The Research On UK's Postwar Policy Changes Toward European Integration

In 2016,the UK became the first member state to withdraw from European integration.Recalling the history of post-war Britain's policy toward Europe:In the early postwar period,the UK refused to participate in coal-steel joint ventures;since 1961,the UK has applied for three times to join the European(economic)community;after the 2008 financial crisis,the contradictions between the UK and Europe have deepened.In the 2016 referendum,51.9%of voters chose to "leave the European Union".The coal-steel joint venture,the European(economic)community,and the EU are all landmark organizations in the process of European integration.From the rejection of coal-steel joint ventures to three applications for membership in the European(Economic)community,they finally voluntarily left the European Union.There was a clear contrast in the British policy toward European integration.So here is the question:Why is there such a contrast in Britain's policy toward European integration?This article intercepts the British policy towards European integration in the three key periods,andtake neoclassical realism analysis framework to provide a dynamic,long-term interpretation of the changes in the UK's EU policy.This article believes that the relative power of system level(independent variables)shapes the pressures and opportunities for British policy toward Europe and determines the scope of its options for Europe.Through the operation of British policymakers' cognition and domestic-social relations(intermediary variables),relative power changes eventually translate into foreign policy.In the early post-war period,as the third power in the world,the UK has a broad policy space and diverse means of implementation to pursue international influence and economic interests.Policymakers are reluctant to confine the UKin the Europe;in the early 1960s,the fact that relatively powerobvious declined forced the UK turn to Europe;in 2008 financial crisis and the European debt crisis erupted.The contradictions between the UK and Europe have intensified.Although the Cameron government recognizes the importance of the UK's membership,due to the division in it domestic-social relations,the Cameron government has no choice but to adopt an extremist strategy to determine the future of British-European relations,resulting in the separation of the United Kingdom from the European Union.This article argues that the changes of British policy toward European integrationare fundamentally depended on the change of British relative power.When relative power is large,the UK has more choices in maintaining the influence of major powers and gaining economic benefits.It is unwilling to be confined in the European continent;when relative power declines,the UK is forced to approach European integration to save political and economic benefits.However,the influence of relative power is indirect.It needs knowledge of British policy makers and the operation of domestic-society relations.After 2008,the split in British policy makers and domestic-society relations makethe UKadopt the extremist tacticsto determine British-European relations in the form of a referendum,which led to the departure of Britain from the European Union.