Europolity-Continuity and Change in European Governance. Vol 12. No 2. 2018

Abstract

The Impact of the Romanian EU Council Presidency on the Degree of Inclusiveness of Non-Governmental Actors in the National System for Coordination of European Affairs
Alexandra Loy

The paper assesses the council presidency’s potential to affect the development of the coordination system in the long run related to its nature in terms of the degree of inclusiveness of non-governmental actors in the process of defining the national position on European affairs. In this sense, an analysis of the framework for cooperation between the government and the civil society representatives in general and in the context of the preparations for the presidency was conducted through the theoretical lens of the critical junctures concept in order to establish whether the transformations triggered by this event might have reorganized the pre-existent institutional arrangements of the system.

Zero-Sum Games and Mixed-Motive Games in the Fight of the Russian Federation with the West for Ukraine
Sebastian Blidaru

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the ‟race” for Ukraine between the Russian federation and the west, analysed through the concepts of zero-sum games and mixed-motive games. The research will focus on the Russian state. The conclusions of my endeavour are that the zero sum-games are too simplistic and are not the appropriate tool to use to understand the foreign policy of the Russian federation, whereas the mixed-motives games are more suited for this kind of process.

Non-Traditional Security Challenges As a Main Security threat to the Western Balkan Countries
Dr.Sc. Alfred Marleku
Prof. Dr. Blerim Reka

Some of the biggest challenges states in the western Balkans are facing since the end of the cold war are non-traditional security threats. Although recent studies have argued that “history has returned” and that traditional security threats have come back to become core challenges for states, authors of this paper argue that due to geopolitical, political, economic and cultural factors, the states in the region suffer more from non-traditional or “soft security” rather than “hard security” threats. In this paper, the authors are focused on two of such threats: organized crime and terrorism.

The Quest for Coherence in Eu Crisis Management in the South Caucasus: The Case of South Ossetia
Irena Mnatsakanyan

The paper assesses the EU crisis management in the south Caucasus with a particular focus on the south Ossetian conflict. The EU engagement in the south Caucasus dates back to 2003, when the region gained importance for the EU as an energy transportation corridor between east and west, as well as for security purposes, in terms of building “a new chain of friends” outside the Eu borders. At the same time the Eu introduced a wide range of institutional structures and coordination mechanisms over multiple policy domains of crisis management. In contrast, the increased EU presence in the region did not contribute to coherent crisis management in south Ossetia. The paper argues that the incoherence in EU crisis management is undermined by the overlapping mandates of EU institutional agents in the two main policy areas: the EU’s common foreign security policy (CFSP) and development aid policy (DAP).

Immigration and Racial Inequality. the Italian Case
Fabio Perocco

The aim of the article is to show how in Italy the traditional inequalities in class, gender and geography have been matched by an inequality linked to immigration, whose causes, forms and social consequences i will analyse here. In so doing i will underline how such inequality linked to immigration is an integral part of the system of social inequalities existing at global level and in particular it is part of the globalization of inequality linked to immigration.

Historical Incrementalism and Its Effects on the (Mis) Perception of Liberalism in Russia. Guidance from In-Country Experts
Loredana Maria Simionov, Ramona Tiganasu

The current paper revolves around capturing Russians’ attitudes and perceptions regarding the concept of liberalism and the western model of democracy, through in-country expert interviews; such an approach could contribute to a better understanding of the Russian society and implicitly to building a more effective dialogue and communication between the two actors.

Promoting Ethical Behaviour in the Eastern Partnership Countries
Clara Volintiru, Mihai Volintiru, Radu Mușetescu

The eastern partnership region is currently going through a process of institutional formation and consolidation in which promoting public ethics can play a major role in the legitimacy of its administration and attracting foreign investors. Through various data sets, we explore here the level of corruption in the region, as well as the measures that could be employed to counter it. The first section aims at assembling the conceptual references of corruption. Secondly, the analysis turns to the manifestation forms and the assessment of the extent of the phenomenon. Finally, this paper looks at the potential remedies. In this section, the paper also deals with some of the anti-corruption approaches, as we assess preventive and corrective measures, and discuss the potential contribution of adopting international benchmarks of ethical behaviour in the public sector, such as the ISO 37001 anti-bribery management systems.

Putinization and Neo-Containment
George Anglițoiu

The western strategic vision about the east lies at a crossroads. Similar to the interwar era, when acts of unilateralism in foreign affairs and aggression by the revisionist powers under popular but militaristic leaders have triggered the outbreak of world war ii, the west seems unable to act cohesively and decidedly to counter the contestation of international law and order.

Therefore, a better understanding of the past lessons and negative impact of the “functionalist” spillover of power personification is at stake.