Suchergebnisse

After centuries of lack of contacts between Spain and Portugal, the democratization of both countries allowed for a rapprochement which today is becoming more intensive. The crucial factor of the growing integration of Spanish and Portuguese border regions into a cross-border region is naturally the INTERREG programme. Both regions are disadvantaged within the European Union and their respective countries as poor regions. They have the status of a 'double periphery'. In the 1980s and particularly 1990s actors on both sides of the border intensified their contacts in order to overcome their double peripherality. The growing number of projects, the improvement of infrastructures and the revival of associationism will certainly change the quality of life of these regions, which are still among the lowest in both countries. The continuation of the INTERREG programme after 2007-2013 will be an important consolidating tool for the further development of cross-border cooperation. ; Després de segles de falta de contactes entre Espanya i Portugal, la democratització dels dos països va permetre un acostament que avui dia és cada vegada més intens. El factor crucial de la creixent integració de les regions frontereres d'Espanya i Portugal en una regió transfronterera és, naturalment, el programa INTERREG. Ambdues regions es troben en desavantatge dins de la Unió Europea i els seus països respectius, com les regions pobres. Tenen la condició de «doble perifèria '. En els anys 1980 i 1990, en particular els actors d'ambdós costats de la frontera han intensificat els seus contactes per tal de superar la seva situació perifèrica doble. El nombre creixent de projectes, la millora de les infraestructures i el renaixement de l'associacionisme sens dubte canviarà la qualitat de vida d'aquestes regions, que segueixen estant entre els més baixos dels dos països. La continuació del programa INTERREG després de 2007-2013 serà un instrument important per consolidar el desenvolupament de la cooperació transfronterera.

This article<fn id="p1-f1" symbol="*">This article is derived from a paper that was presented to the CPHRC's Second International Conference, The Estado Novo: the final years', Paris, 27–28 September 2002.</fn> seeks to delineate the interactive relationship between the European Union and the establishment of a Portuguese democracy that was itself shaped by processes that had already begun during the 1960s. In the first section we will discuss the relationship between the authoritarian regime and the European Union. The second section discusses how the European Union shaped the outcome of the revolutionary process. The third section explains why it took so long for Portugal to become a member of the European Community. The fourth section discusses Portugal's integration into the European Union and how it gained the self-confidence with which to shape European policy-making.