"Maximizing the integration capacity of the European Union: Lessons and prospects for enlargement and beyond" The Developmental Impact of the EU Integration Regime: Insights from the Automotive Industry in Europe's Peripheries

László Bruszt, Julia Langbein, Visnja Vukov, Emre Bayram, Olga Markiewicz, László Bruszt, Julia Langbein, Visnja Vukov, Emre Bayram, Olga Markiewicz, Ihnestr, László Bruszt (+9 others)
unpublished
Edited by the MAXCAP Project "Maximizing the integration capacity of the European Union: Lessons of and prospects for enlargement and beyond" (MAXCAP) The MAXCAP Working Paper Series serves to disseminate the research results of the research consortium by making them available to a broader public. It means to create new and strengthen existing links within and between the academic and the policy world on matters relating to the current and future enlargement of the EU. All MAXCAP Working Papers
more » ... are available on the MAXCAP website at www.maxcap-project.eu. Abstract How do diverse EU strategies used to integrate less developed economies in the Eastern peripheries of Europe effect local development? Introducing the distinction between 'shallow' and 'deep' EU integration regimes, we compare the evolution of the automotive sectors in four European countries (Poland, Ukraine, Romania, and Turkey). We show that diverse EU modes of integrating potential member states and economies without the clear prospect of membership create very different constraints and opportunities for developmental pathways. The shallow mode of integration used for countries lacking a (credible) membership perspective combines trade liberalization and selective rule imposition with very little assistance. It results in rather divergent developmental pathways for the EU 'outsiders'-depending on the stronger or weaker capacities of the domestic public and private actors. In contrast, we found that the deep mode of integration used for would be member states created more opportunities for convergence towards competitive industries, even in countries with weak initial domestic capacities. Our insights imply that encompassing deep integration may yield not only superior developmental results, but may also increase the potential for further economic integration. In the shallow mode of integration the EU may, however, loose support for European integration among rule taking countries once citizens realize they cannot count on measures mitigating and/or compensating for present economic hardships. In countries like Ukraine, the EU therefore risks to become a factor of economic and political destabilization.
fatcat:2v64vo4x7fhvdchje72tkv2t4q