This clear and comprehensive introduction to the European Union considers its development through the theme of crisis and renewal. John Van Oudenaren describes EU institutions and policies, both historically and as they relate to current events. He traces the renewal of the EU that was underway at the end of the 2010s following the euro, migration, and Brexit crises and the health, economic, and political crisis that subsequently hit the Union with unexpected force in the coronavirus pandemic of 2020–2021. Exploring how institutions and policies are adapting to unprecedented political, economic, and geopolitical challenges, the author focuses on two key EU priorities—digitization and the transition to a carbon neutral future. These, he argues, are both intrinsic policy goals and the means by which the Union hopes to ensure its revitalization and its emergence as a “sovereign” power, taking its place alongside the United States and China as one of the big three players in global politics. Explaining the different theoretical perspectives used to understand the EU, the book gives students the tools they need to assess whether the Union is on a path to recovery and renewal.

Table of Contents:
List of Boxes List of Tables List of Abbreviations Chronology 1 Introduction: The EU in an Age of Crisis A Decade of Triumph Deepening and Widening A European Identity A Decade of Crisis The Eurozone Crisis The Ukraine Crisis The Refugee Crisis Brexit Anti-EU Populism The Specter of Disintegration Resilience and Recovery The Coronavirus Crisis The Quest for Renewal Key Issues History and Theory Outline of the Book Suggestions for Further Reading | Online Sources of Information about the EU | Notes 2 European Integration in Historical Perspective The Early Postwar Years The Marshall Plan and the OEEC The Brussels Treaty and NATO The Council of Europe The Federal Republic of Germany Supranational versus Intergovernmental Approaches to Integration The European Coal and Steel Community The Schuman Declaration The European Defense Community The European Economic Community and Euratom The Spaak Committee and the Treaties of Rome The Institutional Framework 1958–1969: Formative Years A “Europe of the Nations” Britain and EFTA The Empty Chair Crisis Great Expectations: The Hague Summit and the 1970s The Hague Summit The European Council and Direct Elections to the European Parliament The Mediterranean Enlargement and the EMS Relaunch in the 1980s The Single Market Program Institutional Reform Economic and Monetary Union Breakthroughs in the 1990s The Treaty of Maastricht The EFTA Enlargement Preparing for Eastern and Southern Enlargement The Treaty of Amsterdam The Euro The Treaty of Nice and Enlargement The Constitutional Convention and the Treaty of Lisbon Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 3 Institutions and the Constitutional Order Values and Aims The Institutions The European Council The Council of Ministers The European Commission The European Parliament The Court of Justice of the European Union The Court of Auditors Other EU Bodies The Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions The European Investment Bank EU Agencies Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 4 Legislation and the Budget EU Law Principles of Union Law How Laws Are Made Regulations, Directives, and Decisions The Budget The Multiannual Financial Framework Proposals for Reform Responding to the Pandemic Next Generation EU The 2021–2027 MFF Rebates Own Resources Conditionality and the Rule of Law Finalizing the Package The Role of the European Parliament Hungary and Poland Balk Moving Forward Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 5 The Single Market The Customs Union The Single Market Program The 1985 White Paper The Commission’s Strategy Implementing 1992 Goods Services Capital Persons Overall Results The Single Market after 1992 Targets and Campaigns Enforcement The Single Market in the 2020s Implementation and Enforcement New Areas The Single Market and the EU and the World Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 6 Internal Policies The Common Agricultural Policy The Community and the CAP Early Reforms The 2013 Reform The 2020 Reforms The Common Fisheries Policy Competition Policy Anticompetitive Practices by Firms Anticompetitive Practices by Governments—State Aids Competition and Industrial Policy in the 2020s The Common Transport Policy Trans-European Networks Environmental Policy Climate Change The European Green Deal Cohesion Policy Cohesion and Enlargement The Funds and Their Objectives Controversy and Conditionality Social Policy Research and Development Other Policy Areas Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 7 The Euro and Its Discontents Background The European Monetary System Europe Responds to the Dollar Toward a Fixed Regime Toward EMU Delors Leads the Way Economic Pros and Cons The Maastricht Negotiations Stage 2 and Convergence The Stability and Growth Pact The Birth of the Euro The Lisbon Strategy Economic and Monetary Policy Economic Policy Monetary Policy The Eurozone Crisis Origins and Underlying Causes The Crisis Breaks The Changing Role of the ECB Reform of EMU Governance The Economic Consequences of the Coronavirus Crisis Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 8 Citizens, Immigrants, and Refugees: The Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice From Economic Community to a Citizens Union The Trevi Group and Schengen Maastricht and the Third Pillar The Amsterdam Reforms The Area of Freedom, Security and Justice The Tampere and Hague Programs The Treaty of Lisbon The Stockholm Program and Beyond Europol and Frontex Immigration as an Enduring Challenge The New Pact on Migration and Asylum Citizenship and Nondiscrimination Article 7 and the Rule of Law Mechanism The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 9 Enlargement and Wider Europe Enlargement Process The Western Balkans Prospects The 2020 Enhanced Accession Process Turkey EU-Turkey Relations Unintended Consequences and Lessons Learned The European Neighborhood Policy The “Ring of Friends” Eastern Partnership Union for the Mediterranean The ENP Meets Reality The EEA, Switzerland, and the Post-Brexit UK Brexit The 2020 Negotiations The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 10 The EU as a Global Actor I: Trade, Regulation, and the Euro The EU and International Trade The Common External Tariff and the Common Commercial Policy GATT and the WTO Dispute Settlement The Doha Round Preferential Trade Agreements The OACP Countries Conditionality in EU Trade Policy The EU as a Regulatory Power Anti-Trust Taxation Privacy and Cross-Border Data Flows The International Role of the Euro Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 11 The EU as a Global Actor II: Foreign Policy and Defense The Common Foreign and Security Policy Multilateralism and the 2003 and 2016 Global Strategies Russia China The Strategy for Africa Other Regions The EU as a Security and Defense Actor From ESDP to CSDP The Declaration on European Defense The Treaty of Lisbon and PESCO The European Defense Fund Results to Date Cooperation with NATO Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 12 EU-U.S. Relations The United States and European Integration Shifting U.S. Attitudes Institutionalizing of Ties Economic Relations Trade and Investment Bilateral Trade and Investment Initiatives TTIP—Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Trade Relations under Trump Disputes and the Judicialization of Trade Relations Data Issues and the Digital Economy Mutual Grievances Foreign and Security Policy Cooperation Areas of Cooperation The Debate over Multilateralism Cooperation against International Terrorism Climate Change and Iran A New Start? EU-U.S. Relations under the Biden Administration Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 13 The EU and the Member States: Four Cases France Germany Italy Poland Conclusions Suggestions for Further Reading | Notes 14 Crisis versus Renewal: What Future for the EU? Notes Index