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Opting out of the European Union: Diplomacy, Sovereignty and European Integration Rebecca Adler-Nissen, Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom, 2014, 253 Pages.
It seems there is no lacuna of research on the European Union (EU) and its integration processes, as new works are constantly emerging. However, on the issue of differentiated integration, few students and scholars - outside the study of International Relations- are actually cognisant of the varied internal intricacies and policy implementations of the EU. Even so, it is taken for granted by the public that the EU member states' response to EU policies reflect complete homogeneity. In reality, member states' interaction within the EU and the implementation of EU treaties can diverge at times, only to reveal complex socio-political dynamics associated with the inner workings of the EU integration process and the actions of member states. This is demonstrated through a phenomenon known as opt-outs, a legal instrument of the EU, and though not an exclusive clause, so far, two states, namely the UK and Denmark, have been formally granted the ability to use this instrument under the Maastricht Treaty (1992), thereby allowing them to opt-out of two important policy frames, the Economic Monetary Union (EMU) and the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ). Opt-outs can be viewed as a strategic tool expressing the preferences of EU member states which feel the need to adopt such a logic when not in agreement with EU rules. Of course there are controversies surrounding the use of opt-outs, as debates unfold along the line that they go against the very notion of European cooperation (p. 2) and thus, weaken integration. Despite the stigma (p. 3) attached to both countries by other member states that have forgone the use of opt-outs, the impacts of these policies and the areas of interest that they impact are quite different in Britain and Denmark. Hence, the British and Danish experiences are clear examples of how member states' diplomacy and ideas of sovereignty are not necessarily aligned with EU policies and practices at all times.
On this note, Rebecca Adler-Nissen's Opting out of the European Union: diplomacy, sovereignty and European integration provides us...