The History of the European Migration Regime: Germany's Strategic Hegemony (Routledge Studies in Modern European History)

The History of the European Migration Regime is a groundbreaking historical account of how the migration regime in Europe evolved after World War II. The book argues that the open migration regime in Western Europe was a product of German geopolitical and geo-economic strategies during the Cold War. Using national and international archives, the author traces the evolution of European migration policies from the cumbersome administrative practices of the late 1940s to the free movement of people within the European Community, the creation of European citizenship, and the internal and external dimensions of the Schengen agreements. The book demonstrates how these instruments created a regional migration regime with an unparalleled degree of intraregional openness, while simultaneously closing Europe's borders to migrants from outside the continent. The author shows that Germany's disproportionate absorption of new migrants and transfers of social security benefits abroad were crucial factors in shaping the openness of the European migration regime. The book argues that the liberal migration regime in Western Europe supported German economic expansion and contributed to the reunification of Germany and the integration of Europe. The History of the European Migration Regime is an essential read for anyone interested in understanding the historical forces that shaped the migration regime in Europe, and the role of Germany in creating and sustaining that regime. This meticulously researched book challenges conventional wisdom and offers a fresh perspective on one of the most important aspects of European integration.

Emmanuel Comte is a senior research fellow at the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) in Athens, Greece and a professorial lecturer at the Vienna School of International Studies. He writes on the history of European integration and the history of migration in postwar Europe. He is a graduate of the École Normale Supérieure in Paris and holds a PhD in history from Sorbonne University. After his PhD, he has held academic and research positions at the European University Institute in Florence, the University of California, Berkeley, the Vienna School of International Studies, and CIDOB, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs.