European Union

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek has trampled on the EU's unspoken rule that presidency countries do not offer a controversial opinion on the sensitive topic of the moment. Speaking to MEPs in Strasbourg on Wednesday (14 January), Mr Topolanek, in charge of the EU for the first half of this year, offered only half-hearted support for the EU's new rulebook - seven years in the making and facing an uncertain future - and expressed doubts that Czech citizens would approve it in a referendum.

David Cameron, the leader of the opposition Conservative party in Britain, has pledged to hold a referendum on the EU's Lisbon treaty if his party is elected later this year.

An early election by Mr Brown - the last date by which the government has to call an election is June 2010 - would hand the Conservatives an opportunity to derail the EU's latest treaty, although it has already been ratified by British Parliament and approved by the queen. Britain's Conservative Party, which is generally eurosceptic, is a strong opponent of Lisbon and has long campaigned to hold a referendum on the document.

Macedonia is a relative success story in a region scarred by unresolved statehood and territory issues. International engagement has, since the 2001 conflict with an ethnic Albanian insurgency, brought progress in integrating Albanians into political life. This has been underpinned by the promise of European Union (EU) and NATO integration, goals that unite ethnic Macedonians and Albanians. But the main NATO/EU strategy for stabilising Macedonia and the region via enlargement was derailed in 2008 by the dispute with Greece over the country’s name. Athens claims that, by calling itself “Macedonia”, it appropriates part of the Hellenic heritage and implies a claim against Greece’s northern province. At summits it blocked Macedonian membership in NATO and EU accession talks until the issue is settled. Mystifying to outsiders, the dispute touches existential nerves, especially in Macedonia, and has serious regional implications. The parties need to rebuild trust; member states need to press both to compromise, especially Greece to respect its commitment not to block Skopje in international organisations.

The year-long disagreement between Athens and Skopje over Macedonia's official name is not only detrimental to the two neigbours' bilateral relations, it is also jeopardising European Union and NATO stability strategies for the western Balkans, according to a report published on Monday (12 January).

"The main NATO-EU strategy for stabilising Macedonia and the region via enlargement was derailed in 2008 by the dispute with Greece over the country's name," says the International Crisis Group (ICG) in a new paper. It explains that the EU membership perspective has been helping to unite Macedonia's two communities, the ethnic Macedonians and Albanians, especially since the end of the 2001 conflict between them. But the recent escalation of the name dispute between Greece and Macedonia – which materialised in April last year when Athens blocked Skopje's NATO bid – "puts at risk the progress achieved," according to the ICG.

Press Articles Macedonia's Name: Breaking the Deadlock

A new poll suggests that a majority of Irish voters may back the Lisbon Treaty in a second referendum set to be held this year. The Sunday Independent / Quantum Research survey carried out last Friday showed that 55 per cent of the 500 people asked would support the treaty while 37 per cent said they would oppose it and 15 per cent said they were undecided.

These latest figures should a strong rise in support (plus 16%) for the charter when compared to a survey carried out by the same newspaper in December. Those saying they would vote against the treaty decreased by seven percent.

Ireland's deteriorating economy is likely to be an important factor behind the change of heart, with many still shocked and angered by last week's announcement that 1,900 jobs at the Dell plant in Limerick are to be transferred to Poland.

The Czech EU presidency is to begin the complicated task of providing the legal guarantees for the political concessions that Ireland has received on the rejected Lisbon Treaty. Work will soon begin between Irish lawyers, the legal services of the Council (representing member states) and the European Commission, to firm up EU promises to that the treaty will not affect Irish neutrality, abortion or tax laws.

Mr Martin admitted that running a second referendum will be "very challenging" but noted that the worsening economic situation in Ireland due to the global financial crisis may make voters "accept that it is far better for Ireland to be at the heart of the European Union ... rather than to marginalise itself."

Slovenia may call for a referendum over Croatia's accession to the European Union if a long-standing border dispute between the two countries is not quickly resolved to Ljubljana's satisfaction.

Slovenian Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Zbogar stated that if talks over the border dispute are not resolved in his country's interest, it would be "quite realistic" to expect a popular referendum on ratification of Croatia's accession treaty to the Union, the Croatian daily Jutarni List reported yesterday (7 January). 

The Czech EU presidency is preparing a contingency plan for one of the most sensitive areas in the EU institutional set-up in case Ireland rejects Europe's new treaty for a second time later this year. According to the Irish Times newspaper, Prague is working on a plan for how to reduce the size of the European Commission should Irish voters once again vote No in autumn.

"On the composition of the commission we have to be ready for both possible scenarios: One scenario is that the Lisbon Treaty enters force at the end this year or we have to act and co-operate in the EU under Nice," deputy prime minister Alexander Vondra told the newspaper. The rules of the Nice Treaty state that if the number of EU member states reaches 27, the number of commissioners would then be reduced. The EU's pending set of new rules, known as the Lisbon Treaty, however allows the continuation of one commissioner per member state if all EU governments unanimously agree to it.

Slovenia's decision to effectively block Croatia's entry to the E.U. on the basis of an unresolved border dispute represents a dangerous precedent that, if copied, could damage or destroy the chances of other accession hopefuls in southeast Europe. Because of the Slovenian veto in late December, Croatia was able to open only one new "chapter" -- representing a policy area in which it must prove that it meets EU norms -- out of an expected 10, and close three, instead of the five foreseen, in the latest round of its ongoing accession negotiations.

The Czech EU presidency this weekend retracted its support for Israel amid the ground attack on Gaza, while France switched its criticism from Israel to Hamas.

Meanwhile, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who last week complained about Israel's disproportionate use of force, laid the lion's share of blame on Hamas in an interview on Monday.

The melee of EU diplomats will also be joined on Monday by Tony Blair, the former British leader and current special envoy of the Middle East quartet (the EU, US, UN and Russia).

Frustrations mount over Bulgaria – the most violent, corrupt, and poorest of EU members. Aid is being withheld as reform promises are made (and broken). Can it be fixed?

Bulgaria's case was putting the credibility of EU enlargement at stake: Brussels needed to send a message to those arguing against further expansion and to candidates banging on the door, including Croatia, Serbia, Albania, and Turkey. Just last month, EU officials warned Croatia that its failure to crack down on organized crime and corruption jeopardizes its chance to join the EU next year. "Brussels needed to get serious, to show they're not just taking a country's word for fighting corruption," says Katinka Barysch, deputy director of the Center for European Reform in London. "If they can't do that with Bulgaria, how are you going to do that with the countries still queuing outside?" In late November, Brussels slapped Sofia with an unprecedented penalty, withdrawing €220 million ($315 million) in development assistance – less than the initial threat of €500 million, but still a huge sum for the poorest EU member.

When Bulgaria and Romania were finally admitted to the EU in January 2007, they became the first to enter with strings attached: They were given several months to clean up their legal systems and to develop methods of tracking EU funding. Promises were made, but deadlines were missed, prompting a growing litany of threats from Brussels.

Ten years after the original 11 countries in western Europe set up a common currency, the monetary union is due to enlarge to Slovakia, as its 16th member state and the first in central Europe to switch to the euro.

"The Slovak economy was able to fulfil al the conditions required to join the euro less than five years after the country entered the EU and this had required a political will and a very dynamic economy. Now it's the time to reap the benefits of sharing the same currency," with 325 million Europeans in the 15-strong eurozone.

With Croatia, there is less certainty. Quarrels with Slovenia, its former fellow-Yugoslav republic, meant that the EU on Friday concluded only three chapters with Croatia and opened one more. Slovenia blocked further progress.

Then there is Serbia. A report by the United Nations war crimes prosecutor this month made it clear that, even if Serbian co-operation with the war crimes tribunal in The Hague had improved, it ought to be even better.

Macedonia is stuck, too - over that wearisome dispute with Greece about what its name should be. As for Bosnia-Herzegovina, it will be something of an achievement if it hangs together as a state, never mind about joining the EU. And when Montenegro officially presented its membership application on Monday, there were mutterings on the EU side that this was much too premature.

The EU doesn't need to worry about internal political in-fighting in the Czech Republic during its upcoming EU Presidency as the country has seen much worse in times past, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek told EurActiv Czech Republic in an exclusive interview.

Slovenia said on Wednesday (17 December) it would block further accession talks with EU candidate Croatia due to a long-running border dispute between the two countries. Zagreb was hoping to open 10 new chapters of its accession negotiations package with the EU and close another five during an intergovernmental conference on Friday (19 December) in Brussels.

But speaking ahead of the meeting, Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor said his country had reservations, arguing that documents – notably maps – Croatia had provided during its accession process could prejudge a solution of their long-running border dispute. "Slovenia has reservations concerning seven chapters, since the documents presented by Croatia could prejudge the common border," Mr Pahor told journalists in Ljubljana. "And concerning another four chapters, we also have substantial reservations," he said, adding that Slovenia would at this stage "only give its consent to open one chapter and close three."

The two states have been fighting over their common border since they broke away from the former Yugoslavia in 1991.

Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek has signalled a government reshuffle just two weeks before it assumes the EU presidency as pressure grows from the opposition Social Democratic party to reach agreement over the Lisbon Treaty.

The prime minister's announcement came amid growing pressure from the opposition Social Democratic Party (CSSD) to agree upon a coalition programme in view of the imminent Czech Presidency of the EU, which starts on 1 January and will last six months. Topolanek's ruling Civic Democrats (ODS) have emerged weakened from recent regional elections, losing all 13 regions to the opposition CSSD (EurActiv 20/10/08). The CSSD and Communists now hold 97 votes in the 200-seat lower chamber, while Topolanek's ODS only has 96 seats. The remaining seven seats are held by independents.

This version was published on November 1, 2008 East European Politics & Societies, Vol. 22, No. 4, 714-737 (2008) DOI: 10.1177/0888325408316527 The Quest for Institutional Reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina Marius Søberg Norwegian University of Science and Technology This article investigates the quest for institutional reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina since the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement. Reform does not take place in a vacuum and the successful reform of the Bosnian polity is dependent on public support. Public demands for reform are likely to be influenced by how the current institutions are believed to be functioning and by the public support for the current institutional set-up as such. Still, the demands for alterations by the political elites of the different national communities highlight a continuing lack of consensus. Although the Constitution allows for a revision, the political room for such changes is limited, and the challenge remains to provide adequate degree of autonomy of national groups without diminishing the quality of democracy. The need to differentiate between the protection of legitimate national and minority rights and unacceptable nationalist demands emerges as a challenge with no easy solution. Key Words: Bosnia and Herzegovina • institutions • public support • reform

Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said that one of the most important tasks of Serbian diplomacy is to ensure that the Kosovo issue and EU accession remain two separate processes. In an interview with the daily Blic today Jeremic said that if these two issues become mixed, Serbia would find itself in an extremely tough situation. Safeguarding the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty is our constitutional obligation and according to my deepest convictions it must remain a priority. We will do everything in our power to ensure that we are not forced to choose between our strategic priority of joining the EU and undermining our democratic constitutional order, said Jeremic.

Outlining some of the main priories of the incoming Czech EU Presidency, Milena Vicenova, the Czech ambassador to the bloc in Brussels, said her country would seek to hold an "informal summit" with the US in Prague, involving the leaders of the bloc's 27 member states in a departure from the usual European 'troika' format of delegations.

Meanwhile, the Czech ambassador also said her country would follow up on proposals tabled by the European Commission earlier this month to develop an Eastern Partnership to improve ties with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and particularly Ukraine.

The Czech ambassador also expressed her hope that the European elections, which are scheduled to take place on 4-7 June 2009, would be a success. "We will do everything in our power to avoid low turnout our voter apathy, and we hope to keep a positive spirit."

The Justice and Home Affairs Policy Universe: Some Directions for Further Research 1 – 7 Author: Karen E. Smith DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503718 Editorial The External Dimension of Justice and Home Affairs: A Different Security Agenda for the EU? 9 – 23 Authors: Sarah Wolff;  Nicole Wichmann; Gregory Mounier DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503817 Institutional Features of the External Dimension of JHA—The Input Dimension The External Dimension of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice: Hijacker or Hostage of Cross-pillarization? 25 – 44 Author: Patryk Pawlak DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503825 Civilian Crisis Management and the External Dimension of JHA: Inceptive, Functional and Institutional Similarities 45 – 64 Author: Gregory Mounier DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503874 Modes of Interaction with the Neighbours — The Output Dimension (1) Deconstructing the EU's Routes of Influence in Justice and Home Affairs in the Western Balkans 65 – 82 Author: Florian Trauner DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503908 The External Governance of EU Internal Security 83 – 102 Authors: Sandra Lavenex; Nicole Wichmann DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503932 Opportunities and Limits of the JHA External Dimension—The Output Dimension (2) The Externalization of JHA Policies in Georgia: Partner or Hotbed of Threats? 103 – 118 Author: Lili Di Puppo DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503965 When the EU is the 'Norm-taker': The Passenger Name Records Agreement and the EU's Internalization of US Border Security Norms 119 – 136 Author: Javier Argomaniz DOI: 10.1080/07036330802503981 The Mediterranean Dimension of EU Counter-terrorism 137 – 156 Author: Sarah Wolff DOI: 10.1080/07036330802504013