PROJECT:
Implications of European Integration for the State and Sovereignty in a Transnational World
Our globalised world is also becoming more and more transnational, while the basic unit remains
a sovereign state. We can see the examples in the aspect of protecting citizens in security issues, the
problem of social justice in an economic regulatory competition, a possibility of constitutionalism in
international rule of law, cultural and linguistic diversity in territorial cohesion and so on.
Legally and formally sovereign states are the main actors in the world politics, but economically and
substantively private persons and enterprises make transnational activities in socio-economic terms
and it could qualitatively transform the role of the state and sovereignty.
In this context, looking back to the dialectic of supranationality and sovereignty in the European history,
the European Union (EU) is the avant-garde in the light of the Internal Market (in the wider sense), the Economic and
Monetary Union, Justice and Home Affairs, and the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
Our main topic is to be addressed is Implications of European Integration for the State and
Sovereignty in Transnational World. What can be learnt from the European experiences for the
globalised world is to strike as legitimate a balance as possible between sovereignty of the state and
transnationalism. Our approach will be, by nature, multidisciplinary in order to tackle the questions.
The core objectives to be achieved are as follows:
(1) the EU and Citizens in Security Governance:
We think it relevant to analyse how the CFSP will be developed in the future, particularly in terms of the so-called Petersberg tasks, to what extent EU citizens support the EU’s efforts to reinforce the CFSP and the ESDP, and why and how the EU should help non-EU citizens in humanitarian situations;
(2) Constitutional Pluralism in the EU and Transnational Rule of Law:
We find it pertinent to quest for a possibility to introduce constitutional pluralism and transnational rule of law among sovereign states and peoples, on the basis of the EU's experiences;
(3) Economic Prosperity and Democracy in the context of Europeanisation and Globalisation:
In order to have economic prosperity, the EU must strike a legitimate balance between sovereignty of the state and transnationalism, in both economic and social terms, globally as well as regionally;
(4) Historical Analysis on European Integration and State Sovereignty:
We will tackle the issue of how to reconcile transnationalism in the EU with the sovereignty of the Member States;
(5) Unity in Diversity in the context of European Cultural and Linguistic Policies:
We think it quite intriguing to study how to maintain the equilibrium between functional unity and cultural/linguistic diversity in a more heterogeneous EU.
By addressing these issues, we would be able to identify the conditions for democratic transnationalism in harmony with state sovereignty, maintaining peace and prosperity not only regionally but also globally.