This book interprets theoretically and historically the speech and deed of European Communities' founders, and discusses the relevance of these founding practices to meet current political challenges such as Turkey's EU accession and reconciliation in the Western Balkans.

This book provides a political theory of EU identity formation using an interpretative tradition, grounding political identities in the speeches and deeds of political actors. It draws on six major political theorists to illuminate constitutive elements of the EU and EU identity formation.