Iceland and European Integration
Iceland and European Integration

Author: Baldur Thorhallsson

Publisher: Taylor & Francis US

Published: 2006-04

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 0415406668

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Why has Iceland not sought membership of the European Union? This unique volume uses the case study of Iceland - the only Nordic state to have never applied for EU membership - to explore the complex attitudes of small states to European intergration and provide a new theoretical approach for understanding such relationships. The contributors explain why the Icelandic political elite has been relunctant to participate in European integration. In this context, they analyse the influence that Iceland's special relationship with the US and the fisheries sector have had on their dealings with the EU. Also considered are 'new' variables, such as national administrative characteristics and particular features of the domestic arena of the political elite, as well as the elite's perception of international relations and its political discourse concerning independence and sovereignty. Iceland and European Integration will appeal to all those interested in European integration and the international relations of small states

Iceland and European Integration
Iceland and European Integration

Author: Baldur Thorhallsson

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2004-03-01

Total Pages: 259

ISBN-13: 1134458533

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Why has Iceland not sought membership of the European Union? This unique volume uses the case study of Iceland - the only Nordic state to have never applied for EU membership - to explore the complex attitudes of small states to European intergration and provide a new theoretical approach for understanding such relationships. The contributors explain why the Icelandic political elite has been relunctant to participate in European integration. In this context, they analyse the influence that Iceland's special relationship with the US and the fisheries sector have had on their dealings with the EU. Also considered are 'new' variables, such as national administrative characteristics and particular features of the domestic arena of the political elite, as well as the elite's perception of international relations and its political discourse concerning independence and sovereignty. Iceland and European Integration will appeal to all those interested in European integration and the international relations of small states

Europeanization and the European Economic Area
Europeanization and the European Economic Area

Author: Johanna Jonsdottir

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 0415502799

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This book examines Europeanization in the European Economic Area (EEA), exploring whether non-member states can have an input into EU decision-making and whether the EU can successfully export its policies within the framework of the EEA. Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, while not EU member states, are members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and signatories of the EEA Agreement. The Agreement allows participation in the EU’s internal market but also requires extensive and continuous adaptation to EU rules. Whilst existing literature is limited mainly to the EU’s impact on its own member states or neighbours to the east, this book extends the study of Europeanization to the EEA, exploring whether Iceland, as a non-member state, can have an input into EU decision-making and, conversely, whether the EU can ensure that its policies are adhered to outside of its borders. The author argues that, although the EEA Agreement is not without its challenges, it has proved considerably more resilient than originally expected. This raises the question of whether the EEA provides a realistic alternative to EU membership for other states with close ties to the EU. Delving into the largely unknown intersection between the EU and the EEA and providing important new insights into the Europeanization process, Europeanization and the European Economic Area will be of strong interest to students and scholars of European Union politics and policy-making, European Union Enlargement, Nordic politics and comparative politics.

The Nordic States and European Unity
The Nordic States and European Unity

Author: Christine Ingebritsen

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 9780801486593

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The idea of European unity, which the Nordic states have historically resisted, has recently become the foremost concern of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, and Finland. Christine Ingebritsen provides a timely analysis of Nordic economic and security policies in the wake of the vast transformation of regional politics between 1985 and 1995. The Nordic States and European Unity addresses two central questions: Why did all five Nordic states trade autonomy for integration after 1985? And why do some follow the British pattern, resisting supranationalism, while others prefer the German strategy of embedding their policies in a common European project?Through extensive interviews with representatives of trade unions, government ministries, parliamentary committees, social movements, and military and industrial organizations, Ingebritsen charts adjustments to the idea of a regional system of governance. She highlights crucial differences among these nations as they seek to protect their borders against new security threats. In particular, Ingebritsen shows how the political influence of leading sectors affects each state's capacity to pursue an integrationist policy. Economic sectors are not uniformly affected by European policy coordination, and the experience of the Nordic states demonstrates this difference. Her work shifts the focus of political economics away from enduring, domestic institutions toward an understanding of institutions as sectoral and transnational.

The Nordic Countries and the European Security and Defence Policy
The Nordic Countries and the European Security and Defence Policy

Author: Alyson J. K. Bailes

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 460

ISBN-13: 9780199290840

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In 1999 the EU decided to develop its own military capacities for crisis management. This book brings together a group of experts to examine the consequences of this decision on Nordic policy establishments, as well as to shed new light on the defence and security issues that matter for Europe as a whole.

The Economic Integration of Europe
The Economic Integration of Europe

Author: Richard Pomfret

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2021-06-08

Total Pages: 273

ISBN-13: 0674259432

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The clearest and most up-to-date account of the achievements—and setbacks—of the European Union since 1945. Europe has been transformed since the Second World War. No longer a checkerboard of entirely sovereign states, the continent has become the largest single-market area in the world, with most of its members ceding certain economic and political powers to the central government of the European Union. This shift is the product of world-historical change, but the process is not well understood. The changes came in fits and starts. There was no single blueprint for reform; rather, the EU is the result of endless political turmoil and dazzling bureaucratic gymnastics. As Brexit demonstrates, there are occasional steps backward, too. Cutting through the complexity, Richard Pomfret presents a uniquely clear and comprehensive analysis of an incredible achievement in economic cooperation. The Economic Integration of Europe follows all the major steps in the creation of the single market since the postwar establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community. Pomfret identifies four stages of development: the creation of a customs union, the deepening of economic union with the Single Market, the years of monetary union and eastward expansion, and, finally, problems of consolidation. Throughout, he details the economic benefits, costs, and controversies associated with each step in the evolution of the EU. What lies ahead? Pomfret concludes that, for all its problems, Europe has grown more prosperous from integration and is likely to increase its power on the global stage.

The Dark Side of European Integration
The Dark Side of European Integration

Author: Alina Polyakova

Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand

Published: 2015-08-01

Total Pages: 184

ISBN-13: 3838208161

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Across Europe, radical right-wing parties are winning increasing electoral support. The Dark Side of European Integration argues that this rising nationalism and the mobilization of the radical right are the consequences of European economic integration. The European economic project has produced a cultural backlash in the form of nationalist radical right ideologies. This assessment relies on a detailed analysis of the electoral rise of radical right parties in Western and Eastern Europe. Contrary to popular belief, economic performance and immigration rates are not the only factors that determine the far right's success. There are other political and social factors that explain why in post-socialist Eastern European countries such parties had historically been weaker than their potential, which they have now started to fulfill increasingly. Using in-depth interviews with radical right activists in Ukraine, Alina Polyakova also explores how radical right mobilization works on the ground through social networks, allowing new insights into how social movements and political parties interact.

Divided Nations and European Integration
Divided Nations and European Integration

Author: Tristan James Mabry

Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press

Published: 2013-06-27

Total Pages: 417

ISBN-13: 0812244974

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For ethnic minorities in Europe separated by state borders—such as Basques in France and Spain or Hungarians who reside in Slovakia and Romania—the European Union has offered the hope of reconnection or at least of rendering the divisions less obstructive. Conationals on different sides of European borders may look forward to increased political engagement, including new norms to support the sharing of sovereignty, enhanced international cooperation, more porous borders, and invigorated protections for minority rights. Under the pan-European umbrella, it has been claimed that those belonging to divided nations would no longer have to depend solely on the goodwill of the governments of their states to have their collective rights respected. Yet for many divided nations, the promise of the European Union and other pan-European institutions remains unfulfilled. Divided Nations and European Integration examines the impact of the expansion of European institutions and the ways the EU acts as a confederal association of member states, rather than a fully multinational federation of peoples. A wide range of detailed case studies consider national communities long within the borders of the European Union, such as the Irish and Basques; communities that have more recently joined, such as the Croats and Hungarians; and communities that are not yet members but are on its borders or in its "near abroad," such as the Albanians, Serbs, and Kurds. This authoritative volume provides cautionary but valuable insights to students of European institutions, nations and nationalism, regional integration, conflict resolution, and minority rights. Contributors: Tozun Bahcheli, Zoe Bray, Alexandra Channer, Zsuzsa Csergő, Marsaili Fraser, James M. Goldgeier, Michael Keating, Tristan James Mabry, John McGarry, Margaret Moore, Sid Noel, Brendan O'Leary, David Romano, Etain Tannam, Stefan Wolff.

Small States and Shelter Theory
Small States and Shelter Theory

Author: Baldur Thorhallsson

Publisher:

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9780367354152

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Small states are dependent on the economic, political, and societal shelter provided by larger states and international organizations to survive and prosper. Iceland provides an ideal case study for shelter theory, due both to its smallness as compared with its larger neighbouring states, as well as its status as both an entity and then as a state. That Iceland has historically been so isolated, relative to other small European states, also makes it easier to trace the country's interactions with other actors, since the impact of each interaction can be measured more definitively thus broadening the theory's validity and offering new insights into its operations. The contributors to this volume focus on the extent of Iceland's external engagement with other states and the domestic consequences of this interaction. Societal shelter, in terms of transfer of norms and values, is as of much importance as economic and political shelter. By unpacking the structure of Iceland's external relations, this book demonstrates both the size-related disadvantages and the unique needs of small states to evaluate, explain, and predict small state behaviour. This book will be of interest to all scholars in international relations, especially those interested in small state behaviour.

The Nordic Countries and the European Union
The Nordic Countries and the European Union

Author: Caroline Grøn

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2015-02-20

Total Pages: 319

ISBN-13: 1317536614

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In European policy-making, the Nordic countries are often viewed as a relatively coherent bloc; in international and European affairs the Nordic position has traditionally been conditioned on being different from and better than Europe. This book offers a coherent, original and systematic comparative analysis of the relationship between the Nordic countries and the European Union over the past two decades. It looks at the historical frame, institutions and policy areas, addressing both traditional EU areas such as agriculture and more nascent areas affecting the domestic and foreign policies of the Nordic countries. In doing so, it examines how the Nordic approach to European policy-making has developed and explains why the Nordic countries are similar in some respects while differing in others when engaging with EU institutions. In highlighting the similarities and differences between the Nordic countries it explores what lessons – positive and negative – may be drawn from this approach for the Nordic countries and other small states. This book will be of interest to scholars, students and practitioners engaged with the Nordic Countries, EU politics and policy-making, European politics and comparative politics.