CYIL vol. 12 (2021)

CYIL 12 (2021) THE ROLE OF COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EU in inter se agreements … The role of Court of Justice of the European Union in inter se agreements. Enhanced cooperation: More legitimate alternative or path-dependency? Dimitris Liakopoulos Abstract: The present paper is based on the premise that some principles act as a limit to differentiated integration. So it examines its implications in relation to the different modes of differentiation. However, it too has its limits and the conclusions formulated are incomplete and provisional: either because differentiated integration is a complex phenomenon and difficult to lead back to unity, and because its manifestations evolve rapidly and sometimes in unpredictable directions, and finally, because the forces of those who have experimented with them are those that are. The attempt to look at the structural principles of the system, through the prism of the differentiated integration and the inter se agreements, is also part of the analysis presented in our work. Resumé: Tento příspěvek vychází z předpokladu, že některé principy fungují jako omezení diferencované integrace. Zkoumá tak její důsledky vzhledem k různým způsobům diferen- ciace. Článek však má také své limity a formulované závěry jsou neúplné a předběžné: jed- nak proto, že diferencovaná integrace je složitým fenoménem a obtížně vede zpět k jednotě, dále proto, že její projevy se vyvíjejí rychle a někdy nepředvídatelnými směry, a konečně proto, že síly těch, kteří s ní experimentují, jsou takové, jaké jsou. Součástí analýzy prezen- tované v naší práci je také snaha podívat se na strukturální principy systému, a to prizmatem diferencované integrace a dohod uzavíraných mezi členskými státy (inter se). Key words: enhanced cooperation, agreement inter se, differentiated integration, CJEU, TFUE, principle of loyalty, debt crisis About the Author: Dmitris I. Liakopoulos is Full Professor of European Union Law; Professor of International and European Criminal and Procedural Law and Professor of International law in various Universities in US and Europe. Attorney at Law a New York and Bruxelles. The present work is updated until October 2021. 1. Introduction The use of international agreements between Member States in practice has witnessed the emergence of a “new generation” of inter-sectoral agreements 1 . The origins of this development can be found in the sovereign debt crisis that has hit some Member States since 2008, putting at risk the overall stability of the euro area. In this context, instruments of international law have been used both to set up financial assistance mechanisms for Member States facing budgetary difficulties (Financial Stabilization Mechanism (EFSM), European Stability Mechanism Treat (ESMT)) 2 both for strengthening by concluding the 1 DIMOPOULOS, A. Taming the conclusion of inter sae agreements, between EU Member States: The role of the duty of loyalty, in Yearbook of European Law , 34, 2015, pp. 287ss. 2 RYBUS, M., RUBINI, L. The Treaty of Lisbon and the future of European law and policy , Edward Elgar Publishers, 2012, pp. 84ss. BEST, E. Undestanding European Union decision-making , ed. Springer, Switzerland, 2016, pp. 95ss.

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