Integration Theory I

1
Integration Theory I

• Federalism, Transactionalism, and Functionalism

2
General Note

• During the Second world war and in its immediate
  aftermath, many scholars sought to elaborate a
  new type of political system which would
  facilitate cooperation between states and the
  preservation of international (or at least
  European) peace.
• Integration theory describes and explains the
  process of unifying separate nation-states. Early
  theories of integration contained a strong
  prescriptive element (what must be done), in
  contrast to later theories that are largely
  descriptive (what is done).

3
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• The federalist movement had strong roots in the
  European resistance movement, and even further
  back, in the writings of Count Coudehove-Kalergi
  and his influential book Pan Europa.
• In 1941 - Ventotene manifesto (Spinelli from
  prison) criticized the nation-state system and
  called for a movement of workers and
  intellectuals to create a European Federation, in
  order to provide security and social justice for
  all Europeans.

4
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• Spinelli believed that governments are
  simultaneously, the means and the obstacles to
  European unification
• Unification can only be achieved as a result of
  freely arrived by decisions by democratic
  governments.
• Opposition comes form the permanent agents of
  government (diplomats, military, civil servants)
  because they would suffer immediate and
  substantial loss of power and status.

5
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• Essential condition the existence of an
  independent movement for a European federation
• Should not be a political party, but an
  organization aimed at uniting all supporters of a
  European federation.
• It has to be a supranational organization uniting
  all federalists beyond their national allegiance.
  
• It must seek to establish direct influence on
  public opinion, outside national electoral
  campaigns.

6
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• Need for acute crisis.
• Use of a constituent assembly and not
  intergovernmental or diplomatic conferences.
• Constituent assembly a favorable attitude
  towards federal institutions is likely to be
  incomparably stronger than nationalists
  tendencies.

7
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• Afterwards, the public should be brought into the
  process through extensive public discourse and
  debatelegitimacy.
• Constituent European assembly followed the US
  model
• representatives meet to hash out model, public
  debate and discourse, democratic vote on plan by
  participating sub-units (yes or no w/o ability to
  amend) with some high threshold and a minimum
  number of states approving prior to
  implementation.

8
Federalism (Spinelli, Pistone)

• Spinnelis never shared the belief of
  functionalists that one can integrate selected
  sectors of national activity without a federalist
  constitutional framework from the beginning for
  two fundamental reasons
• National veto is retained, depriving European
  institutions of the capacity to overcome special
  interests that arise from the exercise of
  unfettered national sovereignty.
• The chaos and inefficiency which result from the
  lack of common management of the interdependent
  economies of modern states and of their foreign
  and defense policies.

9
Transactionalism/communications (Deutsch)

• Successful integration requires a sense of
  community- a we feeling, a core political
  area, and a rise in administrative capabilities.
• Mutual transactions or communications were a
  necessary but insufficient prerequisite for the
  development of a political community.
• Thus travel, trade, telecommunications, and
  postal links might in themselves lead to mutual
  relevance but without creating mutual
  responsiveness, they would fail to create a sense
  of community.

10
Transactionalism/communications (Deutsch)

• Mutually responsive transactions complex
  learning process from which shared symbols,
  identities, habits of cooperation, memories,
  values and norms would emerge.
• The issue of political integration arose when
  people demanded greater capabilities, greater
  performance, greater responsiveness, and more
  adequate services from the government.

11
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• Functionalism was not a theory of European
  integration. Mitrany was opposed to the project
  of European regional integration.
• A central tenet of Mitranys work was his
  opposition to nationalism , and the territorial
  organization of power, which he saw as a threat
  to world peace.
• Mitrany maintained that peace will not be secured
  if we organize the world by what it divides it.

12
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• Mitrany had a number of problems with federalism
  as a solution to the problem of war in Europe
• Federalism would only change the arena/level of
  conflict, not avoid it.
• No guarantee that the necessary political
  consensus could be achieved to create the new
  constitutional framework which a federation would
  require.
• Functionalism prescribed integration that was
  pragmatic, technocratic and flexible and above
  all apolitical.

13
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• A web of international activities above
  national and political divisions would integrate
  the lives and interests of all the nations.
• Focus on the needs of the citizens, focus on
  problem-solving. Functionalism was skeptical of
  the ability of states to solve problems.
• Apolitical technocrats were identified as more
  suitable agents for problem solving and creating
  institutions to address human needs.

14
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• Institutions evolve as a consequence of the tasks
  being undertaken, form follows function.
  Institutions should be designed in an open-minded
  and flexible fashion.
• Rules, experts, and the principle of technical
  self-determination, rather than territorial
  structures or national politicians, facilitate
  the decline of ideological conflict and allow
  peaceful cooperation to develop on a world-wide
  scale.

15
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• Interlocking institutions will create mutual
  dependencies and make war unfeasible regardless
  of ideological differences that divide states.
• Citizens will approve because of general
  improvement of services without the need to adopt
  a new political order.
• Architects of ECSC borrowed certain schemes while
  they abolished Mitranys central goal the
  dissolution of territorially based authorities.

16
Functionalism (Mitrany)

• Critics functionalism is hopelessly naïve in
  that it relies on the unreasonable assumption
  that people and governments can act rationally
  rather than out of political motivations,
  passions, and ideology.
• The division between technical,
  non-controversial, economic issues on the one
  hand and political issues on the other hand was
  flawed. Economic integration may be based on
  political motives and frequently begets political
  consequences.
• Functionalism places excessive faith in the
  objectivity and effectiveness of technocrats who
  obviously have their own biases and cognitive
  limitations.