Chapter 1. The road ahead for the European Union: between federal union and flexible integration (Antonina Bakardjieva Engelbrekt, Per Ekman, Anna Michalski and Lars Oxelheim).- Chapter 2. Enlargement and the watering down of democracy: A Union in existential crisis (Daniel Silander).- Chapter 3. The state of rule of law in Europe: The EU in a limbo between federalism and flexible integration (Anna Södersten).- Chapter 4. Parliament as an arena for political opposition to EU policy: wasteland or conflict zone? (Christer Karlsson, Moa Mårtensson and Thomas Persson), etc.

“Putin’s barbaric war in Ukraine tests the EU as never before. Since the invasion in February 2022, we have witnessed unity among EU member states and staunch solidarity with Ukraine. It is important that this continues. But what are the options for the next steps in the EU’s future: increased federalism or flexible integration? This volume offers valuable answers and insights across a wide range of key issues from the rule of law to economic, security, industrial policies, and income inequality. The volume provides a rich source of essential knowledge on the state of the EU.”

—Anders Ahnlid, Director General of National Board of Trade Sweden. Formerly Sweden’s ambassador to Finland, the EU and the OECD, and Director General for Trade in the MFA

Against a backcloth of tumultuous events in Europe, the EU faces once again the fateful question of integrating in federal union or pursuing flexible integration. The sixth volume of Interdisciplinary European Studiesexplores changes to the EU’s policies, institutions and political structures to assess patterns of integration and cooperation. It brings together scholars from economics, law, and political science to provide insights into issues with a bearing on the EU’s future, including the rule of law, the European defence union, the European public prosecutor’s office, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, and European parliamentary democracy. It presents up-to-date research and offers succinct assessments of the current state of affairs, including policy recommendations for decision-makers on European and national levels.

Antonina Bakardjieva Engelbrekt is Professor of European Law at the Faculty of Law of Stockholm University, Sweden.

Per Ekman is researcher in Political Science at the Department of Government, Uppsala University, Sweden.

Anna Michalski is Associate Professor in Political Science at the Department of Government, Uppsala University,and Chair of the Swedish Network for European Studies in Political Science.

Lars Oxelheim is Professor of International Business and Finance at University of Agder, Norway, Professor Emeritus at Lund University and affiliated to the Research Institute of Industrial Economics, Sweden.

“Putin’s barbaric war in Ukraine tests our European Union as never before. Since the invasion on 24 February 2022, we have seen unity among EU member states and staunch solidarity with Ukraine. It is important that this continues. But what are the options for the next steps with regard to the future of the EU? Increased federalism or more flexible integration? This volume offers valuable answers and insights regarding a wide selection of key issues, ranging from the rule of law to economic, security and industrial policy, as well as income inequality. The volume provides a rich source of essential knowledge on the state of the European Union.” (Anders Ahnlid, Director General of National Board of Trade Sweden. Formerly Sweden’s ambassador to Finland, the European Union and the OECD, and Director General for Trade in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs)

Addresses constant tensions between intergovernmentalism and supranationalism in the process of European integration Discusses current developments taking the EU on the route toward federalism Assesses the future direction of European integration

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