European Union Member States Research Articles

Engagement against All Odds? Navigating Member States’ Contestation of EU Policy on Kosovo

ABSTRACT Disagreements between European Union (EU) member states constrain the Union’s capacity to manage conflicts such as Kosovo-Serbia. While Kosovo has long received EU support, five EU member states do not recognise its independence. How does the EU manage to work around member states’ vetoes and mitigate contestation? In contrast to previous scholarship, the analysis of the EU enlargement process and visa liberalisation, the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and the EULEX mission illustrate how institutional, technical and diplomatic solutions have allowed the provision of support to Kosovo, despite internal disagreements. EU member states have delegated to EU institutions the responsibility of overseeing day-to-day conflict management and integration policies concerning Kosovo and Serbia. EU institutions also use technical and constructively ambiguous language to manage conflicts and navigate the absence of political consensus regarding Kosovo’s statehood. Additionally, the EU has fostered diplomatic collaboration with the United States (US) and with actors from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to navigate through the Kosovo-Serbia conflict.

EU Policy towards Ethiopia amidst the Tigray War: The Limits of Mitigating Fragmentation

ABSTRACT The Tigray war illustrates how the European Union (EU) often fails to act effectively and consistently in a highly fragmented context. During the 2020-22 conflict, the EU failed to address a number of challenges emanating from the internal fragmentation of Ethiopia. These pertained to the EU’s lack of contextual knowledge about local conflict dynamics and actors and, relatedly, the legacy of its relations with Tigray’s leadership; the inconsistent approach of EU institutions and member states that initially led to an normative outlook, which later evolved into a more balanced and pragmatic one when it was arguably too late; and the inability to mitigate competition with other external powers who backed the Ethiopian federal government. As a result, the EU adopted an inconsistent and ineffective approach toward the conflict.

The European Union and an “Indo-Pacific” Alignment

The European Union (EU) is deepening its political and security engagement in the so-called Indo-Pacific mega-region. Aside from alluring economic drivers, this article argues that growing suspicion vis-à-vis the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been accompanied by a multilayered set of ententes with “like-minded” Asia-Pacific partners, starting with the United States of America (US), all the way to Japan, South Korea, and Australia. This effort has been facilitated and hastened by US policy under the Biden administration and Russia’s war in Ukraine. On the basis of first-hand elite interviews over the course of many years of fieldwork, as well as documentary evidence, including those in the Japanese language, the article argues that the EU and major member states have recalibrated earlier aspirations for effective multilateralism and strategic autonomy to more forcefully align with a concert of Indo-Pacific counterparts, led by the United States. The case of the EU-Japan strategic partnership is indicative of such trends, as it covers traditional and non-traditional security domains.

Continuing Education in Digital Skills for Healthcare Professionals - Mapping of the Current Situation in EU Member States.

The rapid advancement of technology in healthcare is creating new competency requirements for professionals, such as skills for data management and the adoption of new technologies, understanding the effect of digitalisation on clinical processes, and evaluating clinical safety and ethics within the context of digitalisation. These requirements call for improved educational curricula and ongoing continuing education in digital skills. This study, as part of the Digital Skills Training for Health Care Professionals in Oncology (DigiCanTrain) project, aims to map and describe the existing continuing education in digital skills for healthcare professionals (HCPs) in European Union (EU) Member States. Using a mapping study methodology, data was collected from experts in 25 EU countries through surveys and from online sources. Qualitative content analysis was used for categorising the data. The results show variations between countries in policy strategies, training organisation, and funding mechanisms. Educational institutions, employers, third parties, and national/regional authorities were found to be the main organisers of the digital skills training. Comprehensive accreditation systems seemed to be scarce, and practices also varied between countries. The study highlights the importance of adopting a systematic approach to enhancing continuous professional development in digital skills, which would ensure that professionals have equitable access to education, resulting in consistent, quality patient care across countries and regions. The findings offer valuable insights for policymakers, educators, healthcare institutions, and professionals.

Testing for causality between remittances and inflation: Evidence from Central and Eastern Europe

The goal of this study is to examine the impact of remittance inflow on inflation using the System Generalized Method of Moments (SGMM) and Dumitrescu-Hurlin Granger causality approach in countries from Central and Eastern Europe over the period 1994 to 2019. As the levels of economic and financial development vary considerably across these countries and some of them are member states of the European Union (EU), we split them into two more homogenous groups - EU member states and non-EU countries. The application of the SGMM approach reveals that remittances have a negative and significant impact on inflation in the non-EU countries, whereas they exert positive impact in the EU member states and in the whole region overall. The Granger causality test shows a unidirectional causal relationship between remittances and inflation in all country groups, whereas the existence of a positive causal relationship from remittances to inflation has been established in twelve countries.

Economic convergence of the Balkan countries towards the European Union

This paper aims to analyze the economic performance of Balkan countries in comparison to the European Union (EU) average, with the objective of assessing the convergence of Balkan nations toward the EU during the period 2000–2019. The economic variables under consideration encompass per capita income, the corruption perception index (CPI), salary levels, and direct foreign investments. Employing β-convergence, rooted in neoclassical growth theories, this study aims to test the hypothesis that economically disadvantaged countries experience more rapid growth in per capita income than their wealthier counterparts. The empirical findings of this investigation reveal a discernible long-term convergence among the Balkan countries themselves, as well as towards the EU member states. The rate of convergence exhibits variations contingent upon the developmental status of the respective countries, along with nuances related to their economic structure and corruption levels. Despite these observed convergences, a substantial gap persists, and the pace of economic integration of Balkan nations into the EU appears to be a gradual process. This study underscores the complex relationship between economic convergence, country-specific characteristics, and the broader context of regional integration.

Addressing The Vulnerability Of Energy Consumers

In the shift to a climate-neutral society and economy, an essential solution for renewable energy is at decentralized energy system relying on more distributed generation, energy storage, and more active involvement of consumers. In the European Union (EU), the Clean Energy Package puts consumers at the center of EU energy policy and introduces a wide range of initiatives to engage consumers in the transition to clean energy. In addition to implementing EU policies, EU Member States are also developing and implementing ambitious laws and policies related to the energy transition and climate change. For example, theNetherlands, which serves as a case study in this article, committed in the Rutte IV coalition agreement to emit less than 55% CO2 compared to 1990 by 2030 and to be completely climate neutral by 2050. The country aims to switch to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power and develop a robust and flexible energy infrastructure system that can be operated on a smaller scale and decentralized. Such transformations have profound implications for understanding the role of the consumer in the Dutch energy market and highlight the need for greater consumer involvement in the connection, transmission, delivery, and use of energy. This article aims to answer the overarching question of how the principles of good governance (transparency, effectiveness, accountability, and participation) can contribute to better protecting (vulnerable) consumers from governance vulnerabilities to ensure a just and smart energy transition. It focuses on the consumer protection approach introduced in the proposal for the new Energy Act (2023) in the Netherlands. The article examines to what extent the principles of good governance are effectively incorporated and elaborated in the Dutch legal framework for the protection of energy consumers. Ultimately, it seeks to provide recommendations on how to improve support for vulnerable consumers in the Netherlands and empower them to actively participate in energy markets and make informed choices. Although the article focuses primarily on the Dutch experience, it can offer valuable lessons and guidance to other countries that must deal with the challenges and opportunities associated with the transition to renewable energy sources and a more digitized energy market.

Pathogens associated with seafood exports from Southeast Asia to the European Union: Analysis of the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (1997–2020)

Over the years, the need for healthy food has increased the demand for seafood in the international market. However, despite the high global demand, seafood is highly perishable and may harbour pathogenic microorganisms that could be transferred to humans during handling, processing, and consumption. Therefore, establishing strict food safety standards and risk communication tools is critical to prevent the infiltration of unsafe seafood into global markets. In the global food supply chain, the European Union (EU) is the largest importer of seafood, while more than 80% of global seafood production is from Asia. Additionally, Southeast Asian countries account for 32% of global seafood production. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the microbiological safety of seafood imported from Southeast Asia to the EU by analysing alert notifications in the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) database. The RASFF is a tool used for reporting and communicating food safety-related risks among the EU Member States and other members of the RASFF network. A total of 301 notifications of pathogens in seafood originating from four Southeast Asian countries (Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia) were reported by 19 EU countries, including the United Kingdom (1997-2020). More than 56% of the pathogen notifications involved crustaceans and related products. Fifty-two percent of the notifications involved seafood from Vietnam, while 30% of the notifications from EU member countries were from Italy. Vibrio spp. was the most predominant bacterial pathogen responsible for 50% of the notifications, followed by Salmonella spp. and Clostridium accounting for 38% and 2% of the notifications, respectively. Norovirus was implicated in 10% of the notifications, and this was only in clams from Vietnam. These pathogens pose a risk to consumers’ health, indicating the need to enforce stringent food safety standards in producing countries to ensure the safety of seafood exported to other parts of the world. These actions will ultimately prevent economic loss associated with the rejection, destruction or import restrictions of contaminated seafood originating from Southeast Asia to the EU.

European priority review vouchers for neglected disease product development

IntroductionNeglected diseases are a significant global health challenge. Encouraging the development of therapeutics and vaccines for these diseases would address an important unmet medical need. We propose a priority review...

Readiness of Zero-Emission Buildings (ZEBs) implementation in the European Union

The building sector plays a central role in the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the European Union (EU). The revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) sets out ambitious requirements to make the EU building stock decarbonised by 2050. The proposal for a recast EPBD introduces Zero-Emission Building (ZEB) as the building target for all new buildings as of 2030. This paper offers insights into the concept of ZEB, analysing its key methodological aspects, with a focus on ambition, the role of energy efficiency, and the role of renewable energy. Additionally, the paper evaluates the performance levels of new buildings in EU Member States, highlighting the gaps between current Nearly Zero-Energy Buildings’ performance levels and potential ZEB performance levels, specifically in terms of primary energy demand and renewable energy contribution. The findings emphasise the necessity to enhance initiatives aimed at improving energy efficiency and harnessing renewable energy sources to adopt the ambitious ZEB concept as of 2030. Additionally, the paper highlights the importance of addressing GHG emissions comprehensively, extending beyond the operational phase of a building to include embodied impacts, in order to achieve a life-cycle zero-emission building stock.

Mechanical and biological methods of plant protection against agrophages in the context of the European Green Deal strategy

The intensive development of agriculture in Europe has caused that all European Union member states are currently increasingly expe¬riencing negative consequences such as depletion of natural resources, increased erosion and loss of natural soil fertility, increased importance of new diseases and pests, water shortages, reduced biomass production and decreased biodiversity of organisms. In the context of the common agricultural policy, as well as the need to limit the use of chemical protection of agricultural crops, agrotechnical and also mechanical and biological methods are gaining in importance. Mechanical methods of protecting plants against pests main¬ly consist in mechanical destruction of threats or preventing them from reaching plants in the field or agricultural products stored in storage. Biological methods, on the other hand, use viruses, microorganisms and macroorganisms to combat pests as an alternative to chemical plant protection. This publication presents available mechanical and biological methods that allow for minimizing the use of chemicals in agriculture.

Renewable energy intensity and efficiency of fossil energy fuels in the nordics: How environmentally efficient is the energy mix?

In recent years, energy intensity-efficiency has improved in the Nordic states and largely among the European Union member states, thus accounting for the region's impressive performance in terms of environmental sustainability. Clearly, there is paucity of literature on the criticality of renewable energy efficiency/intensity as compared with disaggregated fossil fuel efficiency. To offer more novelty, environmental sustainability (de) merit of renewable energy intensity is compared with fossil (oil, natural gas, and coal) fuel efficiency in the panel of Nordic states over the period 1990–2020 by employing relevant econometric approaches such as the cross-sectional autoregressive distributed lag (CS-ARDL). Importantly, the result shows that a percentage increase in renewable energy intensity mitigates greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by ∼0.45% against ∼0.29% by oil energy efficiency in the long run, thus suggesting that environmental performance of renewable energy intensity outweighs the efficient use of oil fuel. Additionally, renewable energy intensity also outperforms efficient use of natural gas and coal energy by ∼0.51%–∼0.37% and ∼0.43%–∼0.17% respectively. However, economic growth and environmental-related innovations spur GHG emissions, implying that the Nordic countries are decoupling economic performance from environmental setbacks amidst structural shift via technological innovations. The results are considered formidable for the specificity of energy mix policy especially in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.

Социальный диалог в период пандемии COVID-19: опыт ЕС

The article is devoted to the study of the European Union member states’ experience in the field of maintaining social dialogue during the COVID‑19 pandemic. The author explores strategies for maintaining social dialogue, defines their specific features, and determines the risks within their implementation. It is revealed that the approbation of these strategies forced the national authorities of all EU member states to switch to tripartite consultations, characterized by a high level of representation. The priorities of the social dialogue during the pandemic aimed at ensuring the basic rights of workers in the European Union in various sectors are investigated. Measures ensuring health and safety of workers were put at the forefront. Social partners expected to overcome the main difficulties caused by the pandemic with the help of state support measures. At the same time, they raised topical issues of modeling the economic and social post-crisis recovery. The contribution of social partners to the training and professional development of skilled labor during the pandemic is being established. Effective practices are considered to contribute to the expansion of education opportunities and advanced training of employees through the conclusion of collective agreements with the formation of accounts for such an education. The mechanism of adaptation to the changing labor market using the transfer of workers to remote work is shown. It is emphasized that trade unions have chosen offensive tactics in dialogue with employers, seeking to protect the interests of employees when switching to remote work. It is concluded that the EU countries as a whole managed to overcome the risks of curtailing the social dialogue.

Acceptance of digital instruments in the accounting profession

The digital transition has affected and continues to affect all sectors of the economy. The COVID-19 pandemic forced many industries, including the accounting sector, to adopt digitization measures to maintain their activity during this restricted period. Innovative systems and advanced technologies thus became indispensable in the accounting profession, and despite its inability to replicate human intelligence, Artificial Intelligence (AI) was swiftly adopted for many accounting processes. The purpose of this study was to explore how the Romanian accounting profession accepted the digital instrument transformation. A deductive approach from the general to the particular was used to highlight the key aspects and their implications in the accounting profession. In addition, the technological acceptance model (TAM) was correlated with the external variables of the technology-organization-environment framework (TOE) to develop 13 hypotheses. A questionnaire was then applied, which validated 9 of these hypotheses. The research results indicated that the digital transition by the accounting profession in Romania is a complex process that is in a preliminary stage compared to that in European Union member states. This study has an inherent series of limitations, which can provide opportunities for future research in the field.

Pope Francis' influence and public opinion in the EU in the context of national resilience

Studying Pope Francis' influence on public opinion in European Union countries in the context of national resilience is a pressing research question. Although the Pope enjoys high moral authority among Europeans, a comprehensive analysis of his role in shaping societal positions, particularly on security and defense issues, is lacking. Investigating this problem enables a deeper understanding of the religious factor's role in strengthening European unity, countering destructive influences. The research materials include Pope Francis' public speeches and statements, primarily those circulated through mass media and social networks, as well as sociological survey results on the EU public's perception of the pontiff's position on crucial socio-political issues. Content analysis methods are used to examine the content and tone of the Pope's messages, while comparative analysis of sociological research data identifies correlations between the Pope's rhetoric and shifts in public sentiment regarding national resilience. The results show that despite Pope Francis' high popularity in EU countries, where the vast majority of the population approves of the pontiff, his public statements have a limited and short-lived impact on public opinion. Empirical evidence indicates that most Europeans do not consider the Pope a decisive factor in shaping their views on various socio-political problems, such as nuclear disarmament, migration, pandemics, or basic income. The Pope's pacifist stance on war, a topic of discussion in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war, is not a determining factor that risks critically undermining the personnel and motivation of EU countries' armed forces. The population's willingness to defend their homeland militarily varies significantly among EU states and is influenced by a complex interplay of historical, geopolitical, and socio-cultural factors that outweigh the pontiff's religious rhetoric. In conclusion, while papal pacifism somewhat resonates with the anti-war sentiments of some Europeans, it does not pose major challenges to ensuring the defense capabilities and resilience of EU countries. Pope Francis' high moral authority does not automatically translate into a dominant influence on public opinion and societal attitudes regarding national security in European Union member states.

СУЧАСНИЙ СТАН ЦИФРОВІЗАЦІЇ КРАЇН-ЧЛЕНІВ ЄС

This article explores the present status of digitization across European Union member states. While the EU maintains common goals and overarching strategies for digitalization, individual member nations exhibit diverse levels of progress in its implementation. The asynchronous pace of digitalization among EU member states stems from various factors, including economic disparities, variations in technological infrastructure and legal frameworks, cultural and social influences, disparities in education and digital literacy, divergent government initiatives and funding levels, and the extent of collaboration between the public and private sectors. Each member state contributes to distinct dimensions of progress in the implementation of digitalization. The European Commission facilitates the monitoring of digital competitiveness and indicators across EU member states through the utilization of the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) report. This report evaluates diverse aspects of the digital economy and society, offering a holistic perspective on digital development within the EU. The current digital landscape in individual EU member states has been analyzed. The study examines the dynamics of changes in specific indicators (connectivity, human capital, integration of digital technologies, and state digital services) within the framework of the DESI from 2015 to 2022 in both the European Union as a collective entity and the individual member states. The research findings indicate that, on the whole, there has been noteworthy advancement in digitalization across all EU member states over the past decade. Nevertheless, the study highlights the contemporary challenges reflected in the objectives outlined in the "Digital Decade" program and the asynchronous fulfillment of these goals among member states. The most significant progress has been observed in accomplishing objectives related to digitalizing public services. All figures of this indicator are approaching the maximum. Notable advances have been made in the connectivity or digital infrastructure domain in implementing 5G and high-speed communications. However, there is a recognized need for further development, particularly in establishing distribution nodes and advancing the field of quantum computing. Examining the indicator of human capital, member states have made significant progress in imparting basic digital skills to their populations. Nevertheless, increasing the number of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) specialists remains required. Turning to the integration of digital technologies, specifically the digital transformation of businesses, discernible progress has been achieved in incorporating digital technologies into Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) activities. However, further advancement necessitates the introduction of cloud technologies and artificial intelligence into the operations of enterprises across the European Union.

The Influence of Digitalization on The European Labour Market – An Advanced Econometric Approach

Considering the significant impact that digitalization and digital transformation have on the economy and society, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the effects of this phenomenon across European Union Member States. The analysis will be realized using the Gaussian Graphical Model, based on two sets of indicators: one representative of digital infrastructure and human capital, and the other of the socio-economic impact, for the time period 2011-2022. The findings presented in this paper will show the complex relationship between digitalization and the labour market, highlighting both positive and negative connections between the variables analyzed. Furthermore, the study will emphasize the growing importance of digital transformation in all its facets.

The Status of Official Languages in the Multilingual European Union

The European Union (EU) comprises 27 nations and uses 24 official languages to acknowledge diversity and equal opportunity in the Union. This is an egalitarian policy, which is met with resistance and challenges due to various practices in the EU administration and management. A consecutive policy debate persisted in EU thinkers to decide the official language of the Union, while the nature of the public sphere was multicultural and multilingual.
 This paper explores factors behind the hurdles to achieving linguistic equality in the EU by looking at various institutional policies and scholastic papers. The research concludes that linguistic equality is theoretically idealised to promote linguistic harmony in the bloc, however, it is practically unattainable because prominent official and working languages like English, French and German trump other official languages of the EU member states. In addition, making everything available in all official languages of the EU is quite limited to avoid cost burden.

Analysis of the road safety in the EU countries and the impact of PBM on its improvement

Abstract The occurrence of a large number of road fatalities necessitates making improvements in road safety conditions. Governments and experts of European countries have been involved in this activity by investing efforts to increase security as well as achieve the goals of the European Commission (EC) to reduce fatalities by 50% by 2030.They aim to achieve road traffic without any fatalities occurring by 2050. Including a series of innovations for safety in the auto industry, deploying ITS technology, enforcing stringent legal regulations, emphasising on higher education of all traffic participants and undertaking other such important actions help achieve the set goals. Furthermore, adequate road maintenance with the use of modern models will definitely contribute to improving road safety. Moreover, it is necessary to regularly monitor road safety indicators and react accordingly on time. This paper presents a current state safety analysis from the perspective of road fatalities and road maintenance investments (RMIs) in the European Union (EU) and in European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries. The main objectives of this paper are to analyse road safety aspects and emphasise on the relation existing between road fatalities and RMI. Concurrently, the objective of this paper is to verify the possible influence of the performance-based maintenance (PBM) model on improving road safety in the European Union. As part of the research, 27 EU member states and 3 EFTA members were analysed in the period 2010–2021. The results indicate a connection between road fatalities and RMI. Thus, this particular one is almost linear at the average EU level and that PBM models can directly contribute to improving traffic safety and indirectly by savings in maintenance costs.

Economic uncertainty and life insurance: Bayesian Network Analysis at the level of European Union

This paper examines the relationship between economic uncertainty and the life insurance sector in the member states of the European Union (EU), with a focus on several key macroeconomic indicators, such as inflation, Gross Domestic Product growth and unemployment. Using a comprehensive dataset covering the diversity of the EU Member States over a ten-year period, econometric methods, like Bayesian Network Analysis are used to analyse the relationship between economic uncertainty indicators and life insurance performance indicators. The findings suggest a complex interplay between economic indicators and life insurance. Inflation appears as a significant factor, and unemployment, another crucial economic indicator, shows a mixed relationship in terms of life insurance demand. Therefore, in the context of an interconnected global economy, understanding how economic uncertainty influences demand for life insurance products is essential for policymakers, insurers and consumers alike.