Tourism and the transformation of large cities in the post-communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe.

Author(s): Waldemar Cudny,Tomasz Michalski,Rafał Rouba / Language(s): English

The turn of the 1980’s and 1990’s was the time of radical political and socioeconomic transformations in the world and a deep economic and political crisis in the European socialist countries. The General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was Mikhail Gorbachev, who introduced Perestroika. It was a program of economic and political reforms meant to improve the situation in the country. The decline of the Soviet Union and the reforms that were introduced there started the transformation process in other socialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe, such as Poland (1989), Hungary (1989), the German Democratic Republic or Czechoslovakia (1989). In 1991, the Soviet Union was formally dissolved and new states arose from the ruins of the former empire, such as Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, or the Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia), as well as Asiatic countries – Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The transformation which began at that time is still continuing today. The former socialist countries are constantly fighting to reduce the distance between them and Western Europe, which became evident after World War II. The transformation in the majority of the countries described here leads to the democratization of the political and social life, as well as the introduction of market economy. Some changes are seen as positive and some as negative. All the spheres of life in the countries concerned are strongly affected, but it is cities where particularly far-reaching consequences of the fall of socialism are observed. The book presents transformations in the cities of the former socialist countries in the central and eastern part of the European continent. However, apart from the location, it is important that they have a similar history, and for years were maintaining geopolitical relations. Moreover, they all have a history of a leftist regime, resulting from the course of events in the 20th c. After World War II, they were all under the influence of the USSR as its satellite countries (e.g. Polish People’s Republic, Czechoslovak People’s Republic, Hungarian People’s Republic) or republics, which were parts of a state which does not exist any more (e.g. Belarusian SSR, Ukrainian SSR). The subject of the study is the tourist function of the group of post-socialist cities in several countries in the central and eastern region of Europe. The object of the study presented in this book is the development of the tourist function in these cities, caused by the transformation process after the fall of socialism. The spatial range of the work includes cities in selected countries of Central and Eastern Europe : Lodz in Poland, Bratislava in Slovakia, Kaliningrad in Russia, Minsk in Belarus, and Lviv in Ukraine. The analysis presented in this book concerns the cities within their administrative borders, is dynamic and shows the transformations which took place in the period between the fall of socialism and the present times. The main aim of the book is to verify a research hypothesis, according to which: One of the consequences of the fall of socialism was the political and socio-economic transformation, including rapid development of the tourist function in large cities, in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Due to the advancing deindustrialization, as well as the growing importance of the third economic sector, the significance of tourist services increased considerably. The tourist sector offering hotel, catering and entertainment services developed, the accessibility of the studied areas increased, the urban space was revitalized, and the local authorities implemented a number of tourism development programs. As a result, tourist traffic and the number and diversity of tourist arrivals increased. Apart from the general aim of the study, the authors set themselves the following individual goals: 1. Presenting the history of transformations in the European postsocialist countries. 2. Describing the studied cities and their geographical location. 3. Presenting the present socio-economic situation of the cities. 4. Analyze of the changes of the tourist function, which took place in the studied areas after the fall of the socialist system: a) changes in the tourist infrastructure and accessibility, b) transformations of the urban space, which could have influenced tourist phenomena, c) changes in the tourist traffic. 5. Constructing a model of transformations in urban tourism, which have been taking place in the post-socialist cities of Central and Eastern Europe over the last 20 years. The analysis presented in this book features a number of research methods. According to Runge (2007), they may be defined as “… typical and repeatable ways of collecting, processing, analyzing and interpreting empirical data, serving the purpose of finding well-founded answers to the posed questions” (Cudny et al. 2011, p. 25). The methods can be divided according to their universality into general (universal) and detailed, according to the way phenomena are presented – into quantitative and qualitative, and according to the place where they are used – into field work and data processing (Cudny et al. 2011, p. 29). The authors of this book used a variety of detailed research methods, commonly applied in geographical and historical studies. Among other techniques, they used observation and the historical method (chronological analysis of facts). Research materials were obtained from literature, Internet sources and surveys conducted at institutions and offices. Moreover, the authors made use of the results of their own published and unpublished studies. The editors of this book decided that each chapter would be written by a different specialist in a given area. The choice of the authors depended not only on their theoretical knowledge of the studied phenomena; they also know the area of study and its transformations from the practical side. The authors invited to contribute to the book have been conducting their own studies in the areas described in the book for many years, or they are working at tourism institutions. The book consists of eight chapters, the first of which is the introduction, presenting the theoretical assumptions of the publication. Second chapter presents the historical overview of the transformations in the former socialist countries in Europe. It is written by a historian specializing in this field. The next five chapters are an extensive presentation of case studies, where the authors describe the development of tourism in selected post-socialist urban centres. In the final part of the book the editors draw conclusions.

European Union at the crossroads: The European perspectives after the global crisis

Author(s): / Language(s): English

In May 2011, during the Hungarian EU presidency a big international conference was organized in Budapest that offered a good occasion to review of the SBH team presidency and to look beyond to the competitive Europe in the postcrisis period in both national and regional terms. No doubt that the European Union arrived at the crossroads and it necessitated to deal with the European perspectives after the global crisis. So this issue has become the central topic, and also the title of the present, 14th volume of this series, based mostly on the papers of the Budapest expert conference. The protracted global crisis took a “W” shape that culminated in the summer 2011, in such a way the authors closed their chapters in an open ending game in August 2011.

Космет – Гордијев чвор

Author(s): / Language(s): English,Serbian

20 godina od razbijanja SFRJ

Author(s): / Language(s): Russian,Serbian

ХОРИЗОНТИ В РАЗВИТИЕТО НА ЧОВЕШКИТЕ РЕСУРСИ И ЗНАНИЕТО. Том 2. 12-14 ЮНИ 2015. НАУЧНА КОНФЕРЕНЦИЯ С МЕЖДУНАРОДНО УЧАСТИЕ, 12-14 ЮНИ 2015 г. БУРГАС

Author(s): / Language(s): English,Bulgarian,Russian

Modern society is in a state of global change. In many countries of the world, e-Government has been created and is working effectively, electronic universities are being created (e-university), e-learning e-learning is actively being introduced - this is not a complete list of concepts and phenomena that 30 years ago did not exist in reality , but at present they have become an objective reality, changing both public and economic, and political mechanisms of society. Today, the education system is undergoing significant changes. New information technologies are actively introduced into the educational process of the whole system of education (schools, colleges, universities), while the highest degree of informatization of the learning process is distance learning.

Владе Краљевине Југославије у Другом светском рату 1941–1945

Author(s): Kosta Nikolić / Language(s): Serbian

The Yugoslav Royal Government, having gone abroad, was accepted by the Allies as the only constitutional representative of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The reputation acquired by the events of March 27th additionally helped the Government and King Petar to be regarded as the holders of the national continuity of the Yugoslav state. With the recognition of the Government, the integrity of the territory of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was acknowledged. The Royal Government was in favour of continuing the struggle against the occupying forces and therefore was accepted as a government of an Allied state. In a statement issued at the end of June 1941, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill confirmed that the Government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia retained all the attributes of the sovereign power.

The Serbian Political Emigration in Western Europe 1945–1956

Author(s): Kosta Nikolić / Language(s): English

The book on the Serbian political emigration in Western Europe after World War II consists of two main parts. The first part is devoted to biography of General Miodrag Damjanović; second part explores the forming of the Serbian political emigration after the defeat of Serbian and Yugoslav anti-communist military forces at the end of the war. Political emigration occurred in Italy, Germany and Great Britain. Many of these people later moved to the United States of America and Australia. This book examines their lives. The biography of Miodrag Damjanović, a General in the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia, presents a life story of a Serbian officer, a representative of the military elite whose peak was reached just before WW II, only to experience a steep downfall that at the same time meant the destruction of their career, as well as of the society whose prisoners they were and whom they served faithfully.

Између Европе и несврстаности. Југославија и Савет Европе 1960–1980.

Author(s): Ratomir Milikić / Language(s): Serbian

МЕЖДУНАРОДНИЯТ ТРАНСФЕР НА АДМИНИСТРАТИВНИ МОДЕЛИ И ИНСТРУМЕНТИ: ВЪЗМОЖНОСТИ, ОГРАНИЧЕНИЯ И РИСКОВЕ. Доклади от Първа международна конференция по публична администрация София, СУ „Св. Климент Охридски“, април 2017 г.

Author(s): Aleksandar Marinov,Georgi Peev,Mariana Dimitrova,Milena Stefanova,Snežana Ilieva,Yana Chakarova,Todor Tanev,Fabrice Larat,Andrei Velchev,Atanas Slavov,Elena Kalfova,Kliment Naydenov,Metodi Ivanov,Vladyslav Akulov-Muratov,Boril Mechkov,Petia Branzova,Simeon Petrov,Tatiana Tomova,Jaroslav Dvorak,Gabrielė Burbulytė – Tsiskarishvili,Edita Stumbraitė-Vilkišienė,Liudmila Guzikova,Lyubimka Andreeva,Georgi Vuldjev,Georgy Ganev,Georgy Sarakostov,Nikolai Valkanov,Ognian Boyukliev,Stoyan Panchev,Krassen Stanchev,Maria Kotseva-Tikova,Milkana Mochurova,Venko Petkov,Galina Stoyanova,Georgi Temelkov,Detelin Dimitrov,Iskra Mileva,Liliya Elenkova,Mariela Yordanova,Nikoleta Efremova,Petya Krasteva,Todor Izhbehov / Language(s): English,Bulgarian

What thoughts the following theme does evoke – “International transfer of administrative models and instruments: opportunities, constraints and risks?” It became an object of “love at first sight” for me immediately after it was proposed as a unifying “crown” of the international scientific conference on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Sofia University’s Department of Public Administration. What broader content could be set which nevertheless presupposes most specific definitions? What more dynamic context might exist which in fact supports the opposite of dynamics – the sustainability of administrative models resistant to pressures for change? What other topic bundles better tradition and reform of administrative systems? First and foremost, it is the host of the conference – the jubilee Department of Public Administration at Sofia University – that is a living example of the international transfer of theories and trends in the field of administrative science. This small scientific community had to meet all challenges of that transfer during its formative years. On the one hand it was pressed to accept the changing political trends in Western societies by theorizing the administrative models backed by them as a manifestation of progressiveness. On the other hand, the need to create an explanation and prescription for his own Bulgarian administrative practice as a manifestation of elementary adequacy it has always existed. The conclusion from the distance of the past 20 years is that these two lines were combined continuously and successfully. If the themes of international forums on public administration in the 90s of the 20th century are considered it will become clear that the separation of administration from politics was the prevailing problem. This sturdy preference was supported by the use of the authority of classic authors such as Max Weber or Woodrow Wilson. It seemed that the emancipation of administrative science was thus achieved once forever. It happened so that the Department of Public Administration got separated structurally and thematically from other disciplines in Sofia University exactly during the same moment. Similar matching of global trends with local developments within the field of administrative science in few other universities paralleled Sofia University’s Department of PA emancipation from Political Science. As a result, Bulgarian versions of the ideal of what is “civil service” started being sought for with skeptical optimism. Should the administration in the democratic future of the country, however, follow imported Victorian models of “civil service”, or, on the contrary, more creative and proactive participation in decision making should be hammered out? The answer to this dilemma followed quite soon. The tempestuous liberal development in the West considered an objective by the Bulgarian leaders changed the emphasis in administrative science. It was not enough to Theorizing the functional distinction between politics and administration per se became insufficient. It was a matter of good scientific tone to find ways and reasons to minimize government intervention in sector management and place the latter as a new unprecedented major task of public administration. The development of a Bulgarian version of apolitical governance through public policies designed and managed by special networks formed ad hoc by citizens and economic operators became the main task of administrative science in the first years of the 21st century. It was in this way that the original thematic field of administration expanded in Bulgaria by inclusion of research on issues of public policy. The emerging soon after concept of “Good Governance” in the Western world undermined confidence in the traditional rational “Management by Objectives”. The period of initial harmonization of Bulgaria with the European directives in the first years after the country as an EU member somehow naturally draw the attention of our researchers to lists of desirable qualities called “good governance” created by international banks and global organizations. Quite naturally, observing the transitive setting that determined the entry of the good governance principles in the Bulgarian administrative practice made our researchers for the first time be attentive to the problems that the direct import of standard projects for good governance in the country could create. For example, the National Ombudsman institution led by Mr. Ginyo Ganev developed a concise Bulgarian conceptual framework for good governance with the help of the Department of PA at Sofia. It started being applied actively with an increasing success to diverse cases in the focus of attention of this institution. Developments in this regard expanded as much as the creation of an entirely Bulgarian concept of a new human “right of good governance”. The Department of PA consulted and developed strategic projects of the Council of Ministers in the bosom of “good governance” and public policy. The original purely theoretical interest in global paradigms in the field of economic management such as “quality management” and “total quality management” gradually evolved into an interest for their practical application in the Bulgarian administrative practice. As it is in countries with developed democracy over the last decade, it is looked for project appraisals, impact assessment of policies, etc. in context of quality management in Bulgaria as well. It is in this way that certain doubts emerged for the first time. First, how possible is it to successfully transfer, adapt and develop economic theories in the socio-political field without losing their basic sense? Second, if the quality management in the public sphere is examined, how is the object to be tested to be defined? What does quality of public governance mean? What are the legitimate criteria for it to be funded, adopted, and maintained? Until this moment versions of Western administrative mindset penetrating via European directives and other vehicles of influence were intensively developed. However, Bulgaria’s own development from this moment on started imposing a brand new round of research. The past decade uncorked the bottle with the spirit of administrative reforms. A whole arsenal of new problems: what is reform, what is change, what is direction, what is progress and so on was added to the issues already accumulated by the transfer of ideas and best practices considered as “best”. A genuine Bulgarian view on issues of local administrative reforms started getting formed by separate members of Sofia University’s scientific community more and more boldly. What has never been done so far in sufficient size, however, is the development of the old theme of sustainable development from a national perspective. It was left in the hands of political bureaucracy and I hope that it is not abandoned there by our researchers. Sustainable development does not only look like but is generally an issue of key importance. It amalgamates the political, administrative, economic and social problems. The pressure for direct application of practices arising from the so-called “Global sustainable development goals” became tumultuous form of formal accountability. The parameters of the polar sets resistance-development, global-local, political-administrative, etc. remain unclear. Thus the meanders of the development of Bulgarian administrative science that followed up to this moment gradually the sequence of changes in the same area in the world for its own reasons found at last the main problem hidden all the time. This problem is: what are the opportunities, limitations and risks of international transfers of administrative models and instruments? However, this is the theme of the conference. In other words, the wall separating political and administrative management is already raised – administrative decisions today are taken in agreement with the so called social partners, NGOs, networks, etc. Various formulas of good governance, in particular lawfulness, transparency, etc., are applied since long ago be it in one degree or another. Management in the public sphere is fragmented by sector policies and hence by separate projects driven by networking teams. The quality of management activities is measured although only by the proportion between the invested funds and tasks performed such as numbers of training pf administrators, etc. Why is the widespread opinion then that the administration is not working well despite all the good intentions with which people work behind the counters of state and local institutions? I think the key answer is modernization, not modernity. Modernization is a continuous process of an existing human community with a will of life. In contrast, modernity is a condition that those inferior according to someone's perspective should or should not, may or may not adopt. Modernization is moving forward in the name of preserving the general essence intact. Conversely, the movement toward modernity is changing the nature of those perceived as non-modern whereby however no one guarantees either the meaning or the consequences, or even the opportunity that this could happen. What are the ultimate objectives of administrative science keeping modernization in mind if this really is the most general question? Modernization implies preserving the identity of the human community under changing circumstances. Why identity must be maintained is another question that is absurd per se, least according Kant’s Categorical imperative. Without “subjectivity”, at least according to Hegel’s philosophy (why not according to classical economic and legal theory), it no action is possible at all, including actions for “improving the situation.” Values separate at least as much as they unite. Could Eastern European societies follow some winning value model at the beginning of the political changes? Was it only their totalitarian political past that made them different from foreign models? The Anglo-Saxon model of governance is based on the culture of urban individualism. The culture of successful Asian “dragons” is based on collectivist Confucian rationalism. Seen at this background, the Western model based on Roman law is offering rational norms. Although somewhat differing one from the other, Eastern European societies, including Bulgarian, proved to be different from all that. In an effort to get modernized once again they had to make hard choices for their future. The triple eclecticism between Eastern European value system, the successful Asian “developmental dictatorship” and the victorious superindividualistic urban West was even more impossible. However, it turns out that the Western and Eastern universe have defended themselves for centuries by modernization cast in strictly defined areas and volumes sufficient only to maintain their own development model. It seems that the task of the Bulgarian administration and administrative science after 20 years of establishment is no more and no less the same. So, the international scientific conference on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the foundation of the Sofia University’s Public Administration Department turns out to be something like a membrane separating past from future development. The transition from the former to the latter is a clarification of how possible and how necessary the international transfer of administrative models and instruments is.

KA ODGOVORNOM I PROFESIONALNOM POSTUPANJU SA LEZBEJKAMA, GEJEVIMA, BISEKSUALNIM, TRANSRODNIM I INTERSPOLNIM OSOBAMA - PRIRUČNIK ZA PREDSTAVNIKE_CE INSTITUCIJA KOJE DJELUJU NA NIVOU OPĆINA, GRADOVA I KANTONA U BIH

Author(s): Dajana Cvjetković,Vladana Vasić / Language(s): Bosnian

Poštovane_i profesionalke_profesionalci, ako se nikad u svom radu niste susrele_i sa lezbejkom, gejem, biseksualnom, transrodnom ili interspolnom (LGBTI) osobom, onda je ovaj priručnik namijenjen upravo vama. Razmislite! Ukoliko tokom višegodišnjeg profesionalnog rada niste upoznale_i LGBTI osobu, da li to možda znači da je niste prepoznale_i, a ne da je nije bilo?! Dopustite da navedemo jedan primjer. Prema rezultatima popisa stanovništva iz 2013. godine, u Federaciji BiH živi oko 80.000 građanki i građana koje_i se ne izjašnjavaju kao pripadnice_i konstitutivnih naroda, već kao pripadnice_i nacionalnih manjina, kao Bosanke_ci i/ili Hercegovke_ci, kao pripadnice_i drugih etničkih identiteta, ili se naprosto ne izjašnjavaju u vezi s etničkom pripadnošću. Uzimajući to u obzir, da li ste se u radu susreli_e sa Romkinjama_Romima, Jevrejkama_Jevrejima, Albankama_ Albancima, Crnogorkama_Crnogorcima? Ili sa osobama koje se nacionalno ne izjašnjavaju? Njih u FBiH ima oko 18 hiljada. Poznajete li osobu koja se izjašnjava kao Hrvatica_Hrvat u Kantonu Sarajevo? Njih 17.000 tako se izjasnilo. Pripadnice_pripadnike svih ovih zajednica i grupa sigurno poznajete. Kako je onda moguće da ne poznajete niti jednu ili jako mali broj LGBTI osoba, koje, prema procjenama, širom svijeta čine od 3 do 12 posto ukupnog broja stanovništva? U Kantonu Sarajevo, 10 posto stanovništva je više od 40.000 osoba – da li je, stoga, moguće da nikada niti jedna LGBTI osoba nije došla po uslugu kod vas?

Novi zov rata u Siriji i bosanskohercegovački kontingent stranih boraca

Author(s): Vlado Azinović,Muhamed Jusić / Language(s): Bosnian

Odlazak građana Bosne i Hercegovine na ratišta u Siriju i Irak, i posebno mogucnost njihovog povratka u zemlju, nisu najozbiljnija niti najneposrednija opasnost po njenu sigurnost. U državi koja opstanak duguje mirovnom sporazumu u koji je ugrađen temeljni spor oko kojeg je vođen rat (1992-1995) – treba li ona biti jedinstvena ili podijeljena – postoje znatno prisutniji sigurnosni rizici. Ova nerazriješena dihotomija, kroz nastavak rata (još uvijek) nenasilnim sredstvima, presudno određuje politicku, društvenu i ekonomsku dinamiku te izravno smanjuje kapacitet države da djelotvorno odgovori na gotovo svaki izazov. Odlasci na strana ratišta nisu izravna posljedica te dinamike. Oni su lokalizacija globalnog fenomena, kojem domaci kontekst ponekad pogoduje, ali su i rezultat drugih procesa koji se ovdje odvijaju skoro četvrt stoljeća. Za to vrijeme Bosna i Hercegovina je od zemlje destinacije za putujuce strane borce postala zemlja njihovog porijekla. Atlantska inicijativa je sredinom 2015. godine objavila istraživanje u kojem je pokušala objasniti ovaj fenomen. Godinu dana kasnije, cini nam se kako je saznanja do kojih smo tada došli neophodno dopuniti novima. Prije svega promjenom hijerarhije motiva koji navode na odlaske, a onda i posljedicama koje je ta promjena proizvela na sadržaj i dinamiku ovog procesa. Zbog toga i dopunjeni naslov ovog istraživanja – Novi zov rata u Siriji i bosanskohercegovacki kontingent stranih boraca.

Konkurence a výkonnost na evropských železnicích

Author(s): Zdeněk Tomeš / Language(s): Czech

European countries after 1993 applied railway reforms. The reform strategy included vertical separation (infrastructure – services), horizontal separation (freight – passenger) and the entry of competition. The aim of this book is to identify the effect of reforms on railway’s output. Based on regression analysis of data in 27 European countries in the period 1995–2011 it was identified, that horizontal separation is increasing output where as no clear effectcould be identified in case of vertical separation. The effect of competition entry was different for sample of Western and Eastern European countries. In passenger sector the entry of competition was increasing output in Western Europe but decreasing it in Eastern Europe. Also other reform and control variables had significantly different effects for samples of Western and Eastern European countries. The results therefore indicate that European railway reform generates different results for Western and Eatstern European countries.

Český lokální a regionální tisk mezi lety 1989 a 2009

Author(s): Lenka Waschková Císařová / Language(s): Czech

The fall of communism in 1989 brought major social, political and cultural changes in the Czechoslovakia. This book concentrates on changes in one particular segment of the media market, the subsystem of local and regional print media. This segment of the media landscapeis rarely studied although – arguably – it is a significant part of the media system, particularlyas it enables strong identifications at the local/regional level. Czech local and regional press has been the centre of attention in relation to the entry of foreign owners on the market and particularlyin relation to issues of possible media concentration on this segment of the market but concentrated academic study of this subject is seriously lacking. The text aims at mapping structural changes that characterize this segment of the media market between 1989 and 2009. It analyzes political and economic factors that played a role in the transformation and identifies commercialization as a major influence. The book makes use of three research methods: document analysis, semi-structured in-depth interviews, survey and content analysis. The analysis operates at two levels, those of the media system and the media organization and it uses a case study approach for an in-depth analysis of the case of the Vltava-Labe-Press (VLP) publishing house that has become dominant on the Czech local and regional print media market. The main hypothesis that the book addresses is that the influence of commercialization (and its constituting elements on the macro and micro levels) within the transformation process leads to the gradual erosion of the local characteristics (a process we term delocalization) of this particular segment of the media system.

The Balkans and Europe between Integration and Particularism

Author(s): Andrey Nonchev,Diana Yarosh,Hristo Draganov,Ivan-Petar Yovchev,Filip Petkov,Maria Bakalova,Anton Parvanov,Blaga Blagoeva,Daniela Pastarmadzhieva,Elisabeth Yoneva,Alexei Margoevski,Margarita Ivanova,Kalina Ishpekova-Bratanova,Plamen Ralchev,Gabriela Motoi,Ivo Barzov,Chaya Koleva,Albena Hinkova,Sonia Hinkova,Georgi Chankov,Ana Dimitrovska,Galya Mancheva,Elena Simeonova,Elena Zlateva,Lilia Markova,Denica Dimitrova,Mariana Stamova,Aleko Stoyanov,Dinko Dinkov,Monika Panayotova / Language(s): English

This volume is a collection of papers presented at the International conference THE BALKANS AND EUROPE BETWEEN INTEGRATION AND PARTICULARISM: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS, organized by the Faculty of International Economics and Politics at UNWE and the Bulgarian Political Science Association and held in Sofia on October 25-26, 2018. The conference invited presentations on a number of issues such as: The integration potential of the EU (28-1) and the “enlargement fatigue”; Ethno-politics and integration: dimensions, patterns and results in the EU and Western Balkans; The Bulgaria’s Presidency and the EU prospects of the Western Balkans; “Fatigued from waiting”: the countries of the Western Balkans; Bilateral relations in the Balkans: between historical mythology and pragmatism; Connectivity and cooperation in the Balkans: projects and realities, etc.Around fifty scholars and researchers – both established and younger ones – participated in the scientific forum representing a number of universities and research institutions from several countries (Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Northern Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo, Russia). What is worth noting is the high rate of participation of doctoral students, as well as the contribution of undergraduate students from universities in Bulgaria and from MGIMO in Russia. Notably, some of the participants took part in the conference in absentia by poster presentations. The present volume contains the texts of those of the conference participants who sent their presentations in written form. The volume is structured in three parts except for the keynote speeches, which are presented separately as they were delivered during the Conference. The first part encompasses research papers dealing with issues pertinent to the whole European Union and various aspects of the integration processes. The focus in the second part is on the Balkans in the context of the EU integration. The papers in the third part deal with the Western Balkans in particular, featuring also case-studies on individual countries.

Regional Security Interdependence: Proceedings of the Workshop Organized by the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Social Studies of the Masaryk University in Brno on 25 September 2015

Author(s): Miroslav Mareš,Tomáš Šmíd,Tomáš Kaválek,Iveta Hlouchová,Martin Laryš,Tomáš Bělonožník,Lukáš Visingr / Language(s): English

Contemporary security development is characterized by growing interdependence of security phenomena at local, national, regional and global level (Kegley, Wittkopf 2006). Within the world regions regional security complexes with their regional security orders were established (Stewart-Ingersoll, Frazier: 2012). The so called “new definition”of the regional security complex is related to „a set of units whose major processes of securitization, desecuritization or both are so interlinked that their security problems cannot reasonably be analyzed or resolved apart from one another“ (Buzan, Waever, de Wilde 1997: 201)“.

Energy Security in Central and Eastern Europe and the Operations of Russian State-Owned Energy Enterprises

Author(s): Martin Jirušek,Tomáš Vlček,Hedvika Koďousková,Roger W. Jr. Robinson,Anna Leshchenko,Filip Černoch,Lukáš Lehotský,Veronika Zapletalová / Language(s): English

Dear distinguished reader, It is my utmost honor to present you the first volume of a series of energy security threat assessment studies stemming from the comprehensive, in-depth research of the Energy Security team at the Department of International Relations and European Studies of the Faculty of Social Studies of the Masaryk University conducted with the valuable support of, and in collaboration with, the Prague Security Studies Institute. This study addresses the rapidly evolving energy sector of Central and Eastern Europe, a sensitive, vulnerable region with regard to present and past Russian efforts to exercise varying levels of control over infrastructure, supply and pricing. The authors examine the operations and behavioral characteristics of two key Russian state-owned enterprises in the natural gas and nuclear energy sectors, namely Gazprom JSC and Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation, and seek to detect specific patterns and determining factors that shape their decision-making.

Interception of Electronic Communications in the Czech Republic and Slovakia

Author(s): Jakub Míšek,Radim Polčák,Václav Stupka,Pavel Loutocký,Tomáš Abelovský / Language(s): English

One of the most important forming factors of the distribution of public powers in the Czech Republic is its totalitarian history. There is a strong sense of distrust towards official institutions in the general public. It is probably due to this fact, that the procedures and powers of public bodies and agencies are set very rigidly. The principle of legality is set in Art. 2 para. 3 of the Czech Constitution (Act No. 1/1993 Sb. Constitution of the Czech Republic), which states that “State authority is to serve all citizens and may be asserted only in cases, within the bounds, and in the manner provided forby law” and in Art. 2 para. 2 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms (the Resolution of the Presidium of the Czech National Council of 16 December 1992 on the declaration of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms as a part of the constitutional order of the Czech Republic No. 2/1993 Sb.), which states that “State authority may be asserted only in cases and within the bounds provided for by law and only in the manner prescribed by law”. Since all the public authorities authorized to intercept telecommunication fall within the scope of these articles, they are permitted to act only within the framework of what is expressly allowed for them by law.

WOMEN IN BIH INSTITUTIONS - PUPPETS OF GENDER QUOTAS

Author(s): Amila Ždralović,Zlatiborka Popov-Momčinović,Zarfa Hrnjić Kuduzović / Language(s): English

Based on previous research, it can be argued that Bosnia and Herzegovina is an excellent example of separation of legal (de iure) and real (de facto) achievements of gender equality. However, neither the idealizations are justified in the first segment, nor is the leveling of what has been done so far justified in the second. It can be stated beforehand that the legislation was built on genderless legislation that has been subsequently subjected to attempts to be corrected through mechanisms of special protection of women's human rights.

STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS IN CRISIS: HOW EAST ASIAN GOVERNMENTS RESPONDED TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Author(s): Monika Izandra Hanley,Kristina Van Sant,Rueban Manokara / Language(s): English

The COVID-19 outbreak has confirmed that, in an era of globalisation, local disasters quickly and unexpectedly escalate into world-spanning crises. What began as a local viral infection in Wuhan grew into a global pandemic in less than two months. The COVID-19 crisis is an unprecedented event in almost every way, not least from a strategic communications perspective. Faced with uncertainty about the development of the virus and its impact on society, governments are underenormous pressure to communicate policy initiatives and advice to their publics under extraordinary circumstances. While recognising that the crisis is still unfolding at a global level, this report explores how countries chose to act and communicate in relation to the outbreak of the virus during the initial period of the crisis. Although it is still far too early to evaluate the effectiveness of any approach, comparing and contrasting different courses of action at an early stage provides valuable insight into different crisis communication strategies when swift and unanticipated communications were required.

RISKS AND VULNERABILITIES IN THE WESTERN BALKANS

Author(s): Rufin Zamfir / Language(s): English

The Western Balkans (WB) have come into the international spotlight as an arena for big power competition. In their foreign policy orientation, the region’s six countries — Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia — all share Euro-Atlantic affiliations, although the degree of affiliation varies. Internally, functional and structural weaknesses — whether Albania’s legacy of an isolationist communist dictatorship or the consequence of the violent dissolution of Yugoslavia in the other countries—open doors for hostile foreign actors to project their influence. The environment is rife with ethnic tension, border disputes, and neighbourly disagreements. All of these countries are developing democracies that have yet to fully recover from the aftermath of the Yugoslav wars. Their Euro-Atlantic orientation is currently a matter of tense debate. While Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia have become NATO members, Serbia oscillates between East and West, its EU candidate status notwithstanding. Although EU membership is still uncertain for the Western Balkan countries, all six have expressed their willingness to join the Union but are advancing down this path at different speeds.