a look at the EU as a whole outside of the topic of European integration to state that it is the "most successful example of voluntary international cooperation in world history" (Spolaore, 2013, p.142).

Discussion

Spolaore's (2013) political guide for economists on the topic of European integration expanded my understanding of the European Union exponentially compared to the textbook. This article covered history, key concepts, and theories that can serve as a basis for comprehensive EU understanding. I was enlightened to the history of the European Union from it's roots in the European Coal and Steel Community of 1951 to its 28 member status. The concept of European integration and the problems that are encountered when integrating will now be at the forefront of my mind when analyzing news of European policy. The political theories Spolaore presents in the article: functionalism and intergovernmentalism, have added to my knowledge in formation of governmental power and the role of international organizations. His discussion on the limits of European integration and Jean Monnet's chain reaction functionalist theory was useful in presenting a balanced argument for European integration and concepts surrounding the European Union.

The remainder of my references gave me a more comprehensive view of the European Union outside of European integration itself. I wanted to research all the benefits of the EU, the most ideal presentation of the European Union, critiques on the bureaucratic nature of the EU, and specifics surrounding the euro. Arnoldas’ Ted talk titled "What if the EU you did not exist?" presented a hypothetical situation in which he highlights all the benefits of the EU including the aid it gives it to its lesser members in times of need. Hermes Van Rompuy (2016), former chair of the Council of the European Union, gives his talk titled "Can the European union achieve Utopia?" In it, he discusses the complexities of European society and thoughts toward change in general of European peoples. The European Union website's page on the euro (https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/money/euro_en), provided basic information on the purpose of the euro and how it is managed. Agyriades' (2015) article, The Invention of European Development and Bureaucracy: Recycling Empire, critiques the unions development aid programs which have little importance (according to the author) and that are merely a means to accomplish personal interests of other countries. The author posits that systems within the EU can be leveraged by countries to reach their own strategic objectives. The reason that I chose, Spolaore's (2013) What is European Integration really about? A Political Guide for Economist, was because it gave a brief yet informative history and seemed to be the most objective narrative concerning European integration.

References

Argyriades, D. (2015). THE INVENTION OF A EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENT AID BUREAUCRACY: RECYCLING EMPIRE. Public Administration, 93(2), 549-551. doi:10.1111/padm.12154 Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=103225030&site=bsi-live

Pranckevičius, A. (2017, May 17). What if the European Union did not exist? [Video file]. Retreived from Tedx on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhUlhD5hkn0

Spolaore, E. (2013). What Is European Integration Really About? A Political Guide for Economists. Journal Of Economic Perspectives, 27(3), 125-144. doi:10.1257/jep.27.3.125 Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=89598224&site=bsi-live

Van Rompuy, H. (2016, December 22). Can the European Union achieve Utopia? [Video file]. Retrieved from Tedx on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDE0dbtgnn4