ABSTRACT
Territoriality and sovereignty are central to the disputed question of political identity in Ireland. They underlie a conflict which is variously seen as ‘the Irish national problem’, ‘the Northern Ireland problem’, or Ireland’s British problem’, depending on one’s perspective. And whatever the viewpoint, most observers would probably agree that some recastings of territorial sovereignty and identity are essential if the problem is to be solved. They disagree, however, over how and by whom such restructuring might be achieved. There is also disagreement as to the meaning of sovereignty and whether it is still relevant at the end of the twentieth century. Globalisation and the European Union are in some respects transcending exclusive forms of state authority and politics based on national territory. The prospects for a significant recasting of exclusive territorialities in Ireland through North-South institutions seem better than in the 1920s, or even the 1970s, when previous attempts to bridge the border with a Council of Ireland failed.
