DOI: 10.33917/es-3.169.2020.42-49

The article analyzes the Brexit problem, the solution of which has been delayed: four years passed from the referendum on Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union (February 16, 2016) till signing of the Brexit Act by Prime Minister Boris Johnson (January 31, 2020). The article’s novelty consists in assessing Brexit as a manifestation of the system crisis of the European Union (EU), officially recognized by the European authorities in 2015 due to violation of the development regularities of the European integration and the global crisis consequences. Based on systemic methodology in the aspect of reproduction theory, the internal and external causes of Brexit are analyzed. The author identifies a change in the US attitude to Brexit — from Barack Obama’s negative position to active support by Donald Trump in order to break down the European Union as a collective competitor composed of twenty-eight integrated countries. This is facilitated by the loss of economic sovereignty of the EU countries under US pressure. Possible British benefits and risks of losses as a result of exit from the EU are analyzed.

DOI: 10.33917/es-6.164.2019.54-59

The article analyzes fundamental reasons for such unexpected coincidence of the European Union systemic crisis with its 60th anniversary as well as the prospects for the European integration development. The innovative nature of the study consists in the fact that the problems are considered on the basis of a systemic methodology, that determines its logic, and the principles of systematic approach, as well as in the context of paradox theory. This approach allows us to analyze the causes of the EU systemic crisis that coincided with its anniversary, making a conclusion that seems unbelievable but contains the truth. Processing of materials over 60 years of the European integration revealed a number of paradoxes, including the lack of previously developed concept, systematic violation of the EU development patterns. The author identifies the paradox of US–EU transatlantic cooperation, which manifested itself through the loss of economic sovereignty of the states participating in the European integration under American pressure and with regard to deployment of NATO military bases in Europe. The author comes to conclusion that violation of the integration process patterns and rules manifested itself as a result of the global crisis of 2008–2009.