Officially known as the Swiss Confederation, Switzerland is a federal parliamentary republic comprised of 26 cantons, which represent four languages and a population of just over eight million . Switzerland is well known for its small landmass yet high standard of living, as well as its banking system and adherence to traditional Swiss culture. While the state is autonomous, it is a part of the Schengen Area unlike all EU members, and remains outside of the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA), as it became the sole EFTA member to reject membership by referendum in 1992 . Despite this, Switzerland maintains a staunch economic relationship with members of the EU through a series of bilateral agreements involving trade, free movement of people, agriculture and taxation among others. These provisions between countries provide an increasingly interdependent European continent characterized by trade agreements, free movement of Swiss-EU citizens and a single European market.
A recent referendum against mass immigration has passed through Switzerland’s direct democracy by a majority of just 50.3% , effectively nullifying the bilateral agreements that were reached with the EU in 1999. The referendum is binding in Switzerland and requires the Swiss Federal Council to produce legislation within three years of the vote. As a result, officials within the EU have voiced their regrets regarding the outcome of the ballot, and are carefully considering re-evaluating their relations with Switzerland. The issue of Switzerland’s proposed cap on immigration is a very recent matter, and the results of the referendum will likely be a catalyst for changes in EU policies. This paper will examine steps that the European Union cou...
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With the introduction of the Schengen Agreement in 1985, travel and restrictions within Europe drastically changed. For the first time in the world, a large group of countries banded together and abolished any restriction on travel, creating a massive zone of free travel. Anyone who was a citizen of a country within the European union now had access to every other country also within the area, creating essentially a borderless landmass. This agreement had some major positive factors, but also some blaring negative effects. The most blaring negative side effect of the free tra...
Before starting the story of the passage to the Union, Van Middelaar identifies three types of discourses and three types of spheres that illustrate the diversity in understanding the nature of the EU. He explains: intergovernmentalism (Offices and States discourses), supranationalism (Offices and Citizens discourses), and constitutionalism (States and Citizens discourses). By identifying and explaining these discourses, the author shows the limits of previous studies of the EU because “each of the three discourses encourages an illusion that can blind its supporters to the historicity of politics.” (p.10). He has distanced himself from this “illusion” and has used a unique approach that considers the effect of time, which is “the link between past, present, and future” (p.11). The author then identifies three different spheres to analyze the political nature of Europe. The first sphere is the outer sphere which represents the geographical limits of Europe and the sovereignty of each state in the Union. The second sphere is the inner sphere that has started with the treaty of Paris in 1951 that established the European Coal and Steel Community and that represents the institutional and co...
It is well known that after World War II, states began to move away from the trends of nationalism that had brought on conflict in the first place. Across large parts of Europe, there is instead great support for federalism and get support for integration and interdependence. In 1952, the European Coal and Steel Community was created, followed by the establishment of European Economic Community in 1957. With allies being made and different treaties and agreements being signed, Europe was definitely becoming a ‘federation’. In 1973, Britain joins the EEC along with Denmark and Ireland. The European Union is then formally established by the Maastricht in 1993 and gains its 28th member, Croatia by July 2013. When a referendum was taken in the UK regarding joining the EU the vote was two-to-one in favour. The benefits of joining of the EU were clear. The UK would benefit not only in an economic sense but also politically and socially. However, in recent times, opinions have changed. There is now debate as to whether the UK should remain n member of the EU. More and more people are speaking in favour of the United Kingdom leaving the EU and standing on its own. While there are persuasive arguments for and against, it could still be argued that the argument against...
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There are 28 members for each state and one is chosen as the president. In this type of a political union powers are negotiated and delegated by the government of the member states. Firstly, the president is proposed to the European Parliament by the Council depending on eligibility. The European Parliament then elects the president based on qualified majority voting. After the president is elected, he proposes his chosen 27 commissioners, based on proposals from the member states. The president and the council then have to agree on who the other 27 commissioners will be and get approval from the European Parliament. One of the distinguishing features which makes the European Commission a supranational body is that it combines all of the 28 member states into one state. The commission recognizes all of the separate member states and governments however it does act a sovereign power itself. The Commission proposes its own legislations and policies and works toward implementation of those legislations in the member states. The European Commission is based on treaties amongst the states that benefit from these treaties and thus there is trust and cooperation among them.
Uvalic, M. (2002, July). Regional Cooperation and the Enlargement of the European Union: Lessons Learned? International Political Science Review, 23(3), 319-333.
Debates on EU migration policy have been catapulted to the front of the policy-making scene several weeks ago by the hand of the EU Greek council presidency, calling for a unified asylum system, resource pooling, and a more coordinated management of border controls. There is people trying to sneak out through the EU borders in Greece, attempts to jump Melilla´s fence on behalf Sub-Saharan migrants, and everyone became acquainted with the Lampedusa tragedy already and the everyday migration dripping in the Mediterranean Sea. Apparently, those who try to break the EU borders are thousands of millions. Apparently, they are terrorist and people who seek to destroy the fairy-tale EU socio/economic life. Apparently, The situation is overwhelming, and all those undocumented migrants threaten the well-being of the EU citizenship. Member states are technically committed under the Lisbon Treaty to develop ‘common’ migration and asylum policies. However, in practice, it seems to be ruled by an “Everyman for himself” principle: Southern governments claim for a common EU approach -and more resources and funding- to “combat illegal migration”. Northern countries complaint about the overwhelming number of Syrian asylum seekers and that the protection of the Mediterranean Borders is not a priority and a matter of national security. Any action should should be driven with intergovernmental character. Central EU MS agree with that statement, claiming that this is exclusively a border management problem, and this is a matter of securitization “Fortress Europe” to protect their citizenship and economy.
Immigration is a social movement that has been severely increased by the globalization trends. The free movement of capital, services and people within the EU has contributed greatly to the spreading of the idea of border free movement and demonstrated the benefits of this idea. At the same time, it has also showed the extremes that might be caused by the uncontrolled migration waves. As a result, many states have introduced the laws and regulations that that ban any language other than English, deny government services to undocumented immigrants, and penalize citizens who ”assist” them. Though such measures can be understood, they are viewed more as the restrains for the human freedom and economic growth. It is presumed that the
Thody, P. M. W. 1997.An historical introduction to the European Union. [e-book] London: Routledge. p. 1. Available through: Ebrary http://site.ebrary.com/lib/aberdeenuniv/docDetail.action?docID=10057275 [Accessed: 26 Mar 2014].
In the Middle East, the refugee crisis has sent hundreds of thousands of immigrants all around the world. Immigrants from the refugee crisis, and around the world have turned to Europe as a new place to live. More specifically, they turned to the European Union, or the EU. The EU is comprised of 28 member countries, soon to be 27. This caused many problems. This transition was difficult for Europeans and it caused tensions among them. It has sparked nervousness among EU citizens because of things like possible terrorism. There has also been a lot of racism and hate toward immigrants and overall it has been hard for immigrants and EU citizens to adapt to the change. The EU has done a terrible job handling this crisis and has proven to be the
The enlargement of the European Union (EU) in 2004 and 2007 has been termed as the largest single expansion of the EU with a total of 12 new member states – bringing the number of members to 27 – and more than 77 million citizens joining the Commission (Murphy 2006, Neueder 2003, Ross 2011). A majority of the new member states in this enlargement are from the eastern part of the continent and were countries that had just emerged from communist economies (EC 2009, Ross 2011), although overall, the enlargement also saw new member states from very different economic, social and political compared to that of the old member states (EC 2009, Ross 2011). This enlargement was also a historical significance in European history, for it saw the reunification of Europe since the Cold War in a world of increasing globalization (EC 2009, Mulle et al. 2013, Ross 2011). For that, overall, this enlargement is considered by many to have been a great success for the EU and its citizens but it is not without its problems and challenges (EC 2009, Mulle et al. 2013, Ross 2011). This essay will thus examine the impact of the 2004/2007 enlargements from two perspectives: firstly, the impact of the enlargements on the EU as a whole, and thereafter, how the enlargements have affected the new member states that were acceded during the 2004/2007 periods. Included in the essay will be the extent of their integration into the EU and how being a part of the Commission has contributed to their development as nation states. Following that, this essay will then evaluate the overall success of the enlargement process and whether the EU or the new member states have both benefited from the accessions or whether the enlargement has only proven advantageous to one th...
As German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated, “If Europe fails on the question of refugees, then it won’t be the Europe we wished for”.
Weiler, Joseph H.H.: «Community, Member States and European Integration: Is the Law Relevant?», Journal of Common Market Studies 21 (1982), pp. 39-56.
Immigration within and into Europe has increased in recent years, with local populations' anxieties raised(Pilcher 2010, p445). I will look at the socio-cultural challenges which immigration introduces. These include the real and perceived impacts on native populations, and the policy responses which stem from the issues. Next, economic well-being is an aspect of the immigration question that will be examined. I will consider soem of the various problems which are encountered in tackling this subject. While attempts to reach conclusions of the de facto effects of immigration in terms of the economies are not made, considering the arguments made may help in gauging the extent of the challenge that immigration poses. I will also examine some of the structural changes which immigration makes in the political sphere, with electoral and representative politics being affected. With constituencies changing significantly throughout several countries, the resultant shifts in terms of policy and governance are concerns which need to be taken seriously.