Number of results to display per page
Search Results
152. Pool it, Share it, Use it: The European Council on Defence
- Author:
- Sven Biscop
- Publication Date:
- 03-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- The December 2013 European Council will address the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). Pooling Sharing of military capabilities will be high on the agenda. What should be expected from the Heads of State and Government? Capabilities now, capabilities in the future, and a common idea on what to use them for.
- Topic:
- Security, Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe
153. Don't complicate it even further: Macroeconomic Conditionality as a Substitute for new Structural Reform Contracts
- Author:
- Stijn Verhelst
- Publication Date:
- 05-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- The idea of introducing contracts between Member States and the EU on structural reforms has its merits, it also has several disadvantages. Most notably, the contracts risk rendering European economic governance even more complex and cumbersome. It is therefore sensible to first try to integrate the structural reform contracts into one of the foreseen economic governance instruments.
- Topic:
- Economics, International Trade and Finance, Regional Cooperation, Governance, and Reform
- Political Geography:
- Europe
154. The Governance Gap in European Security and Defence
- Author:
- Giovanni Faleg
- Publication Date:
- 12-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
- Abstract:
- Let us take three assumptions: The demand for security provision continues to increase in Europe's fragile neighbourhood (notably following the 'Arab Spring'); Austerity restrictions have hit national defence budgets heavily; The balance of power is shifting 'from the West to the rest' and the Americans are pivoting eastwards. Under these circumstances, it is no surprise that the EU is struggling to establish itself as a credible and effective security actor. The final report of High Representative Catherine Ashton, released in preparation for the December 2013 European Council on Security and Defence, admits that Europe "faces rising security challenges within a changing strategic context while the financial crisis is increasingly affecting its security and defence capability". But these are not the true causes of CSDP inertia.
- Topic:
- Defense Policy and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe
155. Rule of law or rule of thumb? A New Copenhagen Mechanism for the EU
- Author:
- Sergio Carrera, Elspeth Guild, and Nicholas Hernanz
- Publication Date:
- 11-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
- Abstract:
- The European Union, and its Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ), is founded on a set of common principles of rule of law, democracy and human rights. This has been officially enshrined in the body of Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) which lists "respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities" as the shared values on which the Union is rooted. One of the current modalities of action to ensure that all member states of the EU respect Article 2 TEU is to filter their compliance with these values before they accede to the Union. The so-called 'Copenhagen criteria' have been established in 1993 to ensure that all new EU member states are in line with the Union's common principles before crossing the bridge towards membership.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Human Rights, International Law, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Europe
156. Foreign policy implications of the new emir's succession in Qatar
- Author:
- Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
- Publication Date:
- 09-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
- Abstract:
- The carefully managed handover of power in Qatar on June 25th 2013 will change the style, but not the substance of Qatari foreign policy. The abdication of Emir Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and the replacement of Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Shaykh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani (HBJ) removes from office the two men behind Qatar's rise to global prominence since the 1990s. The new emir, 33-year old Shaykh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, will likely curb the excesses of Qatar's aggressive internationalisation strategy and recalibrate the country's regional policy to address its policy overreach in Syria. While the underlying substance of policy is likely to remain broadly similar, the biggest changes are expected in the hitherto-personalised style of decision-making associated with HBJ and the former emir. Greater emphasis on multilateral co-ordination will also replace the confrontational unilateralism associated with Qatar's post-2011 Arab Spring policies.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Regional Cooperation, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and Arabia
157. Brazil in the South Atlantic: growing protagonism and unintended consequences
- Author:
- Adriana Erthal Abdenur and Danilo Marcondes de Souza Neto
- Publication Date:
- 05-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
- Abstract:
- For most of the twentieth century, the strategic importance of the North Atlantic outstripped that of the southern part of the ocean. However, the past decade has brought significant shifts in Atlantic dynamics, with regional and external actors developing new interests in the region. Brazil, in particular, has been working to reinforce its control and influence in the South Atlantic. To this end, over the last five years the Brazilian government has launched or intensified efforts meant to securitise the South Atlantic. This strategy combines unilateral initiatives – naval build-up, domestic military publicity efforts, and international legal moves – with a vastly expanded international defence cooperation programme that covers nearly the entire South Atlantic perimeter. This policy brief analyses key components of Brazil's strategy, situating them within the South Atlantic's changing ecology of actors and suggesting some of the potential tensions that may arise from Brazil's growing protagonism in the South Atlantic.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Emerging Markets, Regional Cooperation, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Latin America
158. "A Beautiful Future for Central Europe:" Hungary's Regional Policy in the Period 2010—2013
- Author:
- Dariusz Kalan
- Publication Date:
- 10-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Polish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has, from the beginning of his tenure, made public declarations of his deep engagement with cooperation in the region, and outlined very ambitious visions about its future. The idea to make 2013, the year of Hungary's presidencies of the Visegrad Group and the Central European Initiative, a Central European year, is a part of the policy of special attachment to regional matters too. However, there is a visible gap between politicians' rhetoric and their activity. This is especially true regarding Hungary's dialogue with Romania and Slovakia, which, due to many historical, social and psychological obstacles, has always been most challenging for leaders in Budapest. Orbán's government, though, by taking steps to culturally and politically unify Hungarians from the Carpathian Basin, promoting historically ambiguous persons and inviting revisionists such as Erika Steinbach to parliament, not only fails to engender a good atmosphere in the region, but also proves how lively among the country's governing elite are both resentments from the past and temptations to use them to achieve temporary political goals.
- Topic:
- Political Economy, Regional Cooperation, and Governance
- Political Geography:
- Europe
159. A Competitive Two-speed Policy: The Eastern Partnership beyond 2013
- Author:
- Kinga Dudzinska, Elzbieta Kaca, and Karolina Zubel
- Publication Date:
- 10-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Polish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- A redefinition of the Eastern Partnership beyond 2013 is urgently needed in order to make the EU a more competitive player vis-à-vis Russia and China in the region. Eastern partners which choose deeper economic integration with the EU must therefore be supported by enhanced cooperation, which would require further differentiation in approaches towards neighbours. It should also be supported by certain horizontal policies, strengthening the EU's multilateral cooperation and the fledgling European Union diplomacy in this region, assisted by better targeting policies at EaP societies.
- Topic:
- Economics, Regional Cooperation, and Monetary Policy
- Political Geography:
- China and Europe
160. The Search for an Exit from the Poland–Belarus Deadlock on Small Border Traffic
- Author:
- Anna Maria Dyner
- Publication Date:
- 07-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Polish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- A Polish–Belarusian agreement on small border traffic (SBT) could revive border trade and open new opportunities for regional cooperation. The Belarusian authorities, however, do not want the agreement to enter into force and treat it as a form of pressure on Warsaw. Poland may attempt to influence a change in this position by indicating the potential benefits to the Belarusian economy as well as to border areas if the agreement is implemented and noting the high level of support among residents who live there.
- Topic:
- Economics, International Trade and Finance, Regional Cooperation, Bilateral Relations, and Border Control
- Political Geography:
- Ukraine