The Influence of the European Green initiatives on the Consolidation of EU Integration in the Period from 2010s to 2023

The Green initiatives have established a position within the EU international agenda and image, and can be regarded as the strategy for unifying the forces of nation-states under the umbrella of the EU. However, the process of Green policies promotion within the intergovernmental institutions, intervenes with the member-states' national interests. Particularly, for the Central and East European countries (CEEC), which prioritize energy security concerns over actions towards carbon-neutral economy, are hindering the climate ambitions of the supranational institution of the European Commission. Nevertheless, despite the obstacle of opposing interests, the European Commission has succeeded in consistently increasing the ambitions for climate neutrality. Thus, the inquiry arises: what is the effect of the Green initiatives, and from 2019 the Green Deal, on consolidation of the EU as an integration project despite its controversial path to prominence. The results acquired through the testing of the hypothesis by mixed methods case study and discourse analysis are the confirmation of the relatively optimistic assumption. The Green initiatives of 2010s, that has been the source of confrontation between the member-states and supranational authorities due to the clash of the Green transition with the national interests, has successfully crossed the period of turbulence. From 2019, with the proclamation of the «Green Deal», Green policies have become the EU political instrument for unifying the national forces of the member-states around the common goal. Thus, the Green agenda has produced a positive effect on consolidation of the European integration project.