Government and Politics in Europe December 25, 2014 By Hung-jen Wang 王宏仁

Today’s Outline I. The Government of France  Political Development II. The European Union: An Ever Closer Union?

I. The Government of France

 Social and Economic Development Economic performance? The distribution of wealth and the class structure? The culture of the country, its history, and the administrative structures.

 A number of contradictions: 1) The clash between Liberalism and Authoritarianism; /videos/napoleon-did-you-know #later-years /videos/napoleon-did-you-know #later-years 2) Nationalism and Internationalism; 3) Centralization and Decentralization

II. The European Union: An Ever Closer Union?

1952-The European Coal and Steel Community 1957-The European Economic Community (EEC) The European flag is the symbol not only of the European Union but also of Europe's unity and identity in a wider sense. The European flag consists of 12 golden stars in a circle on a blue background. The stars symbolise the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the peoples of Europe. The number of stars has nothing to do with the number of member countries, though the circle is a symbol of unity.

Historical Background Europe is not a given entity with a single past or tradition: (1) Europe vs. Christendom; (2) Diverse values: rationalism, individualism, democracy, communism, fascism, socialism and so on. A long lineage of the movement for European integration with the same reasons: peace, defense, power bloc, common culture, well-being, and trade. Motives for the development of the European Union: I. External factors : (1) the role of the US; (2) the fear of Soviet expansion. II. Economic factors : (1) recovery; (2) poor European markets. III. Political factors : (1) prevent intra-European conflict; (2) awe of American strength; (3) fear of Soviet imperialism.

A United States of Europe? The core of the different views toward European integration: the continued existence of sovereign nation-states. Intellectuals and political elites: 1946 Winston Churchill, “recreating the European family”; 1947 US Secretary of State George Marshall, “a joint recovery program based on self-help and mutual cooperation”; 1948, the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC); 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); 1949, the Council of Europe

European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) The first step to a European community: 1951 the Treaty of Paris, and 1952 ECSC

The European Economic Community The six ECSC countries discussed the proposals for a common market, customs union, and atomic energy. 1957, the treaties of Rome, and 1958 the European Economic Community (EEC)/ European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) 1965, ECSC, EEC, and Euratom were merged into the European Community (EC).

The Maastricht Treaty 1991, the Treaty on European Union at Maastricht (Netherlands); 1993, the European Union (EU), which is not founded on a constitution but on international treaties.

The Basic Features of the European Union EU membership criteria: democracy, a market economy, ability to compete in the single market, and ability to apply the laws and treaties of the EU Enlargement of the EU The EU is NOT a federal political system, but more than an intergovernmental agreement The EU does not operate on the basis of a clear separation of powers.

The Institutions of the EU 1) The European Commission 2) The Council of Ministers 3) The European Parliament 4) The Court of Justice

1) The European Commission

2) The Council of Ministers

3) The European Parliament

4) The Court of Justice