Yakovyuk I.V., Mamychev A.Yu., Shestopal S.S. European Union through the prism of the imperial model of authority

Abstract: The subject of this article is the model of organization authority within the European Union, which the researchers of European integration traditionally refer to as one of the varieties of international organizations, characterize as the supranational organization or quasi-federative institution, and sometimes compare with confederation. However, the discussions regarding its legal nature were not as contentious, and the conclusions made were practically free of controversies. In the late 1980’s the process of unification of the state within the framework of the European Union was accelerated and captured not only economic, but also social, cultural, and most importantly political spheres. As the result of these trends, the construct of the EU began to gravitate towards greater centralization; its identity became more blurred, and its final goal – undefined. The goal of this work is to analyze the features of the imperial organization of authority and compare them with the existing realities of organization of the European Union. The authors come to a conclusion that a successful realization of the properties and functions of the empire can gradually lead to the establishment of sociopolitical system, which despite the presence of individual qualities, will possess a number of universal characteristics that can be empirically found in any empire. It is evident that such conclusion equally pertains to the European Union. But such vector of development of the events carries an opportunistic or rather hypothetical character, rather than categorical. The evolutionary process of the EU government structure is currently in the dynamic phase, and it is virtually impossible to establish an unambiguous temporary interpolation of these reforms.

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