Essay on Regional integration theoretically explained to understand the development of the EU south Caucasus

In the thesis, the topic of regional integration theoretically explained to understand the development of the EU south Caucasus.. (Due to a short time limit, the deal did not make probably to explain the evolution of Russia-South Caucasus relationship). Most of the researchers tried to elaborate on the process of integration, which is held in the past and continues proceeding in daily routine. Mainly, you would find many theories on this topic, and these theories were defined relationship of European Union with other unions, but in this study, we choose the regional integration, despite other interesting and fantastic theories, and the method is “Regional Integration,” and another term which is used for this method is Neo-Functionalism.

The approach Neo-Functionalism was based on regional integration, and this theory had been firstly introduced in the last decades of the 1950s and then get popular as Neo-Functionalism and driven by Ernest Haas and Leon Lindberg. Neo-Functionalism as it was on the topic of regional integration, and this theory want to explain the procedure of political integration,  specifically the European integration, and this theory does not pay attention to the formation of aims in the last of the approach. Instead of this, the study describes how the expand Europe looks after having the integration. As well as for the political alliance, according to Haas:

Political integration is the process where every political participant persuades to shift their loyalties with distinct national settings, political activities, and expectations towards the new center, where the institute's demands or ownership and the power to interrupt against the pre-existing national states.

Neo-functionalism is the main concept, which is also known as “spillover.” And the thesis is based on the spillover idea. As Haas stated it the cooperation of policy area and the field develops the pressure in the other related domains, and this will lead towards farther Integration. As per the logic of spillover, Haas said that overflow is the central mechanism that explains the expansive philosophy of integration categorized developing terms and conditions. There were various basic concepts of the snowball effect; a snowball effect can refer to as the Functional spill-over and cultivated spill-over. Functional spillover described as the sectoral spillover, which results in the attachment of another policy sector, majorly economy. The logic behind the functional overflow in one industry is integration, which builds the pressure for integration in related areas.

Political overflow because of national directly elite the expectations, activities of being fair with the supranational institutions, which became the most inspirational for the procedure of integration, and federal states and government participants were less contradictory. Enhancing the importance of Integration, one should need to build the demand for political control, as well as the accountability at the supranational level.

The Cultivated spillover can also be referred to as an institutional spillover, which pays more attention to the role of supernatural institutes, in a European Union,in the commission, parliament and European justice court. The participants of the institutes will take part in the process of spillover, and in functional and political on the, otherside the supranational actors and the commissions also provide the government of the European Union states members to explore the interest and the ways of efficient cooperation. In other meaning, the commission tried to find out the ground for the integration procedure and their role as a mediator or as the supplier of the ideas.

It is essential to describe that the snowball effect identifies by the Neo-Functionalism and this is not limited to the political and functional spillover also known as geographical spillover, according to Haas. Haas suggested that mutual understanding between the group of members of the states that this has an effect and impact on the member that has no membership, at least changing the presenting trade patterns. Meanwhile the responses of the non-membership clients of the states pay an effect on the integration procedure. As McGowan, Lee mentions in other words in their journal that geographical phases of spillover pay emphasis on the degree on where the EU effected the non-member states and how these state changed their domestic systems abide by doing simple work(e.g. Norway) or been concerned (states accession) to attain the EU norms and rules.

Neo-Functionalism had to face much criticism, but the synopsis does not pay attention to this after reviewing the past information about theory is and how and when this theory was developed, and then the argument mainly moves forward to attempt and explain the creation of EU-South Caucasus relationship. But rather than this, the link will be analyzed through regional and functional spillover.

The connection between the South Caucasus and EU can be build up when Soviet Union was diminished. The agreements were firstly signed from both sides and partnership can be made to understand the link between the deals in (PCAs) in 1996, implantation can be done in 1999, which had been concluded the nine formers of Soviet Union states. The agreements aim to boost up the democracy and build the economy by helping in a broad range of areas and by the political discussion. The corporate council had the setup to make sure that agreements were correctly applied. At this time of period, such corporations were entirely appropriate for the EU,but after some time situation was changed in the era of 2000s. CEE countries joined the EU in 2004, and Bulgaria and Romania tried to join the EU and to make the nautical borders with south Caucasus. EU realized at the same time that they want the energy to get aware of the importance of South Caucasus. And after this EU understood that regional approaches were due to its strategic location. These all were the snowballed reasons, which are later on followed by the realization that new incentives were needed in the relationship. According to PCAs the European neighborhood policy for spillover, which provides the free link, which is built by mutual commitment and by the shared values. And it also offers deeper integration and political association to enhance the mobility to increase the people to people contacts. After some years of formation of ENP, the farther cooperation was needed, or in other words, we also said that integration is a sector which produced the pressure for integration in related areas. EaP is the further brach of the ENP in the eastern dimensions, and these dimensions offers a closer relationship with EU, and the gradual integration into the EU economy, in opening markets, partnership mobility, most natural way to travel to the EU for citizens, greater access for the workers, prospects the new generation in the Association of the agreements, and increase the financial assistance. However it is difficult for the relationship development to be said, but the neo-functional approach did not say anything about the aims in the last of the integration and how integrated Europe will look like, and paying attention to the procedure of incorporation by itself, so even from this point of view which would be applied on the mutual understanding EU-south Caucasus .

According to the geographical spillover perspective, the “expansion” to the CEE gain the recent neighbors, which were developed the necessary expand farther and to extend and spread the regime of the government of EU, standards, norms and moral values, despite from political borders of the union, the essential point of becoming the ENP. So, the expansive logic of integration would be presented in many different ways as it is given in the case as well.