Do you agree with the view that the EU has thus far proved to be the most successful experiment in the regional integration processes? Account for its successes and also some of the recent challenges that it is faced with. (2024, 15 Marks)
Europe fought two world wars within thirty years after centuries governed by the balance of power. David Mitrany‘s functionalism (A Working Peace System, 1943) supplied the hope of peace by pieces; Jean Monnet‘s sectoral method, theorised by Ernst B. Haas as neofunctionalist spill-over, supplied the regional instrument, beginning with the ECSC (1951). Judged by depth, scope and durability, the claim largely holds.
Successes
- Peace and reconciliation. No war between members since 1951; former enemies became co-founders. The Nobel Peace Prize (2012) recognised this founding achievement.
- A legal order. Through Van Gend en Loos (1963) and Costa v ENEL (1964) the Court of Justice made Union law directly effective and supreme in national courts, something ASEAN, SAARC and the African Union have never accepted.
- Economic depth. A single market of about 450 million people, a euro area of 21 since Bulgaria joined in January 2026, and about 16% of world trade in 2025, negotiated by one voice.
- Democratisation by conditionality. The Copenhagen criteria anchored Southern and post-communist Europe in democratic institutions.
- Normative and market power. Anu Bradford‘s “Brussels effect” turns GDPR and the AI Act into global defaults.
- External support: the Marshall Plan and US containment encouraged integration.
Comparison with other regional bodies
| Criterion | EU | ASEAN | African Union | SAARC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binding law | Supranational court | Consensus, non-interference | Courts weakly used | None |
| Intra-regional trade | About 60% | About 21% | About 15% | Under 6% |
| Decision rule | Majority in most fields | Consensus | Consensus | Unanimity |
Recent challenges
- Populist backlash. Nationalist groups won about a quarter of European Parliament seats in 2024, targeting migration, rights and the Green Deal.
- Brexit (2020) proved integration reversible, though no contagion followed.
- Rule of law. Article 7 proved nearly unusable against Hungary and Poland; budget conditionality worked better. Poland’s procedure closed in 2024, and Viktor Orbán lost power in Hungary’s April 2026 election.
- Russia’s war on Ukraine forced an energy shift and twenty sanctions packages by April 2026, several delayed by single vetoes. The €90 billion Ukraine loan (December 2025) needed enhanced cooperation after three states opted out.
- Great-power pressure. US tariffs and doubts about NATO under Donald Trump, and Chinese overtures to Central Europe, test cohesion and strategic autonomy.
- Competitiveness. The Draghi report (2024) identified a widening productivity gap with the US and China.
Is it the most successful?
On depth of integration nothing rivals it. Yet Amitav Acharya shows that ASEAN’s informal “ASEAN Way” suits a region of fragile post-colonial sovereignties, so success measured by fit with local conditions, rather than distance from Brussels, is a different test.
Conclusion
Yes, with a qualification: the EU is the most successful experiment, not a template. Its crises are serious precisely because its integration is deep. Its future depends on replacing unanimity and a budget of roughly 1% of GNI with the capacity its ambitions now demand.