Confederal Agreements: A Proposal to Resolve Secession-Related Minority Issues

There are various minority-led separatist movements in Europe that seek to transform self-governing regions into sovereign states. The existing European states are not eager to fulfil this minority demand, but the growing separatist trends continue to cause numerous constitutional problems across Europe. The existing states are likely to resolve such problems in the name of preserving their constitutional orders. According to this article, confederal settlements would contribute to the resolution of the problems. It is possible for separatist national minorities to achieve their main aim – i.e. to construct their sovereign states – via confederal settlements. These settlements would enable secessionist minorities and their host states to preserve and promote their constitutional links. The protected and developed links would ultimately urge confederal allies – national minorities and their parent states – to turn their unions into highly stable federations or unitary states.