Dispute territoriali tra Stati membri e tra Stati membri e Stati terzi: il rilievo del diritto dell’Unione europea

This paper examines whether—and to what extent—European Union law can today contribute effectively to the resolution of territorial disputes between Member States and between Member States and third countries. The analysis is based on two fundamental premises. Firstly, it is emphasized that the orderly management of territorial disputes and changes on the European continent is an integral part of the process of supranational integration. Over the decades, the European Communities and the European Union have served as instruments for “normalizing” relations among Member States and between Member States and other European States. Secondly, it is assumed that the enlargement policy and the conditionality mechanisms it provides offer significant potential for the management, or even the resolution, of disputes between Member States and other European States that have embarked on the path to accession. Moreover, thanks to its structural link with the European Neighbourhood Policy (and, therefore, with the principle of good neighbourliness on which the latter is based) – which requires States aspiring to the EU membership to stabilise their relations with neighbouring European countries – the enlargement policy is, in theory, capable of projecting its stabilising potential well beyond the Union’s borders.