ANSWER EXPLANATIONS

EUROPEAN UNION

ANSWER EXPLANATIONS _ SUPRANATIONALISM AND THE EUROPEAN UNION (QUESTIONS PAGES 178-180IN THE COURSEBOOK)
its members can vote to establish a peacekeeping force in a "hotspot" and request states to contribute military forces. The body responsible for making this decision is the Security Council, and any one of its five permanent members (the U.S., Britain, France, China, and Russia) may veto a proposed peacekeeping action. During the era of the Cold War, the Security Council was often in gridlock because the U.S. and Russia almost always disagreed. Today that gridlock is broken, but it is still difficult for all five countries to agree on a single course of action. Peacekeeping forces have been sent to calm warring forces in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan

l. D - An important power of the U.N. is that

Africa. in 1957 . lts most important provisions called for the elimination of all tariffs between European nations and the creation of new ones that applied to all. By 1957,the organization had evolved from its beginnings to revitalize a war-torn Europe after World War Il ended. The most immediate need was to repair the nations' broken economies, so the initial goals were almost completely economic in intent.
2. C

The Treaty of Rome established the EEC

informally named the "Common Market"

3. B - The older member-states with the strongest economies are the most likely to have enlargement fatigue, so France is the best answer. The rapid growth of the EU has brought about this enlargement fatigue. Polls show a decline in support for enlargement among EU voters, and many believe that the French and Dutch rejections of the European Constitution

partly reflected dissatisfaction over the 2004 enlargement. Also, many EU governments have lost their enthusiasm for further growth, particularly France, Germany, and Austria. The economic benefits of the recent expansions are still questionable, and the concerns surrounding Turkey have cooled some support.
The ECJ is the supreme court of the European Union, and it has the power ofjudicial review. It meets in Luxembourg, where it interprets European law, and its decisions may limit national sovereignty. For example, the ECJ ruled against Italy's policy of jailing illegal migrants who do not obey expulsion orders. ln 201l, it decided that insurance companies in Britain were not allowed to charge women drives (less of an accident risk) a lower premium than men. As such, the ECJ is more powerful than most national judicial systems of the EU's member-states. It has a broad jurisdiction, and hears cases that rule on disagreements among the Commissioners, the Council of Ministers, and the members of parliament. It also may settle disputes among member nations, private companies, and individuals. The ECJ consists of 27 judges, with each one nominated by a different member state. Cases are decided by a simple majority.

4-B

strides in its ability to set European monetary policy, or the control of the money supply. Today the euro has replaced many of the old national currencies, which are well on their way to being phased out. Also, the power to set basic interest rates and other fiscal policies is being passed from national banks and governments to the European Monetary Union and its new central bank. Today, in most of the member countries, the euro is accepted as a common currency both in banking and for everyday business transactions. 5. D

- The EU has made remarkable

for judicial affairs. The aim was to establish within a few years the free movement of European Union citizens and non-EU nationals throughout the Union. Free movement has involved setting policy regarding visas, asylum, and immigration. Additionally, the Treaty of Amsterdam helped to define cooperation among national police forces and judicial authorities in combating crime. Although member nations may support an EU structure in areas ofjustice, freedom, and security, they are not compelled to participate. In these areas, Britain, Ireland, and Denmark restrict their participation to only a few select provisions.
6. E

- The 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam set major policy initiatives

7. A- The Commission currently has 27 members, one from each member state of the EU, supported by a bureaucracy of several thousand European civil servants. Each Commissioner takes responsibility for a particular area of policy, and heads a department called a Directorate General. The Commission is headed by a president, currently Jose Manuel Durao Barroso of Portugal. Although their home governments nominate thery, commissioners swear an oath of allegiance to the EU and are not supposed to take directions from their national governments. The Commission's main responsibility is to initiate and implement new programs, and it forms a permanent executive that supervises the work of the EU, much in the way that a national cabinet operates.

20

ANSWER EXPLANATIONS- ETIROPEAN TINION

The Lisbon Treaty did not require all members to use tlre euro as a cornmon currency. Several do not, irrcluding Britain and Sweden. The treaty strengthened the role of the European Parliament, clarified the relationship between member-states and the EU, allowed for withdrawal of rnember-states, and created a pennanent president of the EU.

8. E

9. C - The European Union has long been defined by a tension between econornic liberalism that favors operr, free markets and an economic nationalism that seeks to protect national economic interests from the uncertainty of free nrarkets. The older, more established EU members tend to reflect the latter policy orientation, wlrile tlre newer, less economicallystable members often favor economic liberalism. Supranatiorralisrn encourages economic integration but tlre proper balance with national interests is often a controversial topic. The sovereign debt crisis that began with the near-collapse of the Greek economy in 2010 illustrates this tough issue, and the arguments that lrave erupted since tlren strike at the lreart of this old tension. The negative reactions in France and the Netherlands to the European Constitution reflect a growing resistance to integration, especially as the European Union membership continues to grow. Many fear that tlre power shift from nationalto supranational institutions will result in a democratic deficit, or the loss of direct control of political decisions by the people. The European Parliament is tlre only directly elected body, and it is the weakest of the major EU bodies. The EU, then, is perceived by many as lacking accountability to citizens in nrember-states. The provisiorrs of tlre Lisbon Treaty were meant to address these concerns, but it too was rejected by a popular referendum, this time in lrelarrd in June 2008. Howeveq the treaty was eventually ratified by all the member-states, and it went into effect in Decernber 2009.
10.

A-

RUBRIC FOR COUNTRY-CONTEXT FREE-RESPONSE QUESTTONS

(a) Define sovereignty. Define integration. (b) Explain two ways in which the European Union threatens the sovereigrrty of its member-states. (c) Explain two ways in which integration has taken place in Europe as a result of the formation of the European Union.
6 Points

Part (A): 2 points

I point is eamed for a correct definition of sovereignty as the ability for a state to carry out actions or policies withirr its borders independently from interference either from tlre inside or the outside. I point is earned for a correct definition of integration as a process that encourages states to pool their sovereignty order to gain political, economic, and social clout.
Part (b): 2 points
irr

I point
I point
states.

is earned for an accurate explanation of one way that the EU threatens the sovereignty of its member-states. is earned for an accurate explanation of a second way that the EU threatens the sovereignty

of its member-

Some possible explanations include:

' ' ' . . ' '

Economic policies of the European Central Bank may override policies of national banks in member-states. Individual member states do not have direct control over valuation of tlre euro. The weaker economies of new/weak members threaten the economies of stronger members. EU trade agreements may supersede those of member-states. The ECJ may rule against decisions made in national courts. The European Monetary Union sets interest rates and other fiscal policies that used to be set by national banks and governments.

Individual member-states must accept EU policies on free movement of citizens across borders

policies once set

ANSWER EXPLANATIONS- EI,IROPEAN

TjNION

2I

. '

by national governments. The EU Parliament may pass laws that conflict with national laws. The Commission may determine policies that heads of state arrd heads of government disagree with.

Part (c): 2 points

One point is earned for an accurate explanation of one way in which integration has taken place in Europe as a result the formation of the EU. One point is earned for an accurate explanation of a second way in which integration has taken place in Europe as a result of the formation of the EU.
Some possible explanations include:

of

. . . . . . . . .

common use of the euro centralization of banking functions in the European Central Bank policies setting free movement of citizens across borders set unifornr rules for fann subsidies set commorl interest rates
set common professional licenses

EJC settles disputes among member nations set standards for market-based economies set requirement for stable and functioning democracies