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132. Post-Accession Conditionality: Support Instrument for Continuous Pressure?
- Author:
- Eli Gateva
- Publication Date:
- 10-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Kolleg-Forschergruppe (KFG)
- Abstract:
- The establishment of a Cooperation and Verification Mechanism for monitoring Bulgaria's and Romania's progress in the areas of judiciary and fight against corruption not only confirms the evolutionary nature of EU conditionality, but introduces a new feature, that of post-accession conditionality. More than three years after accession, neither Bulgaria nor Romania have managed to tackle the remaining issues and the scrupulous monitoring mechanism is still maintained. What are the main features and limitations of post-accession conditionality? Why does the effectiveness of EU conditionality deteriorate after accession? The article outlines a conceptual framework for comparative study of pre-accession and post-accession conditionality. On the basis of a stage-structured conditionality model, it discusses the transformations of the main elements of conditionality before and after accession and argues that the absence of accession advancement rewards combined with toothless explicit threats for sanctioning non-compliance produce very weak negative incentive structure which undermines the effectiveness of post-accession conditionality. The study, which draws on extensive interviews with senior EU officials and examination of key EU documents, highlights the growing application of differentiated and targeted conditionality and concludes with a reflection on the future of the mechanism and its implications for the ongoing enlargement of the Union with countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey.
- Topic:
- Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Turkey, Bulgaria, Balkans, and Romania
133. The Transformative Power of Europe Reloaded: The Limits of External Europeanization
- Author:
- Tanja A. Börzel
- Publication Date:
- 02-2010
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Kolleg-Forschergruppe (KFG)
- Abstract:
- With the borders of the European Union (EU) moved eastwards, students of Europeanization have been awarded yet another real-world experiment. This paper explores to what extent existing Europeanization approaches travel beyond the EU's border to its South Eastern and Eastern neighbours, which are marked by “bad governance” with regard to both the effectiveness and democratic legitimacy of their domestic institutions. The first part outlines key insights of the literature on “Europeanization West” regarding the outcomes and the mechanism of the domestic impact of the EU. Then, I summarize the main findings of research on “Europeanization East” focusing on factors that have limited or at least qualified the domestic impact of the EU in the ten Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries in comparison to the EU 15 (those that were members before the 2004 enlargement). This paper discusses to what extent the concepts and causal mechanisms need even further qualification when applied to countries, such as the European Neighbourhood Countries (ENC), that are neither willing nor necessarily capable of adapting to Europe and that do not even have the incentive of EU membership to cope with the costs. I will argue that the EU is unlikely to deploy any transformative power in its neighbourhood as long as it does not adjust its “accession tool box” to countries the EU does not want to take on as members. The paper concludes with some considerations on the policy implications of the EU's approach of “move closer but don't touch” which has started to creep into its relations with the Western Balkans and Turkey.
- Topic:
- Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Turkey, and Balkans
134. The Kosovo Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice and its Political Consequences
- Author:
- Pál Dunay and Steven Haines
- Publication Date:
- 10-2010
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
- Abstract:
- Ever since NATO's Operation Allied Force in 1999 resulted in a withdrawal of Serb forces from Kosovo and the establishment of governance arrangements for the province that included an important external presence (with UN, EU, NATO and OSCE missions) as well as Kosovo's own Provisional Institutions of Self Government, the precise future status of Kosovo has been in doubt. Two extreme options were favoured by Serbia and Kosovo, respectively: either for Kosovo to continue as a part of Serbia or for it to achieve independent status (most likely by attaining statehood). On 17 February 2008, a group of Kosovo leaders issued a Declaration of Independence. Serbia responded with a request that the UN General Assembly seek an opinion on the legality of Kosovo's action from the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Court delivered its Opinion on 22 July 2010. What did the Court say and what are the political consequences of its Opinion?
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Law, and Sovereignty
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Kosovo, United Nations, and Balkans
135. Serb Integration in Kosovo: Taking the Plunge
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- In the ten years since Belgrade ceded Kosovo to UN and NATO control, integration of the Serbs into Kosovo's political life has been one of the greatest challenges. Since the former Serbian province's declaration of independence in February 2008, this challenge has become still more complicated. The rejection of Kosovo's independence by the vast majority of its Serb inhabitants has been encouraged by Belgrade, which has developed and, since February 2008, extended a framework of parallel structures that provide Serbs with tangible evidence of the continued presence of the Serbian state and hope that one day Kosovo's independence may be overturned. This hope is also kept alive by Belgrade's diplomatic activities, above all through the case it brought at the International Court of Justice in October 2008 seeking to have the independence declaration ruled illegal. It is encouraged by the support of Russia and by five EU member states that have not recognised Kosovo.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Ethnic Conflict, United Nations, and War
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Kosovo, and Balkans
136. What to do about Bosnia and Herzegovina?: The Case for Accelerated NATO Membership and OSCE Coordination of Constitutional Reform
- Author:
- Edward P. Joseph
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- The policy choice in Bosnia revolves around one question: how much time does the country have? If one believes that the country is reasonably stable, that another election will produce more cooperative leaders, and that Bosnia's "EU future" is assured, then the way forward is clear: cede international leadership in Bosnia from the U.S. to the European Union.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, NATO, and Democratization
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Balkans
137. Unfinished Business in Bosnia and Herzegovina: What Is To Be Done?
- Author:
- Kurt Bassuener and James Lyon
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- This is the first of three papers USIP will publish this month on Bosnia, each with a different analytical perspective on what is happening in Bosnia and what needs to be done there to prevent a return to violence. We do this in the hope that these papers will generate a fuller debate on options that might be pursued by the U.S. government (USG), Europe and Bosnians.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Democratization, Peace Studies, and War
- Political Geography:
- United States, Europe, Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Balkans
138. U.S. Policy and Bosnia-Herzegovina: An Assessment
- Author:
- David Binder, Dr. Steven Meyer, and Obrad Kesic
- Publication Date:
- 06-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- This is the final of three papers (read the first and second papers) USIP will publish on Bosnia-Herzegovina, each with a different analytical perspective on what is happening in Bosnia and what needs to be done there to prevent a return to violence. We hope that these papers will generate a debate on options that might be pursued by the U.S. government (USG), Europe and Bosnians. These papers will be discussed at a public forum at the United States Institute of Peace on June 25, 2009.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Foreign Policy, and Peace Studies
- Political Geography:
- United States, Europe, Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Balkans
139. Sırp İsyanının Uluslararası Boyutu (1804–1813)
- Author:
- Selim Aslantaş
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Institution:
- Uluslararasi Iliskiler
- Abstract:
- The Serbian uprising (1804-1813), which played a very critical role in the disintegration of Ottoman regime in the Balkans, is one of the most important events in the modern history. It broke out against Dayis who captured the Semendire sanjak (territorial core of 19th century's Serbia) and established an oppressive regime over the Serbians. In the initial phase, the uprising had only a local dimension. When the Ottoman government regarded the uprising as an opportunity to eliminate the Dayis' regime, it supported the rebels. But in a short time, it went well beyond its local character and became an international question. Up to its end in 1813, it preserved this character. In this study we try to answer the following questions: why and how did Serbian uprising become an international question? What were the basic dynamics of the international dimension of Serbian uprising? What were the policies of Ottoman Empire and Great Powers toward the uprising? Which factors were important to the changing of these policies?
- Topic:
- Government and History
- Political Geography:
- Serbia and Balkans
140. Bosnia: A Test of Political Maturity in Mostar
- Publication Date:
- 07-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- The administration of Mostar is collapsing, a warning sign for Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). There has been no mayor, budget or functioning city council since an October 2008 election; tension threatens to poison relations between the leading Bosniak and Croat parties, which are coalition partners throughout BiH. The crisis is rooted in ethnic demographics, recent conflict history and a city statute that replicates many of the power-sharing rules that govern the state. Mostar's Croat majority, much like the state's Bosniak majority, chafes against these rules, considering them illegitimate and foreign-imposed, and seeks to force the Office of the High Representative (OHR – the international community's peace implementation body) to impose a solution on its behalf. Yet, a fair solution is within the council's competence and, like the city's chronic grievances, can best be handled without the High Representative using his extraordinary (Bonn) powers. The international community should deliver the message that fourteen years after the end of their war, it is time for the Bosnians to take responsibility for their own futures.
- Topic:
- Politics and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Balkans