The United States of Europe: A Conceptual Assessment

The paper aims to analyze the concept of United States of Europe from the point of view of previous historical attempts to unite the European state entities as well as from the point of view of a comparative analysis with the United States of America. In order to establish a very clear framework of analysis from the very beginning some possible errors of reasoning are presented. As result of the analysis, the conclusion is that a true European federation of states is very unlikely to materialize in the foreseeable future while some elements of a federal construction are still possible. Another conclusion is that a partial federal construction is not effective; on the contrary, it is prone to generate disequilibria.