abstract: Europe and the EU have been facing many crises and challenges in recent years.From Brexit and rising nationalism to economic problems and unanimous refugee policies, most of them remain unsolved.Instead of moving forward with the European integration project, Europe seems to regress in many instances.Considering this turmoil, it seems all the more important to historicize the affirmative discourse of Europe and to expand the knowledge of the European unification process with novel insights into 
journal: International Relations and Diplomacy