Germany’s integration into the West
30 December 2023 | Author/Destination: European Union / Europäische Union | Rubric: General, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 7 minutes Western integration, also known as western ties, is understood to mean the inclusion of the Federal Republic, founded in 1949 as a western German state, in treaties with western states. These were used to make foreign, security and economic policy decisions. The Western powers combined two goals with Germany’s integration into the West. On the one hand, the integration of Germany was intended to serve the security of the Western European states from Germany, which had posed a threat to its neighboring states in the past. On the other hand, West Germany should make a contribution to the security of the Western European states from the Soviet Union, whose troops were stationed on the Elbe due to the Warsaw Pact. With the Paris Agreements in 1955, the Federal Republic was finally integrated into the Western community of states and the Atlantic security community. This marked the first conclusion, which on the German side was influenced by the policies of Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. Because of Adenauer’s policy of ties to the West, the Federal Republic integrated itself into the political, economic and military alliances of the West after 1949. read more…German liberal democratic basic order
21 October 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, Editorial, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 6 minutes The liberal democratic basic order (German: freiheitliche demokratische Grundordnung (FDGO)) is a fundamental term in German constitutional law. It determines the unalienable, invariable core structure of the German commonwealth. As such, it is the core substance of the German constitution. Building upon more general definitions of liberal democracy, the term has a specific legal meaning in Germany and is part of the German (originally West German) system of a Streitbare Demokratie (“fortified democracy”) that bans attempts to dismantle the liberal democratic basic order by what German authorities refer to as “enemies of the Constitution” or “extremists”. read more…The European Union: Common Fisheries Policy
24 September 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, Editorial, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 14 minutes The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the fisheries policy of the European Union (EU). It sets quotas for which member states are allowed to catch each type of fish, as well as encouraging the fishing industry by various market interventions. In 2004 it had a budget of €931 million, approximately 0.75% of the EU budget. read more…The European Union: Common Agricultural Policy
22 September 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, Editorial, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 9 minutesThe Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is the agricultural policy of the European Union. It implements a system of agricultural subsidies and other programmes. It was introduced in 1962 and has since then undergone several changes to reduce the EEC budget cost (from 73% in 1985, to 37% in 2017) and consider rural development in its aims. It has however, been criticised on the grounds of its cost, its environmental, and humanitarian effects. read more…
The European Union: European Sky Shield Initiative
12 September 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, Editorial, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 6 minutesEuropean Sky Shield Initiative (ESSI) is a project to build a ground-based integrated European air defense system which includes anti-ballistic missile capability. As of July 2023, nineteen European states participate in the initiative. ESSI is part of the Common Security and Defense Policy and as such is designed to complement and relieve the burden on NATO. read more…
European Political Community (EPC)
3 June 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, Editorial, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 7 minutes The European Political Community (EPC) is an intergovernmental forum for political and strategic discussions about the future of Europe, established in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The group first met in October 2022 in Prague, with participants from 44 European countries, as well as the Presidents of the European Council and the European Commission. read more…The European Union: European Universities initiative
31 May 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, EU blog post series, European Union, Universities, Colleges, Academies Reading Time: 5 minutes At the 2017 Gothenburg Summit, European Union (EU) leaders outlined a vision for education and culture. In its December 2017 Conclusions, the European Council called on EU Member States, the Council and the Commission to take forward a number of initiatives, including read more…The European Union: Artificial Intelligence Act
28 May 2023 | Author/Destination: Knut Wingsch | Rubric: General, EU blog post series, European Union Reading Time: 69 minutes(Latest update: 10 February 2024) The Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) is a regulation proposed on 21 April 2021 by the European Commission which aims to introduce a common regulatory and legal framework for artificial intelligence. Its scope encompasses all sectors (except for military), and to all types of artificial intelligence. As a piece of product regulation, the proposal does not confer rights on individuals, but regulates the providers of artificial intelligence systems, and entities making use of them in a professional capacity. read more…