The Lisbon Treaty stipulates that the European Union's and the Member States' actions should be guided by the principles that inspired its creation. These principles are democracy, the rule of law, human rights. However, influence from outside forces can affect the European Union's unity, and leave Member …

The goal of this research is to examine the differences between the Netherlands and Germany, when it comes to European integration. The central question in this thesis is: “Why do the Netherlands and Germany differ on further European integration?”. Through desk research and field research, in the form …

In July 2013, the EU and the US began negotiating a comprehensive trade and investment treaty: TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership). This was the beginning of a hefty public debate on the – supposed – contents of the agreement, such regulatory cooperation and ISDS. In the Netherlands, …

Emerging during the negotiations for the unratified Constitutional Treaty and officially launched with the Treaty of Lisbon, the European Citizens' Initiative allows citizens to invite the European Commission to propose legislation to the European Parliament and the Council based on an idea which gathers …

This study examines the role the European Union Battlegroups can play in accomplishing EU security goals. In doing so, an assessment is made of the capabilities and shortcomings of the Battlegroups in light of EU defence ambitions. The security environment of the European Union is changing. Since the …

This research is an attempt to find an answer to the question “How can the EU and UN encourage de-escalation in the Korean Peninsula?”. Each chapter will be divided in a part on the European Union (EU hereafter) and a part on the United Nations (UN hereafter). During the first part, the research will …

The Dutch ‘NO’ during the Dutch referendum regarding the treaty establishing the European Constitution in 2005 was considered a political earthquake for the integration process of the European Union. A high percentage of ‘NO’-voters (>80%) lived in the five Dutch municipalities of Urk, Reiderland, Staphorst, …

At the end of the 1940s and the early 1950s, the question whether or not to rearm West Germany was a fiercely and hotly debated topic in Europe. The Americans suggested doing this by integrating the Federal Republic in NATO. However, many Europeans feared the resurgence of German militarism. Nowhere …

This study was commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs of the European Parliament. It analyses the political and legal dynamics behind referendums on EU-related matters. It …

The European Union (EU) and the United States of America (US) are currently negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). TTIP was launched in 2013. TTIP aims at developing trade rules under investment protection that encompasses arbitration as the method to resolve disputes …