Institutional Requirements for Regional Economic Integration: A Comparative Perspective on the EU and NAFTA.

This paper discusses the importance of institutions for successful international economic integration comparing the EU with NAFTA and en passant some other regional integration schemes. Taking the point of departure in neo-liberal institutionalist theories of international regimes and rational theories of international integration, especially the contributions by Moravcsik and Mattli, the respective institutional designs of EU and NAFTA are compared. The question is asked: Can both 'supranational' institutions à la EU and less supranational and more intergovernmental institutions à la NAFTA create 'credible' commitments'? The answer seems to be yes, but a brief comparison with other integration schemes such as APEC suggests that a certain legal formalization is necessary to 'lock-in' liberalization and limit defection. Further, it is noted that the EU has moved much beyond a free trade area (FTA) to create an internal market, an Economic and Monetarty Uino (EMU) and a number of common policies. These common policies, especially the Structural Funds allow for some redistribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]