Open AccessIntegration within the European Union: is Iberolux Possible?
Author(s) -
Nailya Yakovleva
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
perspektivy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2411-3417
DOI - 10.32726/2411-3417-2020-3-66-80
Subject(s) - european union , peninsula , european integration , portuguese , analogy , political science , economy , phenomenon , international trade , economic geography , geography , business , economics , archaeology , epistemology , linguistics , philosophy
Recently, an idea of creating a smaller integration group within the main integration union of the planet - the European Union - has been crystallizing. This is about integrating two countries of the Iberian Peninsula – Spain and Portugal. Their relations have gained "cruising speed" and have improved so much that the eventual association has even been named Iberolux, by analogy with Benelux. While this is only an idea, there is evidence that a new Iberian integration community within the EU may emerge in the future. Despite numerous challenges and risks that can hinder the realization of this prospect and complicate the Spanish-Portuguese dialogue, the emerging phenomenon of intra-Iberian integration is of obvious interest, especially against the backdrop of the crisis trends in the European Union.