At a time when the European Union is further expanding and countries, such as Turkey are being accepted for eventual membership, the question of what is meant by a unified Europe and how that might be achieved has never been more pressing. Europe is more than a system of rules and political institutions that regulate European citizenship: it is also a space of political traditions, political experiences and cultural memories. Can political integration ever be realised without an understanding and acceptance of the complexity of the political cultures that make up Europe ? In this important volume, European scholars from a diversity of backgrounds explore the issues that must be addressed if the challenge of an integrated Europe is to be successfully met.

Professor Ekavi Athanassopoulou is Senior Research Fellow at the Hellenic Institute for European and International Policy, University of Athens, Greece