The limits of European integration theories: Cyber-development and the future of the European Union

Abstract

This analysis attempts to explain the current state of the European Union after the Treaty of Lisbon, as the last great Integration Process. The author tries to answer the question, whether the National States or the Institutions of the European Union are the Global Players in the political decision-making process. The institutions, norms, and content of the contracts are in focus of this polity-based analysis. It should also supply sufficient information, if static-oriented Integration Theories are still state of the art. Or does the ongoing development process of the European Union ask for a different kind of Knowledge Development? The main aim is to develop new knowledge on thinking how the future of the European Union could look like and to build bridges between different views of how responsibilities should be divided between the Member States and the Institutions of the European Union. Is the White Paper of the European Union the right answer on how to deal with future challenges in the world of Cyber Development?.