The article is part of the Topical Collection on The Future of Europe, guest-edited by Markus Pausch.
Abstract
What could be the legitimation basis of the European Union (EU)? This article questions the idea of two constitution-making subjects in the EU and claim there is and can only be one constituting subject even in a multilevel configuration like the EU. The EU can thus not be seen as a federation of nation states. Rather it must be seen as a quasi-federation of states and citizens united under a common legal framework with a universalistic underpinning. The EU’s commitment to basic human principles means that it has a communal vocation that is broader and more universal than that of a multinational federation.
Full info
Erik O. Eriksen
'Regional Cosmopolitanism: The EU in Search of its Legitimation'
European Journal of Futures Research, 2:51, 4 December 2014, Vol.2(1), pp.1-9
DOI: 10.1007/s40309-014-0051-8