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This article explores major theoretical approaches to the study of European integration, European Union (EU) as a globalpower, and the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy. The argument presented here is that only a combination of bothInternational Relations and European integration approaches will allow us to understand the very premises of the Europeanintegration project in terms of both internal and external – international-aspects. This approach will be complementaryto the attempts by researchers those who call to mainstream European studies and an appeal in favor of aboundingthe project of conceptualizing the EU as a single case or as being Sui generis. This article argues that, despite seriousattempts by scholars of the field of European studies, it seems difficult to theorize European integration. The establishedliterature to the existing political entities seems less relevant to study EU due to the union's unique identity. Theoriesof EU integration are unable to explain or predict the process of integration, but they are normally outpaced by events.

There is no housing policy at the level of the European Union. Therefore, it is the domain of national options. There are also big differences between individual Member States. Despite that, the basic feature of the housing policies has been privatisation in most European countries over the last twenty years. It means transferring the responsibility for housing provision from the state to the market and formation of financial networks within which an individual can provide his or her housing. In nearly all EU Member States, including Slovenia, a major volume of selective allocation of housing construction for the market and a higher level of housing quality are noticeable. The purpose of this paper is to present the housing policies and the housing market conditions in Slovenia, Great Britain, Germany, Sweden and Spain. On the basis of the comparative analysis of the selected countries, we tried to present characteristics, differences or similarities in the housing standard. They are reflected in the quality, availability and accessibility of the housing stock. Adapted from the source document.

International audience ; This paper examines regional mobility in the spatial distribution of per capita in- come in the European Union over the period 1977-1999. The methodology used to investigate this issue combines a series of measures taken from the literature devoted to the dynamic study of personal income distribution with a non-parametric analysis. The results show limited mobility in the distribution considered, and a decline in mobility over time. The empirical evidence presented indicates, moreover, that mobility patterns vary as a function of regional development levels. Additionally, the analysis carried out investigates the role played in explaining intra-distribution mobility by variables such as per capita income, population density, per capita expenditure in investment, market potential, and the share in total employment of agriculture, advanced services and non-market services.

This paper examines regional mobility in the spatial distribution of per capita in-
come in the European Union over the period 1977-1999. The methodology used to
investigate this issue combines a series of measures taken from the literature devoted to the dynamic study of personal income distribution with a non-parametric analysis. The results show limited mobility in the distribution considered, and a decline in mobility over time. The empirical evidence presented indicates, moreover, that mobility patterns vary as a function of regional development levels. Additionally, the analysis carried out investigates the role played in explaining intra-distribution mobility by variables such as per capita income, population density, per capita expenditure in investment, market potential, and the share in total employment of agriculture, advanced services and
non-market services.

AbstractThe most visible output of the European Union (EU) negotiation process is shifts in actors' policy positions. Shifts in actors' positions have relevant implications for understanding the EU decision‐making process. On the one hand, actors' shifts in positions can be interpreted as evidence that negotiation actually has taken place. On the other hand, shifts in positions imply that there is a tendency to compromise for convergence upon a final solution. This article indicates the extent to which institutional factors and negotiation conditions can explain those shifts in actors' positions. A subset of the DEU dataset containing information on shifts in actors' positions on issues raised by 28 Commission proposals is examined. The research shows that shifts in positions can be explained by institutional factors such as the decision rule and the legislative procedure implemented, the voting power actors hold in the decision‐making process and/or the type of policy instrument executed.

Spain and the European Union.Carlos Closa y Paul Heywood. Basingstoke: Palgrave/Macmillan, 2004.