Euskal Herria : EU membership and the right of self-determination of the Basque country

Abstract

This research focuses on Basque separatism (mostly coming from the Basque Autonomous Community), particularly vis-a-vis European Union regionalism and membership aspirations. The issue of separatism within the European Union and its member states is a topic which holds particular importance, especially during this specific point in time. The underlying themes and concepts surrounding this vast topic are discussed in this work in order to gain a better understanding of the issue at hand and to arrive at a conclusion on how the European Union affects Basque regional power. The challenges the Basques are facing in their struggle for self-determination and their goals to become an independent member state of the European Union are also discussed. In order to do this, a varied but specific source of academic literature was consulted in order to better define the key terms and issues in question. Through the inclusion of this intonation, a solid basis of the literature surrounding the subject supported the evaluation of the analysis. Divided into three parts(one for each research question), the analysis used data such as official Basque documents, decelerations, Spanish (and French) laws and the policies of the European Union. The three main aims of the research questions and the analysis are to evaluate the advantages and obstacles which affect Basque independence, the impact of the European Union and its brand of regionalism on the Basque cause and the possibilities and obstacles of an independent Basque state joining the European Union altogether. This research also aims to contribute to the study of such themes.