Michael Baun

The EU as a Regional Actor: The Case of the Czech Republic

This article examines the impact of EU enlargement on regionalization in the Czech Republic. It asks whether pre–accession preparations for EU regional policy have promoted regionalization and governmental decentralization in the Czech Republic, a question prompted by the debate about EU regional policy and regionalization in the current Member States. After reviewing Czech preparations for EU regional policy and the administration of pre–accession structural aid programmes, it concludes that the EU’s impact on regionalization in the Czech Republic has been both limited and highly ambivalent. The article thus confirms the findings of previous research on EU enlargement and regionalization in the candidate countries.

Regional Policy and Decentralization in the Czech Republic

Abstract EU accession has had an ambiguous impact on regionalization in the Czech Republic. While EU membership necessitated the creation of regional administrative structures to manage the Structural Funds, the role of new regional authorities was often undermined by the centralized nature of the accession process itself. Developments since accession have created a new dynamic in the debate over regional policy and regionalization in the Czech Republic, however. Most significant are the increased political importance of the new regions and changes in partisan attitudes about regionalization. The impact of these developments is evident in the debate over regional policy planning for 2007–2103. Thus, despite its limited initial impact, EU accession has created the structural potential for increased regionalization in the Czech Republic which has been actualized by the changing constellation of political forces and altered preferences of key political actors in the country.

EU Regional Policy and the Candidate States: Poland and the Czech Republic

As relatively poor countries, the candidate states from Central and Eastern Europe will be major recipients of structural funds assistance once they join the EU. This prospect raises important questions about the impact of regional policy on the territorial politics of candidate states. Chief among these is whether EU regional policy will promote the same trends towards political decentralisation and regionalism in the Central and Eastern Europe Countries (CEECs) that it is claimed to have promoted in current member states. To answer this question, this article compares preparations for accession by two candidate states, the Czech Republic and Poland. It finds that preparations for EU regional policy have indeed been an important factor promoting administrative decentralisation in these new democracies, but the longer-term impact of EU regional policy on the territorial politics of these countries, and by implication other candidate states, remains difficult to assess.

Germany and Central Europe: Hegemony re-examined

This paper re-examines post-cold war predictions of German hegemony in Central Europe. Focusing on the four ‘Visegrad’ states, it examines each of the three pillars of prospective German hegemony. It concludes that only in the economic pillar can Germany be perceived as dominant. German dominance in the political realm is limited by historical factors and by the supranational structures of the EU. German cultural influence or ‘soft power’ is undermined by domestic economic and political problems, as well as the availability of alternative models. Thus, while Germany is clearly a powerful country, it is difficult to argue that it exercises even a limited ‘soft hegemony’ in Central Europe today.

Cohesion policy in the European Union

1. Introduction 2. The Origins and Early Evolution of Cohesion Policy 3. The Transformation of Cohesion Policy: Alignment with the EUs Growth and Competitiveness Strategy 4. Cohesion Policy and the EU Budget 5. Implementing Cohesion Policy 6. Cohesion Policy and Multilevel Governance 7. The Economic Impact of Cohesion Policy 8. Conclusion: The Future of Cohesion Policy

Czech Foreign Policy and EU Integration: European and Domestic Sources

Abstract This paper examines the impact of EU integration on the foreign policy of the Czech Republic. It surveys Czech foreign policy since 1989, focusing on five distinct periods of the Czech Republics relationship with the EU. The paper concludes that EU integration has had only a limited impact on Czech foreign policy in comparison to domestic political factors. EU membership also does not appear to have altered basic perceptions of Czech foreign policy interests, which remain largely determined by (pre-1989) historical experience and perceptions of geopolitical vulnerability. However, the Czech Republic has also sought to use the EU to achieve its key foreign policy goals, especially during its EU presidency in the first half of 2009, and EU membership has influenced the development of Czech policy towards Eastern Europe. In these regards, at least, Czech foreign policy can be said to have been ‘EU-ised’.

Evaluating the Effects of the EU Common Agriculture Policy in a New Member State: The Case of the Czech Republic

This article examines the impact of the CAP on the Czech Republic. Specifically, it focuses on implementation of the CAP and its economic, social and political effects, as well as the domestic debate about CAP reform. It argues that CAP implementation has gone fairly smoothly and the economic and social effects of the CAP have been generally positive or at least neutral. It also argues that while the CAP has had only a minimal impact on domestic politics, the domestic politics of agriculture could inhibit a strong Czech position in favour of CAP reform, even though the Czech Republic would generally benefit from further liberalization of the CAP.

The challenge of implementing European Union environmental law in the new member states: The Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive in the Czech Republic and Poland:

This article examines the problematic implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (UWWTD) in the Czech Republic and Poland from the perspective of the scholarly debate on European Union (EU) and post-accession compliance, focusing on the competing ‘goodness of fit’ and administrative-legal approaches to explaining variations in compliance with EU rules. It finds that administrative shortcomings of various kinds are a major reason for implementation problems in both countries, and that problems have also stemmed from the multilevel nature of the implementation process, which places a heavy administrative and financial burden on municipalities, and requires cooperation between national and local government authorities. In the Czech case, however, the ‘misfit’ between EU standards and contracting and regulatory practices in the Czech water sector has also undermined UWWTD compliance, through its negative impact on the countrys ability to access EU funding.

The Limits of Regionalization: The Intergovernmental Struggle over EU Cohesion Policy in the Czech Republic:

What explains national variation in the implementation of EU Cohesion Policy, in particular when it comes to the role of regions in Structural Funds management? This is an important question because, as some scholars have claimed, Cohesion Policy has the potential to empower regions and promote regionalization in Europe. Particularly in the new CEE member states, where relations between central and subnational authorities often remain unsettled or in a state of flux, the ability of regional authorities to exercise a substantial role in Cohesion Policy implementation could significantly impact intergovernmental relations and the balance of power between the central state and regions. This article examines this question in the case of one CEE member state, the Czech Republic, where the role of regions in Structural Funds management has been a particularly contentious issue over the course of three programming periods beginning in 2004. The article argues that the standard explanation in the literature for variation in Cohesion Policy implementation—national constitutional arrangements and governmental traditions—cannot explain the change of implementation systems in the Czech Republic because these remained constant over the three programming periods under investigation. Instead, the Czech case suggests the primary importance of regional administrative capacity and performance as a factor affecting Cohesion Policy implementation, while domestic politics and EU-level influences play important though secondary roles.

The Implementation of EU Environmental Policy in the Czech Republic: Problems with Post-Accession Compliance?

This article examines the implementation of EU environmental policy in the Czech Republic, focusing on the transposition and application of three key directives. It argues that, while the Czech Republic has had difficulty complying with EU environmental law since accession, overall its performance in this area does not conform to pessimistic scenarios of post-accession compliance. A key positive factor affecting the implementation of EU environmental policy in the Czech Republic, and a major reason for optimism about future Czech compliance with EU environmental law, is the active role of Czech environmental NGOs in the monitoring and enforcement of EU rules.