The European Union was chosen as a model institution because it has grown to be the most successful regional organisation in the world, achieving considerable feats in terms of integration, socio-economic development and peace. Furthermore, Immanuel Kant’s essay on perpetual peace provides certain rubrics for achieving world peace and integration through an association of states. Therefore, this research will analyse Kant’s essay on perpetual peace, linking his proposals to modern international relations then, explore the development of the European Union, to see how closely it has adopted Kant’s proposals. Subsequently, regional organizations are explained through IR theories, to provide a comprehensive understanding of its importance and how it is viewed in international relations. Then, the African Union, is analysed from its development to its legal and institutional structure to ascertain which IR theory best explains the organization and the extent to which it matches Kant’s proposals/the structure of the EU. Consequently, impediments to the success of the AU will be revealed and areas where adjustments can be made is pointed out in the findings and analysis
The European Union was chosen as a model institution because it has grown to be the most successful regional organisation in the world, achieving considerable feats in terms of integration, socio-economic development and peace. Furthermore, Immanuel Kant’s essay on perpetual peace provides certain rubrics for achieving world peace and integration through an association of states. Therefore, this research will analyse Kant’s essay on perpetual peace, linking his proposals to modern international relations then, explore the development of the European Union, to see how closely it has adopted Kant’s proposals. Subsequently, regional organizations are explained through IR theories, to provide a comprehensive understanding of its importance and how it is viewed in international relations. Then, the African Union, is analysed from its development to its legal and institutional structure to ascertain which IR theory best explains the organization and the extent to which it matches Kant’s proposals/the structure of the EU. Consequently, impediments to the success of the AU will be revealed and areas where adjustments can be made is pointed out in the findings and analysis