London School of Economics & Political Science European Institute Moving Ashore? Greek Shipowners, State Corporatism and the Europeanisation of Maritime Transport Michael Joseph Romanos January 31,2008 UMI Number: U615916 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U615916 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 THESES F tfW'L I certify that the thesis presented by me in 2008 for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics, University of London is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others, and that the extent of any work carried out jointly by myself and any other person is clearly identified in it. January 31, 2008 Michael Joseph Romanos Abstract As the European Commission muscled in the national configuration and domestic actors engaged with the EU institutions, the purpose of this dissertation is to explore the impact of Europeanisation on the state corporatist arrangement encompassing the Greek state and the shipowners. The central argument is that although there is evidence of the reshaping of the relations between the state and Greek shipowners, the direction of change varies across industry segments and is contingent on four conditions. Firstly, it is contingent on the nature of the Greek state and its ability to exercise ‘integrated leadership’. Secondly, the domestic actors recognise and act upon the incongruence between EU initiatives and existing domestic or international policies. Thirdly, the shipowners possess the capacity to exit the domestic configuration through capital mobility. Fourthly, alongside the shipowners, the presence of influential formal or factual veto points in the domestic institutional arrangement. The argument made is sustained through the analysis of the impact of Europeanisation on the relations between the Greek state and shipowners in two case studies. The first case study is devoted to ocean-going shipping and the growing EU competence in maritime safety regulation, concentrating on the accelerated phasing- out of single-hull tankers and the constitution of criminal sanctions for ship-source pollution. The Greek ocean-going shipowners in consultation with the incumbent Greek governments mobilized at every possible level to halt or amend the EU initiatives. As a result, there is evidence of the reinforcement of state corporatism which is contingent on the unitary nature of the Greek state, the absence of integrated leadership, the incompatibility between EU and international policies, the capital mobility and ensuing structural power of ocean-going shipowners and the weakness of the other formal or factual veto points in the domestic political process. The second case study concentrates on the coastal shipping sector and EU measures to abolish the cabotage trades across the member states. The coastal shipowners, the incumbent Greek governments and the island communities engaged politically with the EU institutions in advancing their interests. In this instance, there is evidence of the loosening of the state corporatist arrangement between the Greek state and the coastal shipowners. In spite of the unitary nature of the state, the lack of ‘integrated leadership’ and the incongruence between the EU and domestic policies, the coastal shipowners were more embedded at the national level and contended with an influential factual veto point in the form of the island communities. Acknowledgements First and foremost, I am grateful to my supervisors Professor Kevin Featherstone and Professor Klaus H. Goetz for their guidance, attentiveness and inspiration throughout my graduate studies at the London School of Economics. I am indebted to the Bodossakis Foundation for generously funding my research and affording me the opportunity to study in depth the impact of European Union integration on Greek politics and the shipping industry. I would like to express my gratitude to several colleagues from the European Institute and the broader LSE community for providing a stimulating environment and their constructive criticism to the many drafts that preceded the final version of this dissertation. Last but not least, I am thankful to Tata for her emotional support, humour and patience and to my parents for their unwavering love and encouragement. Michael J. Romanos January 31, 2008 Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction............................................................................................10 1.1: Setting the Scene........................................................................................................10 1.2 Analytical Framework and Central Argument ...................................................... 18 1.3: Structure of Thesis.................................................................................................... 22 Part I: Europeanisation, the Greek state and the Shipowners Chapter 2: Theoretical Background and Analytical Framework........................ 28 2.1 Conceptualizing change: Europeanisation and State-Business Relations.............29 2.1.1 Defining Europeanisation.............................................................................. 29 2.1.2 European Integration and Business Associability....................................... 35 2.2 Analytical Framework...............................................................................................45 2.3 Methodology...............................................................................................................49 2.4 Europeanisation, Business Associability and Domestic Impact.............................52 Chapter 3: Europeanisation, the IMO and organized shipping........................... 55 3.1 The IMO and International Maritime Regulation....................................................56 3.2 The Evolution of the Common Maritime Transport Policy.................................64 3.3 EU Politics, Organised Shipping and the Greek shipowners .................................74 3.4 Europeanisation, the IMO and Organised Shipping................................................86 Chapter 4: The Greek Shipowners and Domestic State-Business Relations 90 4.1 The Weakness of the Greek State............................................................................92 4.2 The Autonomy of Business Interests......................................................................102 4.3 State-Business Relations..........................................................................................113 4.4 State Corporatism, the Greek state and Shipowners..............................................124 6 Part II: Continuity and change: Negotiating the CMTP Chapter 5: The Liberalisation of the Greek Coastal Shipping Market.............. 128 5.1 From the Post-War Year to 2001.............................................................................131 5.1.1 The Immediate Post-War Years.................................................................. 131 5.1.2 The Heraklion Accident ...............................................................................134 5.1.3 The Regulatory Framework........................................................................ 138 5.2 Negotiating the EU Maritime Cabotage Trades (1986 - 1992)............................ 144 5.3 Abolishing Cabotage................................................................................................ 153 5.3.1 Industry Consolidation and Fleet Modernization.....................................153 5.3.1.1 The Adriatic Sea Corridor..............................................................153 5.3.1.2 The Greek Coastal Transport Market............................................156 5.3.2 Reforming the ‘System of Licenses’...........................................................160 5.4 Express Samina and the Acceleration of Reform.................................................. 167 5.5 January 2004 and the Shortage of Vessels..............................................................176 5.6 Coastal Shipping, Greek politics and the European Union..................................190 Chapter 6: Greek Shipping, Maritime Safety and the European Union ........... 198 6.1 Ocean-going shipping and the Greek economy..................................................... 201 6.2 International Regulation of Maritime Safety......................................................... 206 6.2.1 MARPOL and Ship-Source Pollution........................................................ 207 6.2.2 The Exxon Valdez and the Phasing-Out of Single-Hull Tankers ..............209 6.3 The Phasing-Out of Single-Hull Tankers .................................................................212 6.3.1 The Erika Accident ...................................................................................... 213 6.3.2 The Prestige Accident ................................................................................. 226 6.4 The Directive on Ship-Source Pollution..................................................................241