Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans
Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Marmara Üniversitesi, Avrupa Araştırmaları Enstitüsü, Avrupa Birliği Siyaseti ve Uluslararası İlişkiler Anabilim Dalı (İngilizce), Türkiye
Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2012
Tezin Dili: İngilizce
Öğrenci: OĞUZCAN ÜSTÜN
Danışman: Armağan Emre Çakır
Özet:
It has become a frequently-repeated suggestion that the European Union, in the contemporary international relations, is an actor whose economic weight is undeniable. As much as the welfare produced within the territory of the Union, historical background of its members, too, contributes to this perception. However, before evaluating the weight of the Union on the world scale, one must first turn to the questions of how united it is in itself or under what motivations or factors it emerged and progressed. Is the Union the current state of a conscious and systematically-developed initiative that intended to eventually unite, in peace and welfare, the residents of a war-torn continent in economic, political and social dimensions; or is it a platform that some members shaped or helped progress in order to secure their interests more effectively then they could do on their own: a platform they sometimes utilized, sometimes praised?This thesis suggests that there are more reasons to believe the validity of the second suggestion above and that the Union is, in fact, the eventual state of an endeavor initiated to transform the historical rivalry between France and Germany into a more peaceful form. European integration, for France, has been a useful mean to restrict its eternal rival, Germany, and -where possible- to assume the leading role in Western Europe; while, for Germany, it has been an avenue where the country would be redeemed from the mistakes in its recent past, and regain the status of a respected, equal state. In the following sections of the study, Franco-German influence on both the institutional design and the policy areas of the Union were examined and it was found that French influence, experienced heavily in the early phases of the integration, eroded in time; while Germany, being gradually released from the restricting factors, took over the leading role.