User:Ssolbergj/Federal Europe
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Federal Europe is a speculative scenario where a politically united Europe, usually in the modern context of the European Union (EU), would acquire the full features of a federation.
There are no current formal plans for the EU to declare federal status, although some see it as what would be the final step of European integration. In the past however, various empires and military powers have achieved control over large parts of the European continent, and often introduced state-like structures by force. Notable among these are the Roman Empire, the First French Empire, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
The most recent, and the only 'attempt' based on factual democracy and voluntary enlargement, is the European Union. Its member states have throughout fifty years been intergovernmentally pooling powers, harmonised national policies and created supranational institutions. How far this integration should go, and whether or not federalism is desirable, is subject to much debate.
Although often limited to certain fields of policy, the current nation-like features of the EU include the European Parliament, a common civil service (the European Commission), a single Foreign Representative, a common Security and Defence Policy, a supranational court (European Court of Justice) and a record of deploying many peacekeeping forces. Most of the Union also has open internal borders and the euro is adopted by most EU countries as a shared single currency.
The term "United States of Europe" is often used among writers of speculative fiction and science fiction, political scientists and futurologists, drawing parallels to the United States of America.[1] This concrete comparison provokes opposition among some EU citizens.