The European Union and the Accomodation of Basque Difference in Spain

Devolution has been an important tool in Spanish politics for managing nationalist disputes--and for the Basque Country where protracted and sometimes violent nationalist conflicts persist. Addressing these issues, this book explores prospects for an autonomous Basque role in EU politics; institutional arrangements for autonomous community participation in EU decision-making; Basque government alliances with other regions and the EU’s supranational bodies; EU incentives for collaboration among Basque and central state authorities; the impact of EU decisions on politically sensitive Basque competencies; and the incidence of EU issues in nationalist disputes. It presents a new theoretical framework for analyzing the impact of the EU on regional power and will be of interest to students, researchers and general observers of Basque, Spanish and EU politics.

Angela K. Bourne is Lecturer in European Politics at the University of Dundee.