An ethnonational perspective on territorial politics in the EU: east–west comparisons from a pilot study

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between European integration and ethnonational demands with the example of selected regions in the European Union (EU). It follows the theoretical premises of new regionalism and explores the ways in which ethnonational groups use the opportunities and resources of European governance to express their identities, material interests, and political demands. Methodologically, it conducts a plausibility probe of the potential effects of European integration on ethnonationalism by testing for regional differences in identities, interests, and political attitudes. The case studies are drawn from the UK (Wales and Scotland), Belgium (Flanders), Austria (Carinthia and Burgenland), Romania (Northwest and Center regions), and Bulgaria (South-Central and South-Eastern regions) as a representative selection of regional interests in the EU. The paper finds that European integration affects ethnonational groups by reinforcing identity construction in the direction of inclusiveness and diversity. Although regional actors are more supportive of the EU than the European publics in general, they also seek access to representation in the authority structures of the state. Based on these findings, the paper concludes that European integration facilitates a growing public acceptance of its resources, in parallel with persisting allegiances to the nation-state, the community, and ethnoregional distinctiveness.

Keywords:

• European integration
• ethnonational groups
• new regionalism

Notes

^†A previous version of the paper was presented the Annual Conference of the European Consortium for Political Research, Reykjavik, 25–27 August 2011.

1. Ethnonationalism, similarly to the concept of a multinational state or a national minority, has yet to be adopted as a consensus definition by political elites. It is not defensible by constitutional provisions. The articulation of collective rights for national groups faces difficulties in a liberal democratic context which posits the individual as the bearer of rights. While the definition of a multinational state is unproblematic in the UK, it is not so in France or Bulgaria.

2. The concept of a “Europe of the regions” has not affected the constitutional order of the EU member states. The EU's regional policies do not require constitutional territorial restructuring through formal devolution. These policies seek rather pragmatic effects: economic efficiency, convergence, and redistribution. The organizing perspective is that of governance and not the creation of a new legal-territorial order. Although a single administrative framework of territorial classification was introduced for the implementation of the structural funds (the NUTS system), the EU does not require substantive decentralization and effective transfer of political authority toward the regional level.

3. The European Election Study, Voters Survey, http://www.piredeu.eu/public/Voters.asp.