EUROPE POLICY PAPER 1/2015

A REGION DISUNITED?

Central European Responses to the Russia-Ukraine Crisis

EDITED BY JOERG FORBRIG

 

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Te Europe Program aims to enhance understanding o the challenges acing the European Union and the potential implications or the transatlantic relationship. Analysis, research, and policy recommendations are designed to understand the dichotomy o disintegration and deepening o the EU and to help improve the political, economic, financial, and social stability o the EU and its member states. In 2015, the Europe Program ocuses on integration and disintegration in the EU, the deepening o the euro area, the changing role o Germany in Europe and the world, as well as challenges in the EU’s neighborhood.

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Te German Marshall Fund o the United States (GMF) strengthens transatlantic cooperation on regional, national, and global challenges and opportunities in the spirit o the Marshall Plan. GMF contributes research and analysis and convenes leaders on transatlantic issues relevant to policymakers. GMF offers rising leaders opportunities to develop their skills and networks through transatlantic exchange, and supports civil society in the Balkans and Black Sea regions by ostering demo-cratic initiatives, rule o law, and regional cooperation. Founded in 1972 as a non-partisan, non-profit organization through a gif rom Germany as a permanent memorial to Marshall Plan assistance, GMF maintains a strong presence on both sides o the Atlantic. In addition to its headquarters in Washington, DC, GMF has offices in Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Belgrade, Ankara, Bucharest, and Warsaw. GMF also has smaller representations in Bratislava, urin, and Stockholm.On the cover: In this March 2, 2014 photo, people applaud as the European Union flag held by a protester arrives at the Independence square during a rally in Kyiv, Ukraine. © Emilio Morenatti/AP/Corbis

 

A R󰁥󰁧󰁩󰁯󰁮 D󰁩󰁳󰁵󰁮󰁩󰁴󰁥󰁤󰀿

C󰁥󰁮󰁴󰁲󰁡󰁬 E󰁵󰁲󰁯󰁰󰁥󰁡󰁮 R󰁥󰁳󰁰󰁯󰁮󰁳󰁥󰁳 󰁴󰁯 󰁴󰁨󰁥 R󰁵󰁳󰁳󰁩󰁡-U󰁫󰁲󰁡󰁩󰁮󰁥 C󰁲󰁩󰁳󰁩󰁳E󰁵󰁲󰁯󰁰󰁥 P󰁯󰁬󰁩󰁣󰁹 P󰁡󰁰󰁥󰁲F󰁥󰁢󰁲󰁵󰁡󰁲󰁹 󰀲󰀰󰀱󰀵

Edited by Joerg Forbrig

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Joerg Forbrig is a transatlantic fellow for Central and Eastern Europe, and director of the Fund for Belarus Democracy, with The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF). He is based in Berlin. He would like to particularly thank two colleagues for assistance with this paper. Nicolas Bouchet, TAPIR Fellow with GMF, was a tireless first editor of the incoming drafts. During her internship at the GMF Berlin office, Karolina Jesien spent countless hours researching Central European public opinion in preparation of this paper.

The Issue and Policy Priorities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Introduction: A Region Disunited?

 Joerg Forbrig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2Bulgaria: Increasingly Assertive but not Hawkish

 Marin Lessenski. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

7The Czech Republic: Lacking Foreign Policy Consensus

Petr Kratochvíl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

12Estonia: In Pursuit of a Value-Based Foreign Policy 

 Merle Maigre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

16Hungary: Singled out by the Critics

Istvan Gyarmati . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

21Latvia: EU Presidency at a Time of Geopolitical Crisis

Kristīne Bērzi󰅆a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

25Lithuania: A Staunch Supporter of a European Ukraine

Vytis Jurkonis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

29Poland: Searching for a Strategic Response

 Michał Baranowski and Bartosz Cichocki. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34Romania: Largely Immune to Russian Pressures

 Alina Inayeh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39Slovakia: Ambiguity in Action

 Alexander Duleba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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