European Citizenship and the National Elites of Southern Europe

In this article, the main contents of this special issue are introduced. In particular, we introduce a definition of the concept of European citizenship system (ECS). Then, we move to a discussion of the national elites in four South European countriesGreece, Italy, Portugal, Spainand examine their views about Europe. Finally, we illustrate how, through the use of original data, the other articles will analyse the views that guide these national elites' construction of the ECS, with the purpose of explaining variations within and across countries.