Der Kontext der Europäischen Union

In the second half of the 20th century regional integration became a global phenomenon. There is no permanently-settled part of the world that is not covered by regional institutions, only very few states that are not part of an integration process and even fewer states whose governments want to leave a regional institution. This books investigates the conditions for the globalisation of this phenomenon, but does not primarily link it to institutions, rather taking as its starting point the collectives which are supposed to legitimise the institutions. Regional integration is thus characterised as a long-lasting, often conflict-ridden process of accommodation between multiplicity and hybridity. The study documents on the one hand the great age of this process in some parts of the world, especially in East Asia, North America, East and West Africa, the South Pacific and in the Mediterranean-European region, and analyses on the other processes of integration since 1945 in all parts of the world. It therefore places the European Union in today’s global context, and at the same time shows the depth of time in which regional integration has taken place, and explains its current wide reach.