European Politics Research Articles

Digitalization of Political Participation of Citizens of the European Union as an Tool to Overcome the Democratic Deficit

The article carried out a comprehensive study of the potential, opportunities and prospects for digitalization of the political participation of citizens of the European Union as a tool to overcome the deficit of democracy. It has been established that the semantic markers of the process of digitalization of political participation are associated with the goal of overcoming the deficit of democracy in the EU and can be defined through a set of principles: human-centrism; solidarity and inclusion; freedom of choice; political participation in the democratic process at all levels; safety; constancy. It is proved that overcoming the deficit of democracy with the help of digitalization tools of political participation has clearly shown the risks and dangers of a digital divide that deepens politically significant cleavages: economically developed regions of the EU – economically depressed regions of the EU; access to a secure digital environment – lack of access to a secure digital environment. The active development of the Internet infrastructure in the EU has not significantly affected the simplification of access for older people, citizens with a lower level of education and citizens with disabilities to e-democracy digital platforms, therefore ensuring the widest possible access to e-participation platforms is a promising direction for EU policy. At the same time, EU policy efforts to increase citizen participation in policymaking should not be based solely on Internet strategies, but should increase the credibility and legitimacy of EU institutions in the economically less developed regions of a united Europe. Using the SWOT analysis method of e-participation tools in the EU, it is substantiated that the European Citizens' Initiative, the European Parliamentary Platform and the advisory petition platform “Your Voice in Europe” have a certain “parity” in the ratio of strengths and weaknesses for each of these tools. Weaknesses and threats can be leveled due to the development of their capabilities in the medium term. In particular, the potential of e-participation tools lies in enhancing the flexibility and convenience of the respective digital platforms; development and implementation of strategies for competitive mobilization and involvement of citizens; detailing the processing of proposals after their acceptance; summarizing and analyzing the data contained in the petitions; creation of a multi-level system of petitions, allowing to correlate local, national and European interests; deployment of discursive interaction between citizens and EU institutions at all stages of using e-participation tools; formalization of the connection between the processes of participation and decision-making. It has been established that the prospects for deepening the process of digitalization of political participation as a tool to overcome the deficit of democracy are determined by the formed request for all the variability of forms of political participation in the EU policy space, which is directly related to the deployment of the public space of European politics and the functional approval of the institution of European citizenship.

Czy la bouche de la loi mają coś do powiedzenia w demokracji? Ćwiczenie w wyobraźni prawniczej

The article uses the potential of spatial imagination to discuss challenges judicial power and judges face nowadays, due to fierce philosophical and theoretical debates over the future of democracy and various “democratic innovations”. To identify and discuss possible reactions to these new challenges, we refer to the three-level concept of the political universe. It is argued that the “modern” legal and political imagination has neglected the importance of the most basic of these levels, namely the level of commonly shared cultural values. In effect, as Montesquieu famously summarized, judges became “no more than the mouth that pronounces the words of the law”. This traditional view is still persistent in legal debates but proves to be more and more insufficient, as it does not allow lawyers to take an active part in contemporary political and constitutional debates. Unfortunately, the attempts to overcome it are often far from being satisfactory, as they focus on justifying or criticising allegedly inevitable “politicization” of the judiciary. In effect, both images encourage competition rather than a dialogue, which may in fact hinder understanding and responding to new political processes. In the conclusions of the article, we suggest that the history of European political and legal traditions offers a possibility to go beyond such neutral-political opposition towards a more complicated view, which is at the same time more attuned to unending struggles for and with democracy.

The Russian Question at the Entente Conference in Cannes

This article aims to explore the significance of the “Russian question” at the Entente conference in Cannes, putting it into the European political context of October 1921 – January 1922. The author pays special attention to the two important rounds of the international negotiations, i. e., to the Anglo-French discussions in London in December 1921 and to the meeting of the Entente Supreme Council in Cannes itself (6–13 January 1922). The “Russian question” was one of the three key topics of these conferences; however, to the other matters (German reparations and Anglo-French security pact), it is under-researched. Besides the published diplomatic documents, the author refers to new evidence drawn from the national archives of France, Great Britain, and Belgium. The article concludes that the negotiations in London and Cannes mirrored the “Russian question”, as it stood in European politics at the end of 1921 and the beginning of 1922. D. Lloyd George, UK prime minister and initiator of the Genoa conference, was eager to use the “Russian question” as a means to further British interests, transform the Soviet regime, and reconstruct and appease Europe. It involved reducing tensions as a result of a non-aggression pact that did not impose any obligations on the UK in Eastern Europe. From the trade and economic points of view, the emphasis was put on the international consortium aimed at consolidating Western business in Russia, giving German industry leadership in the field. Nevertheless, an important part of eventual German profits in Russia would go to France and the UK as reparations. The development of the Cannes conference, which resulted in the resignation of the French cabinet led by A. Briand, showed that the “Russian question” was not only a topic of high politics, but also directly concerned the wider public and elites. Accelerating Briand’s dismissal, Lloyd George found a more stubborn opponent in his successor, R. Poincaré. As the prologue to Genoa, the Cannes meeting outlined some of its future problems as well.

The doctrine of the purpose of criminal punishment in modern European political and legal thought

The doctrines on the purpose of punishment in the political and legal thought of the New Age are considered. Attention is focused on the essence of punishment in the works of contemporary thinkers, its properties and the appropriateness of certain types of punishment.
 It is stated that the call for humane treatment of criminals and condemnation of cruel punishments was made in the early XVI century. In addition, the ideas of natural law doctrine influenced criminal law theories, including the theory of punishment. In modern times, the absolute and relative theory of punishment have gained popularity. In this regard, the views on the purpose of punishment are briefly characterized by the following scholars: I. Kant, G.W.F. Hegel, C. Lombroso, E. Ferry, R. Garofalo, I. Bentham, P.Y.A. Feuerbach, O.F. Kistyakivskii, J. Howard, I.Ya. Foynitsky and others. It is established that from the point of view of absolute theory, a criminal should be punished only because he committed a crime. In other words, the criminal should be punished for the triumph of the absolute idea. Any other purpose of punishment does not matter. It should be inevitable, fair, and commensurate with the crime. Representatives of relative theories of punishment found justification and purpose not in the punishment itself, but in the results that should be achieved by it. These results include intimidation, psychological coercion, correction, prevention of other crimes, and so on. Punishment is considered as a way to influence the consciousness of the offender. It should eliminate the criminal will of the offender. In addition, thinkers of the past considered punishment as a criminal form of resolving social contradictions, and antagonism between society and the state, between society and the individual.
 Today the socio-political situation indicates a growing need for criminal repression and requires careful theoretical understanding and legislative consolidation of the concept, nature of punishment, the system of punishment, as well as the development of principles and legal mechanism for sentencing and execution. In this regard, the experience of our predecessors on the general theoretical problems of punishment can be useful and instructive.

Mechanisms of Electoral Support for Populist, Far-Right, and Anti-Immigration Parties: A Comparative Analysis of the Electoral Successes of AfD in Germany and SD in Sweden

European politics are changing constantly. Moreover, the changing demography of Europe have had far-reaching effects on these. In reaction to the immigrant inflow, political parties across Europe changed their policies. Further, new political movements, generally with a far- right stance, formed at a dizzying rate, each offering increasingly radical policy solutions. These parties' impact is frequently larger than their small vote totals would imply, allowing them to influence more popular parties' policies. To understand what these far-right populist parties can do, one can take a closer look at the circumstances in Germany and Sweden. In Germany, AfD has had surprising and evocative effects. Sweden also has its own example through Sverigedemokraterna (The Sweden Democrats). This article attempts to understand the potential motivations behind the rising electoral support towards various anti-immigration and political parties throughout Europe by analyzing the changing dynamics in Germany and Sweden through their respective prominent far-right political movements.

A Specter from the Past: the Balkanization of Europe?

Drawing on a long career of research into the history of nationalism and ethnic politics in Europe, Stefano Bianchini has written an erudite book on how the nationality factor affects European politics – state formation and state partition in particular. He presents a wide-ranging survey over la longue durée, and also argues a case: that state partitioning should be avoided whenever possible, as it creates many more problems than it solves.

Brexit’s Implications for the Transatlantic Relationship

Since the Second World War, the United Kingdom has served as a transatlantic bridge between the United States and Europe and as a conduit of the US influence in European affairs. Since joining the EU, Britain has been one of the main contributors to the European Union’s foreign, security, and defense policies. The withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU in 2020 marked a milestone in European politics. The UK’s decision to leave the European Union has raised questions concerning probable implications of Brexit for the transatlantic relationship and the European balance of power. Brexit entails multifaceted changes in Britain’s global posture, in particular, new nuances in its dealings with the United States and European partners. These shifts embrace a wide range of political, defense, security, and economic issues. They have stirred up debates on the British strategy’s tilt towards the Indo–Pacific and Britain’s future cooperation with its American ally and the EU. Having considered developments in the Washington–London–Brussels relations in the wake of the Brexit referendum, this article figures out trends in the interactions of these key players that reflect their visions of a post-Brexit reality.

Trade shock, refugee, and the rise of right-wing populism: Evidence from European Parliament elections

Recent years have witnessed the rising support for right-wing populism in European politics. We rely on the outcomes of the 2014 European Parliament elections to empirically examine the economic and cultural mechanisms that fuel this trend. Using import competition to measure economic shocks and regional-level refugee shocks, we find that regions exposed to more intense trade shocks are more likely to vote for right-wing parties. We further show the increasing support for economically far-right parties is mainly caused by trade shocks, and the electoral support for culturally far-right parties stems mainly from refugee shocks.

Political and Legal Conditions of Marketing Activity of Businesses in the European Market

Abstract The article tackles the political and legal environment within the borders of the European Union (EU) member states. Determinants of the political and legal environment of the European market were identified on two levels: (1) the framework, i.e. supranational European political and legal conditions; (2) the classical political and legal environment of the EU member states. Afterwards, an analysis of individual factors of the political and legal environment in the aforementioned levels was performed. Four legal areas in the EU states were demonstrated: Roman, Anglo-Saxon, Germanic and mixed; three jurisdictional systems were identified: case law, continental and Scandinavian law; and the legal framework of the Union was found to consist of primary legislation, secondary legislation and adjudications of the Court of Justice of the EU. The problem of excessive duration of the administrative procedures, untimeliness and incomplete transposition of directives into the national law of the member states was discussed. It was also brought to attention that the diversity of laws and taxes is still a significant barrier to foreign operations of businesses in the EU internal market. It was also indicated that the integration of European law enables economic entities to perform marketing activities in the European market in the form of a representative office or a foreign branch without legal entity. Finally, it was stated that the factors of the political and legal environment are significantly unified in the supranational environment, while in the classical environment, there are some differences among the EU countries, but they allow for the use of unified marketing concepts, e.g. the concept of euromarketing.

The German Response to Austria’s Annexation of Cracow in 1846

Abstract The annexation of the Free City of Cracow by Austria in November 1846 has been regarded by historians as one of the most important international events in the period before the outbreak of revolutions in 1848. The annihilation of an independent state has been seen as a flagrant violation of international law that led to a weakening of Europeans’ faith in the justice of the post-Napoleonic order. Consequently, it is surprising that even as this evaluation has become rooted in historical scholarship, the public response to this affair has scarcely been analysed. The aim of this article is to reveal the impact of the annexation on the broad public in the German Confederation and the decline in people’s trust in justice in international relations. Germans across various political camps primarily perceived the annexation of Cracow not from the perspective of political modernization but in terms of geopolitical security. Their concern was not just with the position of the individual German states in relation to Prussia, Austria, Britain, France and Russia or the position of the entire German Confederation in relation to France, Britain and Russia, but also with their position within the political-legal system of European politics. The ensuing debate on the necessity for external security against threats from other European powers and nations became the most important outcome of this affair in Germany, with an egoistic, power-oriented response to the annexation of Cracow paving the way for conflicts among the Germans, Poles and other nations in 1848.

World Politics and International Security Facing New Nationalism: Introducing the Issue

The guest editor of this issue Sergey Shein, a recognized expert in European and British politics, conservative ideology, right-wing populism, and the role of traditional values, introduces the current issue of our journal and reflects on the stated topic - new nationalism - through the prism of approaches proposed at the 26th World Congress of the International Political Science Association. The editor defines the purpose of this issue as contributing to the scholarly discussion on the momentum of nationalist parties and movements in their various regional and national variations for world politics.

Spanish Far-Right Party “Vox”: Its Role in Shaping of the EU Regional Agenda

The “Vox” party has turned into an influential actor of the European politics due to its electoral success; institutional and ideological adaptation to the country’s changing party landscape; attempts to create its own institutional, organizational, informational, and creative resources; as well as its policy of forming strong alliances with European and American rightwing conservative forces. Based on the spatial approach (categories of political space and political identity) and discourse-analysis, the author tries to comprehend the policy guidelines of “Vox”; determines the place of the party in the political system and the media sphere of Spain; defines the role that “Vox” plays in shaping the regional agenda of the EU. The study focuses on the political and institutional aspects of how “Vox” strengthens its relations with similar EU parties based on partisan and ideological identity, designing alternative projects of European integration, and establishing a new, ideologized format for the relations of Spain (and more broadly - the EU) and the Ibero-American countries. The author concludes about the structuring and the formal institutionalization of communications and political interactions between the far-right political elites which carries risks for the EU’s efforts to create a macropolitical identity and the metanarrative of memory, therefore, potentially leading to political divisions in the EU.

Book Review: The Rise of Entrepreneurial Parties in European Politics

Book Review: The Rise of Entrepreneurial Parties in European Politics

The inter-parliamentary cooperation as a solution to mitigate the democratic deficit within the European Union

1979년 유럽의회(European Parliament)가 직접보통 선거를 도입한 결과로 발생한, 유럽의회와 회원국 의회 간의 단절이 유럽의회와 회원국 의회 간 협력의 필요성을 낳아, 그 협력이 꾸준히 증가해왔다. 유럽의회가 유럽연합이사회(Council of the European Union)와 동등한 정책결정기구로서 참여하는 공동체 방식(Community method)이 아닌, 회원국 간 지속적인 정치적 타협과 이해조정을 요구하는 정부 간 협의 방식(Intergovernmental method)에 의해 채택된 유럽 정책이 증가함으로써, 유럽연합의 활동들에 관한 의회 통제의 사각지대가 확장되고 있는 것이 현실이다. 본 연구는 유럽의회와 회원국 의회 사이에 존재하는 상호보완성(complementarity) 덕분에, 의회 간 협력이 유럽연합의 활동들에 대한 민주적 정당성을 강화하는 장치가 될 수 있음을 보여 준다. 본 연구는 유럽연합 내 다양한 의회 간 협력회의들을 EU회원국 의회 내 EU담당위원회 간 회의인 COSAC (Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union) 그리고 EU회원국 의회의장 간 회의인 EUSC(Conference of Speakers of the EU Parliaments)와 같은 모든 종류의 유럽연합 이슈들을 전방위적으로 다루는 의회 간 협력회의들과, 특정 분야에 집중된 분야별 의회 간 협력회의들(유럽연합 공동외교안보/공동안보방위 정책을 위한 의회 간 협력회의인 IPC for CFSP/CSDP, 유럽연합 내 안정, 경제적 조정 및 거버넌스에 관한 의회 간 협력 회의인 IPC on SECG 그리고 유로폴에 관한 공동의회조사 그룹인 JPSG on Europol)로 나누어서 검토하고, 강점(Strengths), 약점(Weaknesses), 기회(Opportunities) 및 위기(Threats)를 검토하는 SWOT 분석을 통해, 유럽연합 내 의회 간 협력을 종합적으로 검토함으로써, 유럽연합 내 의회 간 협력의 한계와 가능성에 대한 이해를 제고한다. 또한 본 연구는 유럽연합 내 의회 간 협력에 관한 연구를 통하여, 한·중·일 동아시아 3국 의회 간 협력의 발전가능성 및 한국에 주는 함의를 도출한다.Resulting to a large extent from the gap between the European Parliament and the national parliaments as a result of the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage introduced in 1979, the necessity of the inter-parliamentary cooperation (IPC) has progressively increased. In the context where the blind angle of the parliamentary control on the EU expands, resulting from the development of the European politics taken by the intergovernmental method instead of by the community method, this study shows that the IPC can be a device which could lead to strengthen the democratic legitimacy of the EU’s acts thanks to the complementarity between the European Parliament and the national parliaments. This article examines the IPC by dividing it into two types of IPC: on the one hand, IPCs dealing with subjects related to general EU affairs (*COSAC and *EUSC); on the other hand, IPCs dealing with subjects which are focused on a certain sector (*IPC for CFSP/CSDP, *IPC on SECG and *JPSG on Europol). In assessing the IPC through a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis, this study leads us to understand the limits and the potential benefits of the IPC. In addition, through a study on the IPC within the EU, this article seeks to extend possibilities for the development of the IPC in three East Asia countries (South Korea, China and Japan) and makes us to learn a lesson for South Korea. COSAC: Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union * EUSC: Conference of Speakers of the EU Parliaments * IPC for CFSP/CSDP: Inter-Parliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the Common Security and Defense Policy * IPC on SECG: Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Stability, Economic Coordination and Governance in the EU * JPSG on Europol: Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on Europol

The First Partition of Poland and the Issue of the European Balance of Power in Contemporary English Media (1772–1774)

Prussia, Russia, and Austria gradually divided the territory of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in three stages between 1772 and 1795. In their partition policy, Prussia and Russia managed to make Austria take sides with them on the first, as well as the third occasion, and during these partitions, the Western powers such as France or Great Britain – although fully opposing such violent breach of Polish–Lithuanian statehood – did not act against them. A new kind of balancing policy and partition diplomacy materialized in these partitions of Poland (rozbiory Polski) and the loss of Polish sovereignty. The present paper seeks to explore the roots of this peculiarly balancing constellation of great powers, analysing the political environment that led to the first division of Poland in 1772, while investigating the opinion of Great Britain on the partition. The first part of the study places the 18th-century European political scene in an ideohistorical contéxt, présénting thé concépts of ‘réason of staté’ and ‘balancé of powér’ that motivated the dynamics of diplomatic negotiations. In light of this, the second part describes the motivations and key events of Polish (domestic) and European (great power) politics in the 18th century up to the time of the first partition, while the main part analyses the English press reaction to the division, its visual sources and the relevant pamphlet literature of 1772–1774.

Conceptual Metaphors in Climate Change Discourse in the Speeches of African Vs. European Political Leaders: A Cognitive Approach

Conceptual Metaphors in Climate Change Discourse in the Speeches of African Vs. European Political Leaders: A Cognitive Approach

Euroscepticism and Populism in Italy Among Party Elites and the Public

The recent history of European politics has been characterised by the mounting phenomena of populism and Euroscepticism. Some recent analyses discuss the possible convergence between the two, exemplified, above all, by the increased success of Eurosceptic and populist parties. Conceptually and historically, Euroscepticism and populism are two distinct ideological realms. To what extent do they develop in parallel or converge, both at the elite and mass levels? We address this question by looking at the Italian case, where populism and Euroscepticism have apparently progressed simultaneously. Through an analysis of the attitudes of political elites and the general public, we argue that the two phenomena actually move in parallel and in general do not converge, with the main exception of the Five Star Movement where a convergence is instead visible. Finally, by observing the effects of Euroscepticism and populism on the voting choices of citizens, we observe a high level of congruence in the political system between demand and supply, hence between voters and their representatives.

Conceptual Metaphors in Climate Change Discourse in the Speeches of African Vs. European Political Leaders: A Cognitive Approach

Conceptual Metaphors in Climate Change Discourse in the Speeches of African Vs. European Political Leaders: A Cognitive Approach

Ordoliberalism as an ideology: a conceptual analysis

ABSTRACT The Euro crisis prompted an extensive academic debate on the role of ordoliberalism, a German variant of neoliberalism, in the European crisis politics. This study contributes to the debate by reconstructing the ordoliberal ideology using Michael Freeden’s morphological approach. The ordoliberal ideology consists of a common core of political concepts (order, competition, freedom, power, state and Ordnungspolitik), differently interpreted by its various currents. The article, based on selected works of representative ordoliberal authors, compares different currents and generations of ordoliberals. For the first generation, Walter Eucken’s and Franz Böhm’s Freiburg School, Wilhelm Röpke’s sociological neoliberalism and Alfred Müller-Armack’s Social Market Economy; for the second generation, Erich Hoppmann; for the third generation, Viktor Vanberg.

Union and Disunion in the Nineteenth Century, edited by James Gregory and Daniel J.R. Grey

Reviewed by: Union and Disunion in the Nineteenth Century ed. by James Gregory and Daniel J. R. Grey Katherine Haldane Grenier (bio) Union and Disunion in the Nineteenth Century, edited by James Gregory, and Daniel J. R. Grey; pp. xii + 282. London and New York: Routledge, 2020, $160.00. Union and Disunion in the Nineteenth Century, a wide-ranging and interdisciplinary collection of essays, uses ideals and expressions of union and disunion as a lens through which to examine the nineteenth century, focusing mostly on Great Britain and the United States. The editors, James Gregory and Daniel J. R. Grey, describe their book as exploring "episodes, institutions, sites and representations concerned with union, concord and bonds of sympathy, but also … moments of secession, separation, discord and disjunction" (1). These are broad themes which could encompass a wide assortment of topics, and indeed, the essays in this volume are varied. Their topics include marriage, political unions, jury trials, popular travel, church disestablishment, the administration of the 1834 Poor Law, and the selection of art for the Houses of Parliament. Such diverse topics can seem disjointed, and the book might benefit from a stronger elucidation of the connections which tie these essays together. Yet ideas in many of the individual essays do engage with each other in intriguing ways, and offer some valuable examples of the many ways that union and disunion played out in nineteenth-century people's lives and political structures. The collection is divided into five sections: artistic representations of union and disunion; transnational diplomacy between Britain and Europe; the politics of union and disunion in Great Britain; union and disunion in the United States; family division and union. A key argument that runs through these organizational divisions is that unions, even those that seemed the most stable, were subject to a constant process of contestation, negotiation, and redefinition. Gordon Pentland and Gary D. Hutchison demonstrate this point in discussions of the Anglo-Scottish union. Pentland's study of three Scottish political leaders during the nineteenth century shows the nuance with which they approached the political relationship with England and the impreciseness of simple characterizations of "unionist" and "nationalist" when applied to Scottish political thought of this era (108). Hutchison finds that the Conservative Party was more influential in Scottish governance and politics in this period than has been recognized, [End Page 144] and that their lack of success in electoral politics as the century went on led to innovative approaches to administrative reform of the union. Turning to the United States, Lawrence T. McDonnell provides another example that unity could not be taken for granted. While South Carolina politics are often considered to have been particularly cohesive in the 1850s, McDonnell's assessment of the legacy of John C. Calhoun shows how that unanimity was forged. South Carolina politicians in the 1850s were consumed by the effort to achieve cohesion within the various factions that emerged after Calhoun's death; whether or not that internal unity would lead to disunity from the North was not a sure thing. Other essays usefully remind us that elite politicians were not the only actors who helped to establish and maintain unions. Gregory examines an 1849 visit of 250 middle-class British excursionists to Paris, a trip which was intended to promote good Anglo-French relations after recent tensions. While the trip demonstrated the eagerness of many middle-class people to play a role in their nation's international affairs, it also opened a debate in the press about who should most properly represent British interests abroad. Rachel Egloff's contribution to the volume also examines ways in which Britons outside the political class endeavored to participate in international politics, in this case through literary activity. Rose Blaze de Bury, a British writer married to a French diplomat and the subject of Egloff's essay, was deeply interested in international politics and was concerned with strengthening Britons' understanding of the need for increased political unity in the German-speaking world. Egloff analyzes the textual strategies through which Blaze de Bury claimed authority as an expert in the "masculine" (87) world of "hard" European politics (89). Kim Stevenson and Judith Rowbotham investigate how...