Political perspectives: journal for political research

EU Enlargement Policy between the Chronological Precedence of the Western Balkans and the Geopolitical Urgency in the Eastern Neighborhood: a Realist Perspective

Ivana Radic Milosavljevic, Miloš Petrović — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This study adopts a realist approach to explore how geopolitical factors influence the European Union's (EU) decision to expand into neighbouring regions of strategic importance or vulnerability to major powers' influence. It specifically examines the obstacles posed by the absence of a unanimous stance on "pre-scheduled" accessions, as seen in the earlier "eastern enlargement" rounds. It is argued that the present geopoliticized EU enlargement policy seems to be guided by realist factors, although it is characterized by an incongruity between strategic rhetoric and strategic actions. This inconsistency between expressed intentions and actual measures is more evident in the Western Balkans than in the Eastern neighbourhood. Through the selected, broadly set realist elements – groupism, egoism and power-centrism – the EU’s foreign policy strategy and behaviour are examined, searching for a gap between the discursive and practical domains in both regions. The research considers that the EU's response has not predominantly been strategic but rather tactical, reflecting the enlargement policy’s longstanding deficiencies, coupled with the urgent need to extend commitments to the eastern partners facing immediate security threats. Such tendencies are disadvantageous for the Western Balkans, which became a lower priority for the EU despite its chronological precedence in the enlargement domain. While ideally, both enlargement regions should be granted an "accession timetable" along with on-ground democratic reforms, the authors highlight that due to differing geopolitical dynamics and pressure, the outcomes for the two regions may either diverge in terms of potential favouring of the new candidates or, perhaps more likely, converge – meaning that the accession of either region might be postponed once the geopolitical urgency subsides.

Prikaz knjige: Jelena Lončar, Performans političkog predstavljanja: čemu služe govori predstavnika?

Aleksandra Krstic — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Šta možemo da radimo i kakve živote možemo da vodimo?

Bojana Radovanovic, Marko Konjović, Aleksandra Bulatović — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This paper focuses on the capability/capabilities approach as a conceptual framework for assessing human well-being and as a normative paradigm for assessing human development and social justice. The capability/capabilities approach represents an alternative and a richer view of social development; that is, a view which implies that people have the freedom to realize their potentials and lead lives that they have reason to value. Moreover, the capability/capabilities approach defends the idea that social justice requires the provision of certain valuable capabilities to all citizens at least to the level required for a dignified life. This paper pays special emphasis on one key problem which besets the capability/capabilities approach. Namely, which capabilities are valuable? How should they be determined? By analyzing the “theoretical-reflective approach” and the “deliberative-democratic approach” as mutually opposed approaches to the project of determining valuable human capabilities for normative purposes, we argue that it is possible to combine these two approaches in a fruitful way.

Temporary Protection of Persons Displaced from Ukraine: Between International Protection and Migration Management in the EU

Goran Sandić, Janja Simentić Popović — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The armed conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine has profoundly impacted the lives of people in these courtiers, particularly in Ukraine. Due to the conflict, nearly 8 million individuals have been displaced from Ukraine, a statistic reported by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 2023. These displaced persons have sought refuge in various regions, notably within EU and Western Balkan countries. In response to the massive influx of people from Ukraine, the EU activated the temporary protection mechanism for the first time. The aim of this paper is to examine whether the temporary protection provided to displaced persons from Ukraine represents an appropriate form of international protection or is rather an instrument by which states tried to manage the large migratory flow that followed as a result of the conflict. While acknowledging the critical role of temporary protection in safeguarding individuals affected by armed conflict, we propose that its activation was primarily driven by interests related to managing migration flows. To support this claim, we will examine the following aspects: the political nature and influence in the activation of temporary protection; the potential for temporary protection to obscure the diverse needs of those fleeing Ukraine thereby impacting their legal status determination; and the impending expiration of temporary protection, along with the lack of a publicly discussed adequate exit strategy by EU, and subsequently Serbia, which risks leaving those under temporary protection in a state of legal uncertainty.

Održivo upravljanje otpadom u teoriji i praksi: zero waste model hrvatskog Donjeg Međimurja

Ivan Miković, Anka Kekez — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Održivo upravljanje otpadom jedno je od ključnih tematskih područja koje su države Europske unije dužne implementirati u odnosu na europski okolišni acquis. Važan cilj acquisa je uspostava zero waste modela gospodarenjem otpadom koji podrazumijeva multidisciplinaran pristup s ciljem očuvanja svih resursa odgovornom proizvodnjom, potrošnjom, ponovnom uporabom i oporabom proizvoda, ambalaže i materijala bez spaljivanja i ispuštanja u zemlju, vodu ili zrak koji ugrožavaju okoliš ili živote ljudi. Ovaj rad ima za cilj pružiti strukturiran opis organizacije gospodarenjem komunalnim otpadom u zero waste modelu koji je istovremeno obuhvatan i detaljan. Slučaj na kojem gradimo opis dolazi iz hrvatske regije Donjeg Međimurja s glavnim fokusom na grad Prelog kao referentnom točkom proučavanja, pri čemu se nastoji odgovoriti na istraživačko pitanje: Kako je organizirano upravljanje otpadom na lokalnoj razini u zero waste modelu. Temeljem analize dokumenata i intervjua s ključnim dionicima sustava gospodarenja otpadom, rad detektira ključne elemente zero waste modela: ciljeve upravljanja otpadom, upravljačke strukture i akteri, institucionalni odnosi, instrumenti i tehnologije te korisnici te naposljetku ulogu koju korisnici vrše unutar sustava. Istodobno, rad svojim nalazima de facto nudi preporuke javnih politika (policy recommendations) koje će služiti kao svojevrsni vodič svima onima koji žele implementirati zero waste model upravljanja otpadom na svojemu području.

Dimensions of Europeanisation: impact of Serbo-Russian relations on the course of the EU integration of Serbia

Jakub Stepaniuk — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The paper analyses fluid dimension of Europeanisation and examines how relations between Serbia and Russia impacted the course of the EU integration of Serbia. Empirical analysis is based not only on an extensive desk but also 22 interviews with policy experts and institutional representatives conducted during fieldwork in Belgrade and Brussels. The paper addresses constructivist perspective on Serbo-Russian mythologised and instrumentalised friendship used for political purposes and relations with the EU. At the same time, it takes into consideration the geopolitical context and consequences of the war in Ukraine for Serbian foreign policy. The text examines to what extent Russia has been treated as a condition in the Serbian EU integration framework and concentrates on EU’s sanctions against Russia, alignment with EU’s foreign policy and pressure towards Serbia to impose sanctions targeting Russia.

Gender Equality in Criminal Justice Policy Against Stalking in Croatia

Krešimir Petković, Tena Vranek — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Stalking is a cause of psychological damage, a form of victimization, and a warning for future violence. As a criminal offense, it was introduced in the Penal Code of the Republic of Croatia, in force since 2013, but there are still problems with defining it precisely. Given that the victims of stalking in most cases are women, the fact that this crime is not gender specific is often overlooked. Although studies have shown that female stalkers do not differ significantly from male ones, gender bias often leads to an underestimation of women’s potential for violence. The aim of this study is to determine whether there is gender equality in penal policy towards stalking in Croatia. To answer this question, the authors analyzed the court judgements from various courts in the Republic of Croatia and paired it with a survey to get an insight into the citizen's perception of stalking.