94463 - The Regional Cooperation In East Central Europe And The Danube-Balkan Basin

Learning outcomes

 In the lectures and seminars of the Course, macro-regional cooperation in Central and South Eastern Europe will be broadly covered with particular attention to the role and activities of regional and sub-regional networks e.g. Central European Initiative, Regional Cooperation Council, Baltic See Economic Cooperation as well as various forms of cross-border cooperation (CBC) initiatives. Within the Course, special attention will be devoted to Visegrad Cooperation (Visegrad Group, Visegrad Four, V4). The lectures will offer a detailed description and analysis of the first 25 year history of the Group covering the achievements and challenges alike with special regard to the role of „Višegrad diplomacy” in the process of the member countries’ Euro-Atlantic integration, their adjustement and collective representation of interest within EU structures and also the development of „Višegrad +” formats. Historical circumstances, socio-economic and cultural factors of regional cohesion between the founding countries will be highlighted along with changes of external environment effecting the origins and development of the cooperation. Due attention will be paid to the evaluation of security, energy and other areas of sectoral cooperation as well as the first decade of International Višegrad Fund, and its contribution to the member states’ cultural development  The objective of the module is to offer complex, descriptive and analytical knowledge about the historical conditions under which the new democracies of East-Central Europe (ECE) have been adjusting to the global world order in the first almost three decades after the change of regimes, while developing their new foreign policies. Due attention will be devoted to the inter-relation between historical heritage, geo-political and socio-economic endowments of ECE region on the one hand and the new options of foreign policies, on the other. The new attitudes and roles of ECE countries in international institutions as e.g. UN, OECD, WTO, IMF/IBRD, EU, OSCE and NATO will also be highlighted. Students are expected to acquire a sound knowledge of history of policies of regional development in Central and Eastern Europe, with a specific focus on the Visegrad Group, CEI and Black Sea Cooperation Initiative as well as on Euroregions and cross-border cooperation in the framework of the EU integration processes. Moreover, students will learn about the most recent EU policies that have launched the Baltic Sea Region and the Danube initiative.

Course contents

Lecture 1: Course requirements. Introduction to foreign and regional policies in ECE. Geo- political environment and historical features.

Lecture 2: Foreign policies of ECE countries in the State-Socialist period. Risks, suggestions and debates in 1989-1991. The new foreign and security policy priorities in the region.

Lecture 3: Foreign and regional policy patterns in ECE under the conditions of the new world order. ECE in European integration and Trans-Atlantic relationship.

Lecture 4: Foreign policy patterns in ECE in the new world order: the case of Hungary.

Lecture 5: Factors of regional cohesion and cooperation in ECE before and after the systemic change. Regional and inter-regional networks on governmental and sub-national levels

Lecture 6: The increasing role of sub-regional actors in ECE relations. The case of VISEGRAD FOUR (V-4).

Lecture 7: Prospects of a region in context of international relations and regional cooperation. Scenarios for V-4 future

Seminar 1-2: Foreign policies in and towards ECE region. Cases of countries represented in the Course.

Seminar 3: Short case studies of regional and sub-regional cooperation in ECE (introduction of the topics of assigment papers)

 

 

Readings/Bibliography

• Albrycht, Izabela (ed.), The Eastern Partnership in the context of the European Neighborhood Policy and the V4 Agenda, Kosciuszko Institut, Krakow, 2011.
• Baun,Michae, Dan Marek (eds), The New Member States and the European Union: Foreign Policy and Europeanization, Routledge, 2013 , Chapters 1,2,3,4,14.
• Dančák, Břetislav et al. (eds.), Two Decades of Visegrad Cooperation – Selected V4 Bibliography.International Visegrad Fund, Bratislava, 2011
• Ganzle, S. ‘’EU Governance, ‘Experimental Union’, and Baltic Sea Cooperation: the Case of the European Union’s Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.’’ Schuman Papers 2017. http://www.schuman-seura.fi/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Schuman_Paper_2-2017_WEB.pd
• Roaf, James, Ruben Atoyan, Bikas Joshi, Krzysztof Krogulski (2014): 25 Years of Transition Post-Communist Europe and the IMF Regional Economic Issues Special Report http://www.imf.org/external/region/bal/rr/2014/25_years_of_transition.pdf
• Rekawek, Kacper, Non-military aspects of security in V4 countries: prospects for cooperation.Polish Institute of International Affairs, Warsaw, V4 Papers No.3., 2011, pp.35-43. (with studies by Marton, Samson and others)
• Regional Cooperation Council. (2018, April 23). Annual Report of the Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council 2017-2018. Retrieved from: https://www.rcc.int/pubs/60/annual-report-of-the-secretary-general-of-the-regional-cooperation-council-2017-2018
• Sabic, Zlatko, Petr Drulák (eds) Regional and International Relations of Central Europe, Palgrave Macmillan, 2012
• Törő, Csaba (ed.) Visegrad cooperation within NATO and CSDP. Warsaw: Polish Institute of International Affairs, 2011. 108.p. (with studies of Hamberger, Horváth, Samson, Tarašovic and others)
• Vugrinović, Andrea, e Andrea Dominko. Crossing the borders. Studies on cross-border cooperation within the Danube Region: Case Study of the Euroregion Danube-Drava-Sava. Cent Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives, 2016.

 

 

 

Teaching methods

Lecures (14 hours) and seminars (6 hours)

Assessment methods

Students' performance will be assessed on the basis of an assignment paper and in-seminar activities.

Teaching tools

Ppt presentations and printed materials

Office hours

See the website of Laszlo Nyusztay