Introduction

Abstract

Is a normative conception of territory worth pursuing? The reason this question is worth asking is that territorial boundaries are said to have lost much of their relevance. Over the last few decades, a vast amount of scientific evidence has accumulated to support the idea that the Westphalian system with its emphasis on a state’s territoriality has come to an end (cf. Ruggie, 1993). Bertrand Badie has gone as far as to declare the ‘end of the territories’ (1995). The evidence in this respect seems overwhelming. As the world economy has become more integrated and communication technologies have rapidly evolved, territorial boundaries have lost much of their force in regulating economic and cultural flows. Increased mobility in general — through tourism and migration — has contributed to the erosion of traditional states’ boundaries. Even immigration controls progressively transcend the constraints of territorial borders and operate both outside and within them in the attempt to more effectively manage irregular migration (Bigo and Guild, 2005).