Meanings of Independence and Manifestations of Neoliberal Nationalism during the ‘Refugee Crisis’ in Central and Eastern Europe

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aija Lulle
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Eastern Bloc ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Human Suffering ◽  
Refugee Crisis ◽  
Social Transformations ◽  
Almost All ◽  
The Eu

The Eastern European political and para-political responses to the ‘refugee crisis’ demonstrate a schism between the ‘old’ and the ‘new Europe’. Hostile attitudes reveal how unresolved post-imperial pasts currently manifest themselves in a seeming inability to show solidarity and empathy for the human suffering of others. To address this question critically, I utilize the notion of ‘independence’ to disentangle the specific neoliberal political mentality that has developed in the Central and Eastern European region, along with a variety of ethno-nationalisms which relive their own past wounds. In countries which have wiped away almost all reminders of their socialist past, solidarity and collectivity are not widely subscribed-to values. Apart from the immediate need to act alongside other European countries and help to accommodate current refugee flows, the Eastern Bloc has a long and necessary journey ahead. This is to negotiate and address their own social and cultural pluralities, which have been deliberately ignored in the rush to join the club of the worlds’ wealthiest democracies in the EU. During this formally accelerated political process, insufficient attention has been paid to social transformations in these new EU countries, including their reluctance to take in and accommodate new migrants and refugees.

Central and Eastern Europe: The New Core or the Periphery of Europe?

2020 ◽  
pp. 162-181
Author(s):  
Ireneusz Paweł Karolewski
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Refugee Crisis ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Policy Fields ◽  
Visegrad Group ◽  
The Eu

This chapter focuses on Central and Eastern European (CEE) member states of the EU, and how they positioned themselves in the new constellation of conflicts within the EU in the aftermath of the multiple crisis. It deals mainly with the Visegrad Group (V4) and explores its ‘repositioning’ in regard to two crisis-ridden policy fields of the EU: controversies about the rule of law and the refugee crisis. With regard to the former issue, the chapter discusses Poland as the most prominent case among the CEE countries. Against this background, it highlights two specific aspects of domestic politics: the memory games that the V4 countries play with their past and the Euroscepticism of government circles as well as a broader public.

scholarly journals Backwardness of Central and Eastern Europe as a Heritage of the Soviet Period

2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (338) ◽  
pp. 61-66
Author(s):  
Sandris Ancans
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Communist Regime ◽  
European Region ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Planned Economy ◽  
Command Economy ◽  
Centrally Planned Economy ◽  
Communist Countries ◽  
The Eu

AbstractThe economy of Latvia lags behind economically developed nations approximately fourfold in terms of labour productivity in the tradable sector, which is the key constituent of a modern economy, thereby affecting future sustainable development in the entire country, including the rural areas. The economic backwardness is characteristic of the entire Central and Eastern Europe. This is the heritage of a communist regime that lasted for about half a century and the economic system termed a (centrally) planned economy or a command economy. However, such a term for the communist-period economy is not correct, as it does not represent the purpose it was created for. Accordingly, the paper aims to assess the effect of the communism period on the economic backwardness of the Central and Eastern European region of the EU. A planned economy that existed in all communist countries, with the exception of Yugoslavia, was not introduced to contribute to prosperity. It was intended for confrontation or even warfare by the communist countries under the guidance of the USSR against other countries where no communism regime existed, mostly Western world nations with their market economies. For this reason, it is not correct to term it a (centrally) planned economy or a command economy; the right term is a mobilised (war) economy. An extrapolation of a geometric progression for GDP revealed that during the half a century, Latvia as part of the USSR was forced to spend on confrontation with the West not less than EUR 17 bln. (2011 prices) or approximately one gross domestic product of 2011. The research aim of the paper is to assess the effect of the communism period on the economic backwardness of the Central and Eastern European region of the EU.

scholarly journals Regional Cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe and its Implications for the EU

European View ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktória Jančošekovà
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Central Eastern Europe ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Visegrád Countries ◽  
The Eu

Regional cooperation is mutually beneficial collaboration between neighbouring countries. This holds regardless of whether it is a matter of cooperation between the Benelux countries, the Nordic–Baltic states, France and Germany, or the Visegrad countries. The last-mentioned countries' dismissive attitude to tackling the migration crisis has thrust them into the limelight. The most recent cooperative forums in the Central Eastern Europe region, such as the Slavkov Triangle and the Three Seas Initiative, evidence a new dynamic and a regrouping of forces on the basis of national interests and EU themes. Western and Eastern Europe have different approaches to the most pressing challenges, such as migration. These differences have caused deep divisions between their respective leaders. However, the disagreements on the migration issue and the future of the EU notwithstanding, regional cooperation among the Central and Eastern European countries remains valuable in areas that include the integration process, security and defence.

Central and Eastern Europe: Imaginary Geographies, Geopolitics and Security Issues

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-22
Author(s):  
Nina Paulovicova ◽  
Tomasz Stępniewski
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Economic Recession ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Security Issues ◽  
Imaginative Geographies ◽  
Power Application ◽  
The Eu

The following editorial offers a reflection on the situation of Central and Eastern Europe with a special focus on the European Union’s Eastern Neighbourhood and Russia. In the past few years, we have witnessed the divisive impact of neoliberalism, economic recession, Britain’s departure from the EU, the refugee and migrant crisis which further shattered societies along cultural lines, the aggressive expansionism of Russia exploiting the weakness of the West, and more recently, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic with an unprecedented impact on societies, global health and economy. The editorial reflects on how Central and Eastern Europe scores among the imaginative geographies and how these imaginative geographies translate into geopolitics concerning hard and soft power application in the Eastern European Neighbourhood.

scholarly journals Self-sufficiency in cereal and potato production in Central and Eastern Europe: 2005–2019

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Kubala ◽  
Chrystian Firlej
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Potato Production ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
Agricultural Products ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Domestic Consumption ◽  
Self Sufficiency ◽  
Research Period ◽  
The Eu

The article’s main objective is to discuss changes in self-sufficiency levels in cereal and potato production in eleven selected Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries belonging to the EU, defined as the ratio of domestic consumption of certain agricultural products to domestic production. The research period covered the years 2005 to 2019. The article focuses on the technical and economic self-sufficiency of the countries analysed. It was found that CEE countries show a significant degree of diversity in terms of self-sufficiency of cereal and potato production. The most successful in these terms were Lithuania and Poland while the least – Slovenia.

scholarly journals Eastwards EU enlargements and migration transition in Central and Eastern Europe

Geografie ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 476-499
Author(s):  
Agata Górny
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Legal Outcomes ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Southern European Countries ◽  
The Eu

Most Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries are net-emigration countries, in contrast to Western and Southern European countries, which usually represent net-immigration areas. The economic, demographic and legal outcomes of the 2004 and 2007 EU eastwards enlargements reshaped the migratory context in CEE in many ways. The article demonstrates, however, that in the decade (and more) that has passed since these enlargements, the changes in volumes and patterns of immigration to CEE have not been particularly substantial. This can be linked to the still relatively low economic attractiveness of the CEE region within the EU, and also to the importance of ethnic-based and local movements (but frequently from outside the EU after enlargements) in immigration to this region. These create a basis for, first of all, temporary and circular inflow. The article also acknowledges the diversity in developments in immigration within the CEE region.

scholarly journals POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC INTERESTS OF GERMANY IN THE COUNTRIES OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

2019 ◽  
pp. 101-106
Author(s):  
Leonid GUSEV
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Economic Interests ◽  
Political Interests ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Visegrad Group ◽  
The Eu

It is necessary to specify that as a result of the (unification?) of Germany in 1990, its eastern frontier directly bordered with a number of former communist states. Since the beginning of the 90 years of cooperation with these states one of Germany’s main tasks became rendering aid to them in carrying out reforms. Germany, being one of leaders of the EU was interested in involvement of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe in the European market and in receiving benefits from this cooperation, besides; in the political sphere it was important to create a common and stable Europe. One can add that stability and safety in Europe was connected with EU expansion to the East. This article also analyzes how in recent years Germany has been influencing the countries of Central and Eastern Europe; demonstrating that Germany cooperated with countries of Eastern Europe not only within the European Union, but also in a bilateral format since for Germany, entry of the countries of the Central and Eastern European countries into the EU into EU was communicated with the realization of a complex of social, economic and political interests with the Visegrád group.

scholarly journals The Varying Challenge of Islamophobia for the EU: On Anti-Muslim Resentments and Its Dividend for Right-Wing Populists and Eurosceptics—Central and Eastern Europe in a Comparative Perspective

2020 ◽  
pp. 57-80
Author(s):  
Gert Pickel ◽  
Cemal Öztürk
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Social Climate ◽  
Comparative Perspective ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Refugee Crisis ◽  
The Eu

Abstract The so-called refugee crisis and the fear of Islamist terror have turned out to be serendipitous for right-wing populist parties. They portray themselves as defenders of the ‘Christian Occident’ and campaign against an ‘invasion of Muslims’ that was allegedly orchestrated by cosmopolitan elites of the EU. Against this backdrop, this chapter explores the linkage between anti-Muslim sentiments and Eurosceptic attitudes. The study shows that (1) there is a pan-European nexus between Islamophobia and Euroscepticism, (2) there is a nexus that is primarily driven by voters of right-wing populist parties and (3) the magnitude of Islamophobic attitudes differ, however, between societies. An anti-Muslim social climate is particularly widespread in Eastern Europe, where hardly any Muslims live. The contribution addresses the resulting implications for the legitimacy of the EU.

scholarly journals EU-Russian Relations and the Eastern Enlargement: Integration or Isolation

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 158-163
Author(s):  
Mukesh Shankar Bharti
Keyword(s):  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Eu Enlargement ◽  
Eastern Bloc ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Eastern Enlargement ◽  
Fully Integrated ◽  
External Relations ◽  
Balkan States ◽  
The Eu

Initially, in the first half of the 1990s, Russia’s plans to include the countries of the former Eastern bloc within the EU were not seen as a threat to its interests. Furthermore, in the context of NATO’s enlargement, some Russians regarded them as an advantageous alternative. Russia is aware that the EU enlargement with the Central and Eastern European states resulted in a present increase in the number of EU members supporting close trans-Atlantic relations. Moscow’s fears of further EU enlargement were softened due to a dispute that continues to grow within the Union, regarding the rationale and limits of further enlargement, primarily for the Balkan states, Turkey, and the CIS states. Moscow expects that the reluctance of European societies towards further enlargement will inhibit this process. The external relations dimension of the European Union's enlargement to Central and Eastern Europe has received surprisingly little attention despite the fact that in the long‐term the issues it raises may be far more important than those currently dominating the debate. Nowhere is this more likely to be correct than about Russia, for which the EU's enlargement poses a risk of increasing isolation from the rest of Europe. The danger of creating a new dividing line across Europe is widely recognised, and the challenge, therefore, is to find ways of ensuring that Russia can be fully integrated with Europe while almost certainly remaining outside the EU Itself. This article focuses on relations between the EU and Russia and addresses three fundamental questions: how Russia has responded to the prospect of the EU's eastern enlargement; the specific issues arising from expansion, and the kind of long‐term relationship that could develop between Russia and an enlarged EU.

scholarly journals The State of Rural Sociology as Presented in Four Periodicals – Rural Sociology, Sociologia Ruralis, Journal of Rural Studies, Eastern European Countryside

2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grzegorz Zabłocki
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Rural Population ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
World Wide ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Rural Sociology ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Rural Studies

Abstract This article is an analysis of differences and similarities between four Englishlanguage journals on rural sociology. The comparison covered topics discussed in about 600 articles published in the journals in the years 1995-2010 and the regional affiliation of their authors. In the comparison, all articles and texts on empirical research published in this period in Eastern European Countryside were considered. In total, 141 texts were published in this annual journal. Out of the three other journals (Rural Sociology, Sociologia Ruralis, Journal of Rural Studies) 50 articles for each of three periods: 1995-1996, 2002-2003, 2008-2009, were selected. Results of the comparison show that the journals have strictly regional profiles, and that present rural sociology does not seem to be the science on social phenomena in world-wide rural areas. Rural sociology used in the four studied journals does not develop the knowledge that would be useful in solving problems of the rural population. In the three journals under study (Rural Sociology, Sociologia Ruralis, Journal of Rural Studies) almost exclusively sociology of rural areas in Western Europe and Northern America was developed, and their contributors were almost always authors from the two regions. The fourth journal - Eastern European Countryside - was concerned, adequately to its title, with rural phenomena in Central and Eastern Europe

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