By: Klaus Körner
Fundamental systemic challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, digitalisation, demographic change, and most importantly global warming are pushing Europe to seek a more genuine European path and to explore new ways in a non-linear fashion. This requires action on local, regional and national but also on EU level with a potential uniting effect. The Russia-Ukraine war, and Europe’s decisive and united front towards Russia is a good illustration how quickly long-held positions can change and increase unity towards joint action. This needs to be translated into a long-term and systemic approach. Moreover, the author explores some ideas how to go beyond the linear to better prepare for future disruptions, such as climate change and formulates policy recommendations how to develop innovative socio-economic, environmental and political answers while strengthening Europe’s resilience.

By: Kurt Bayer
The European Commission has initiated the NextGenerationEU recovery package which for the first time enables the joint European financing of the necessary COVID-19 response. This objective has been accompanied by the temporary suspension of the Stability and Growth Pact that could be extended for a longer time due to the war in Ukraine. Irrespective of that the European Commission re-launched a review on economic governance after COVID-19 with the purpose to renew the debate on the macroeconomic framework of the EU, already communicated in 2020, but now with an emphasis on the lessons learned from COVID-19. The European Commission asked stakeholders and the general public for inputs into this debate, with a deadline for answers by 31 December 2022, structured into 11 questions. This re-evaluation should initiate a new framework for economic policy-making. Taking up this call, the author of this Policy Brief discusses the role of the Stability and Growth Pact, its “defensive“ focus on preventing budgetary spill-overs from deficit countries against a forward-looking joint euro area policy agenda, its focus on individual countries as opposed to a focus on the total EU/euro area economy and formulates policy recommendations.

By: Nedžma Džananović, Sead Turčalo
For many years the level of public trust in the rule of law in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been consistently low with the independence of judges and prosecutors further diminishing. Therefore, it is no surprise that in its Analytical Reports the European Commission concludes that the judiciary in the country is barely at an early stage of its preparation for the integration into the European Union. In their Policy Brief the authors argue in favour of financial and personal independence of the judiciary, reintroducing ethics and integrity and avoiding an over-concentration of institutional power.

What is driving the vaccination uptake divide between Western and Eastern Europe? What can be done to overcome these challenges? Tune into this LSE IDEAS and Ratiu Forum webinar examining vaccine hesitancy in marginalised local identities in Central and South-Eastern Europe. Meet the speakers and chair

By: Bardjha Tahiri
Starting just after the war and for more than 20 years now, Kosovo has had international community as the strongest provider of support to strengthen the rule of law. Even though many reforms were undertaken, the country still faces persistent problems. As stated in many international reports, especially in the Kosovo Country Reports delivered by the European Commission over years, the current state of rule of law in Kosovo affects the country’s democratic and economic development, the approximation with the European Union and overall consolidation of the state. Thus, robust actions that are targeted to amend Kosovo’s fragile judiciary system are needed immediately argues the author of this Policy Brief and provides policy recommendations that are some of the many needed measures to be implemented for strengthening the rule of law sector by reforming its functioning and administration.

By: Oana Popescu-Zamfir
Romania’s experience is that of the most intensive push for rule of law and anti-corruption among new European Union (EU) members, given that the country joined in 2007 before it had met EU conditionality. The outcome has been a mixed bag of short-term successes and long-term frustration. Alongside Bulgaria, Romania is one of only two countries to have become EU members and still be subjected to an ongoing monitoring mechanism on justice and the rule of law. The author of this Policy Brief argues that a few important principles of action can be extracted which have universal applicability and also discusses lessons that can be taken for the Western Balkans and the EU based on the Romanian experience.

By: Karl Pichelmann
The response of the European Union to the COVID-19 pandemic has been impressively swift and comprehensive. Creating the Recovery and Resilience Facility and establishing a coherent framework for its implementation has involved constructive, as well as intense policy dialogues between the European Commission and EU member states. This bodes well for the debate about the reform of the EU`s fiscal rules. The French EU presidency and the newly formed German coalition government could now provide additional momentum to the debate. Against this background, the author of this Policy Brief argues that the reform needs to address the key challenges of simultaneously reducing high public debt, while ensuring major investments in green transition, digital transformation and simplifying the fiscal rulebook.

By: Elise Bernard, Joseph Leloup
For the next six months France holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. One of the top priorities on its agenda will be to strive towards a more sovereign Europe. A Europe which is ready to act in the field of security and defence, to reform the Schengen area and to engage with its neighbours, particularly in the Western Balkans and with Africa. The French Presidency will organise a conference on the Western Balkans in June and supports cooperation projects to guarantee stability and security in the region. The authors of this Policy Brief analyse already existing relationships with the Western Balkan countries in the area of security and formulate policy recommendations.

By: Inva Nela
Judiciary and rule of law, more specifically, is a core element for the EU accession negotiations. In the case of Albania, the enlargement instruments have been primarily focused on the justice reform, therefore, it gives the opportunity to go beyond the simply adoption of the acquis communautaire and of the capacity building approach (i.e. the formal establishment of new structures and institutions). This Policy Brief aims to draw some lessons from the implementation of the justice reform in Albania, which also allows to build a coherent body of knowledge that will assist to better plan, implement, monitor and maintain a sustainable institutional reform dynamic all over the Western Balkans region.