The EU's Transformative Power in Albania

2022 ◽  
pp. 229-243
Author(s):  
Lutjona Lula
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Green Light ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Transformative Power ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
South Eastern Europe ◽  
Accession Process

South-Eastern Europe has always been a vital region with continuous socio-political changes. After the fall of communism and the wars that accompanied the disintegration of Yugoslavia, countries in the region turned towards the European Union. Upon signing the SAA, the countries of the Western Balkans, such as Albania, have had a green light to move forward in the EU's pre-accession process. As Albania works toward membership, how do domestic political actors in Albania (not) change their with agendas according to EU requirements? This chapter will address the puzzle of the transformative power of EU's conditionality in main political parties in Albania.

STUDYING THE HISTORY OF THE BALKANS / SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPE: RESEARCH TASKS AND PROBLEM FORMULATION

2021 ◽  
pp. 7-21
Author(s):  
Sergei Romanenko ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Problem Formulation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Interstate Relations ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
European Culture ◽  
South Eastern Europe ◽  
The Relationship

The new issue of the journal «Current Problems of Europe» opens with the problem-oriented article, dedicated to the analysis of the state of the Balkans / South-Eastern Europe region and its development in 2000-2020. The author gives a systemic description of the processes taking place in the intra-national and international intra-regional political, social and economic development of the countries of the region, and the problems generated by them. The changes are associated with a difficult transition phase, experienced by the states of the region, for the most part belonging to the post-socialist world (Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo and Albania). The exceptions are Greece, Turkey and Cyprus, however, these three states are also going through a difficult period in their history, associated with new problems both in interstate relations within this triangle, and in relations with NATO and the EU, as well as with Russia. The article discusses the specifics of translating the terms «people» and «national» into Russian, as well as the toponym Kosovo (Serb.) / Kosova (Alb.), and ethnonyms «Bošnjak» and «bosanac». The first part of the issue contains articles devoted to general problems of regional studies: the relationship between the terms Eastern Europe, Central Europe, South-Eastern Europe, Balkans, Western Balkans; comparative and political science subjects; the role of the European Union and China in the development of the region; the relationship of national Serbian, post-Yugoslavian and European culture and intellectual heritage as well. The second part of the issue examines the relations of the Balkan states with the states of Central and Eastern Europe (Czech Republic, Romania, Belarus), as well as the specifics of their development in the post-socialist period. Thus, there is the possibility of a multilateral - historical, political and cultural, as well as comparative analysis of the development of this complex region, which is of great importance for international relations worldwide.

scholarly journals Photovoice as a Research Tool of the “Game” Along the “Balkan Route”

2021 ◽  
pp. 197-215
Author(s):  
Karolína Augustová
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Research Tool ◽  
Border Crossing ◽  
Northern Europe ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Displaced Populations ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
South Eastern Europe ◽  
Displaced People

AbstractMigratory pathways across the borders of South Eastern Europe have been commonly recognised within public and policy discourses as the ‘Balkan Route’ (Frontex, 2018; UNHCR, 2019). Yet those pathways do not follow one linear route across the official border checkpoints of former Yugoslav states – Serbia and Bosnia, to the European Union – Croatia and Hungary (Obradovic-Wochnik & Bird, 2019; Stojić & Vilenica, 2019). As often encountered by displaced populations, the journeys consist of perpetually moving onward and being pushed backward across diverse European towns, highways, mountains, forests, rivers, minefields, and camps, necessary to cross to reach western or northern Europe. Displaced people stranded in Serbia and Bosnia generally call their border crossing attempts the ‘game’; the term that conveys the daily mobility struggles, violence and deaths.

scholarly journals Unia Europejska wobec Bałkanów Zachodnich w kontekście kryzysu migracyjnego w latach 2015‑2019

Politeja ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3(66)) ◽  
pp. 157-169
Author(s):  
Wawrzyniec Banach
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Balkan Countries ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
Accession Process ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The Eu

European Union towards Western Balkans in the Context of Migration Crisis 2015‑2019 The aim of the article is to analyse the actions taken by the European Union towards the Western Balkans in the context of the migration crisis. The study assumes that the migration crisis was an important factor accelerating the accession process of the Western Balkan countries to the European Union. In order to fulfil the research goal, an analysis of sources (European Union documents) was conducted. The paper uses elements of the theory of the regional security complex as a theoretical framework. Firstly, the activities of the European Union before the migration crisis are discussed. Next, the paper focuses on presenting the course of the crisis on the Western Balkan route. The further part of the study discusses the actions taken by the EU towards the countries of the Western Balkans in response to the migration crisis.

scholarly journals ‘The skies are empty and the continent is overflowing with insoluble problems’ – The Covid-19 crisis in the western Balkans and the failure of the EU

SEER ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-18
Author(s):  
Jens Becker ◽  
Ina Kulić
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
High Incidence ◽  
South Eastern Europe ◽  
Political Realities ◽  
The Eu

Many societies are still in the stranglehold of the coronavirus. China, South Korea and Taiwan have apparently overcome the pandemic but problems that are almost impossible to resolve are piling up in Europe. Despite the joint vaccination procurement campaign, the EU in particular is struggling to regulate the crisis domestically. The states of the western Balkans which have been relying on an EU perspective for years and which have repeatedly been put off, have also been hit hard, piling problems on top of health services that are, for a number of reasons, already seriously jeopardised. In view of the worsening situation - countries in central and south-eastern Europe are over-represented among those with the highest numbers of Covid-19 related deaths - we take a closer look at current practicalities and political realities in these ‘high incidence areas’, as the region is currently known (according to the Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft). This article focuses on the role of the EU, and how views of this are changing in the region, as well as that being played by other, apparently more nimble and agile, powers.

The eu’s Pathological Power: The Failure of External Rule of Law Promotion in South Eastern Europe

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Mendelski
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
International Standards ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Pathological Effect ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
European Court ◽  
South Eastern Europe

What impact does the European Union (eu) have on the development of the rule of law in South Eastern Europe (see)? The author of this article argues and shows that the eu has: 1) a positively reinforcing (healthy) effect with regard to judicial capacity and substantive legality, i.e. the alignment of domestic legislation with international standards, and 2) a negatively reinforcing (pathological) effect with regard to judicial impartiality and formal legality (the inner morality of law). The author explains the pathological impact of eu-driven rule of law reforms by referring to the eu’s deficient reform approach and to unfavorable domestic conditions, which in their interplay reinforce certain reform pathologies (legal instability, incoherence, politicization) that undermine the rule of law. The main argument is supported by a mixed method study. A quantitative indicator-based analysis measures rule of law development across four key dimensions on the basis of a variety of data (e.g. survey-based indicators, cepej data, and a unique dataset on legislative output). Additionally, the author draws on a number of qualitative interviews that he conducted with magistrates from see and representatives from the eu, the European Court of Human Rights, and the Council of Europe. The author concludes from these findings that external rule of law promotion in weak rule of law countries is not transformative, but rather reinforces systemic deficiencies that undermine the rule of law.

scholarly journals Limits of the EU’s transformative power and the Western Balkans

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-49
Author(s):  
Maja Kovacevic
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Security Policy ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Global Strategy ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Transformative Power ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
The Eu

The European Union (EU) is a unique player in the Western Balkans, where it has employed a wide array of foreign policy instruments since the 1990s such as diplomacy, trade, financial assistance, civilian missions, military missions, and enlargement, which is the EU?s most successful foreign policy tool. The region is an inspiring case for studying the EU?s transformative power. The undeniable success of the EU?s Enlargement Policy in influencing transitions of Central and Eastern Europe countries has inspired research of the Europeanization, or the EU?s transformative power in relation to candidate countries, and its impact on their political and economic reforms during the accession process. Since then, the EU?s global transformative power has been in crisis. The European Neighbourhood Policy was reviewed in 2015, aiming not any more towards the transformation of neighbouring states, but rather at fostering their resilience. Similarly, the 2016 Global Strategy for the European Union?s Foreign and Security Policy set the principled pragmatism as a guideline. Moreover, the EU?s transformative power towards member states is questioned after two initiatives to trigger Article 7 TEU procedures against Poland and Hungary. What about the Europeanization of the Western Balkans? Despite the fact that the EU has been the main driver of change, the Europeanization of this post-conflict region has been slow. According to Freedom House, after substantial progress from 2004 to 2010, the Western Balkans has declined six years in a row, and its average Democracy Score in 2016 is the same as it was in 2004. With the exception of Albania, the scores of all countries are declining, not improving. The EU?s security-democratisation dilemma strongly affects its transformative power in the Western Balkans. By prioritising effective government rather than democratic governance, the EU has helped stabilise non-democratic and corrupt regimes rather than transforming them, legitimising Balkan "stabilitocrats".

scholarly journals Challenges of the enlargement policy in the light of European Union transformation: Is the rise of Euroscepticism in Serbia inevitable?

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-106
Author(s):  
Jelena Todorovic-Lazic
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Western Balkans ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
The Public ◽  
Accession Process ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Public Opinion Polls ◽  
The Eu

The EU Summit in Thessaloniki in 2003 is often referred to as a milestone in the relations between the Western Balkans and the European Union because the region was given strong promises of a prospective European perspective through the Stabilization and Association Process. However, the initial enthusiasm that followed has melted over the coming years because the expectations of most countries in the region have not been met (with the exception of Croatia that became an EU member in 2013). Even though we get assurances from the Brussels that they will not give up on enlargement, it is obvious that this issue is not on the list of priorities of the EU at the moment. Not only that its decisiveness to encompass with enlargement the Western Balkans is on shaky grounds due to the numerous challenges that the EU is facing at the moment, but such decline in interest leads to a decline in interest in the countries of the mentioned region that are currently in the accession process. This further leads to the rise in Euroscepticism for which the Western Balkans is a breeding ground. The reasons for Euroscepticism existed even before the enlargement has been brushed aside from the Union agenda (those were mostly reasons related to pre-accession strategy for candidate countries/potential candidates and were present even in the case of countries of Eastern and Central Europe, even though there were also reasons specific for each of these countries.). However, it seems they have become stronger with the new developments in the Union. Incertitude of membership affects the rise of negative attitudes towards the Union in the public opinion of these countries which becomes manifest if we look at numerous public opinion polls. The focus of this paper will be the interpretation of the results of the research that the Institute for Political Studies conducted on an annual basis from 2015 to 2018.

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