Why do Member States, that are similar in many aspects, still have varying levels of compliance? As current compliance theories are unable to answer this question a new theory has been developed...Show moreWhy do Member States, that are similar in many aspects, still have varying levels of compliance? As current compliance theories are unable to answer this question a new theory has been developed that adds an historical aspect into compliance research: the challenging attitude approach. This theory proposes that earlier adopted attitudes by Member States, that range from agreeable to challenging, which they display before, during and after infringement proceedings, affect future compliance. Member States initially base these attitudes on a normative assumption about the importance of compliance to a policy field. For this research the Netherlands has been compared to Belgium, which yearly faces twice the amount of infringement proceedings as the Netherlands. Portugal has been to Spain, which faces from 10% more to twice the amount of infringement proceedings as Portugal. Their portrayed attitudes in regards to the Dangerous Substances Directive and the Birds Directive have been studied. This research showed, however, that Belgium did not adopt a challenging attitude more often than the Netherlands. Spain did adopt a challenging attitude more often than Portugal. There was also great variation displayed by Member States in adopted attitude per directive. However, there appears to be a correlation between adopted attitude and future compliance. More research is needed to make substantial claims about the challenging attitude approach.Show less
Disruptions to the routine operations of ICTs in conflict situations have made cybersecurity come to ascend a prominent position in the legal and political decision-makeing of the EU....Show moreDisruptions to the routine operations of ICTs in conflict situations have made cybersecurity come to ascend a prominent position in the legal and political decision-makeing of the EU. Europeanization has been used to describe the processes by which EU decision-makeing manifests itself in the logic of, for example, national policy outcomes of those processes (see Radaelli, 2012, p. 1 as cited by Fererro & Ackrill, 2016, p.880). The literature has pointed to the significant amount of soft law which the EU has issued to regulate cybersecurity. However, per definition EU member states are not legally obliged to implement soft law. Accordingly, by utilizing Europeanization as a conceptual frame, this thesis has sought to answer the question: To what extent has non-legally binding EU soft law on cybersecurity influenced the making of the national cybersecurity policies of its MS over time? To address the research, question the thesis has taken a small-scale empirical mixed-method approach by analyzing the extent to which specifically, Germany's and Slovakia's national cybersecurity strategies have harmonized over time toward the 2020 EU cybersecurity strategy (EUCSS) as a consequence of using the soft law document in their stagey-making. The analysis suggest that the EU cybersecurity strategy did influence the national strategy-making, but that the degree of harmonization depended on the extent to which the EUCSS aligned with national ambitions and priorities. To this end, the member states actively strived to 'Europeanize' their national cybersecurity strategies.Show less
ABSTRACT This study will examine to what extent possible democratic backsliding in Croatia is occurring. Comparisons are drawn between the widely covered democratic backsliding in Hungary and the...Show moreABSTRACT This study will examine to what extent possible democratic backsliding in Croatia is occurring. Comparisons are drawn between the widely covered democratic backsliding in Hungary and the possible democratic backsliding in Croatia. To operationalize democracy and its backlash a theory first coined by Levitsky and Way will be used, Competitive Authoritarianism. The study will assess how Croatia scores on the different indicators that CA is composed of. One of the key findings of this study is that in both countries an electoral system exists with unbalanced constituencies, which can substantially influence election results. Another similarity that can be drawn on the basis of this study is of the politicized media authorities. The institutions that should be ensuring independence of the media are heavily politicized themselves, thus not independent. As far as lawsuits against journalists on the basis of libel and defamation the situation in both countries is problematic and raising concerns. Lawsuits against journalists are not often initiated by politicians and public figures, this leads to self-censorship of the media. Where claims about disadvantaging critical media financially can be made for the case of Hungary, for Croatia no strong evidence exist this is occurring. The main finding of the study is that the trends emerging within Hungary in regard to democratic backsliding only partially manifest themselves in Croatian society since EU accession. Due to the emerging characteristics of a CA regime the status of democracy in Croatia must be further examined.Show less
Development cooperation has grown ever more important in recent years as it has become increasingly tied to domestic political preferences. It is sometimes seen as a tool to accomplish objectives...Show moreDevelopment cooperation has grown ever more important in recent years as it has become increasingly tied to domestic political preferences. It is sometimes seen as a tool to accomplish objectives tied to the latter. To be sure, that notion is applicable to the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTFA), born in the wake of the 2015 migrant crisis out of a desire to severely limit migration to the EU. Although it was created as an emergency fund, its scope and organisational design do not reflect this label and have ever outgrown it, until the merging of the EUTFA in the European Commission’s new ‘Global Europe’ instrument in 2021. This paper analyses 8 EUTFA programmes along a frame of public administration theory and various relevant literature. In concert with EUFTA reports it answers multiple questions aimed at understanding the influence of organisational design on development cooperation, specifically in the complex environment of a politically laden fund. Do domestic policies take precedence over aiding countries in the European Neighbourhood?Show less
Within the Council of the European Union, Qualified Majority Voting is being implemented in a growing number of policy areas. This thesis tries to answer the question “What is the effect of...Show moreWithin the Council of the European Union, Qualified Majority Voting is being implemented in a growing number of policy areas. This thesis tries to answer the question “What is the effect of substituting unanimity with qualified majority voting on behaviour of member states’ representatives in meetings of the Council of the European Union?”. To answer this question, one case is selected, the council configuration of Agriculture and Fisheries. Through conducting interviews with member states’ representatives active in this policy area, a general overview of the negotiations there is constructed. It is found that shifting the decision rule results in more rational behaviour during the negotiations. Actors showcase more bargaining behaviour when the decision rule is Qualified Majority Voting, and more arguing when it is unanimous decision making. It was not possible to accurately pinpoint what type of negotiating was more common at a certain moment in the negotiations due to the inability to access certain dataShow less
How can we understand the EU as a foreign policy actor? The research presented here aims to answer this old, but increasingly relevant, question by applying a narrative analysis. This analysis...Show moreHow can we understand the EU as a foreign policy actor? The research presented here aims to answer this old, but increasingly relevant, question by applying a narrative analysis. This analysis based on texts by the European Commission and European Parliament provides insights into how the EU constructs its own position in the international arena. Most importantly, the research establishes that both institutions are increasingly constructing the EU as a powerful, interest-driven, actor which should aim to develop capabilities similar to those of its constituent nation-states. Thereby, calls for a more 'geopolitical' EU are moved alongside the value-driven approach that was still dominant little over a decade ago.Show less
This thesis analyzes legislative and discursive approaches of the Civic platform-led (2007 – 2015) and the PiS-led (2015 – 2020) governments while also linking those approaches to the European...Show moreThis thesis analyzes legislative and discursive approaches of the Civic platform-led (2007 – 2015) and the PiS-led (2015 – 2020) governments while also linking those approaches to the European level. It shows that LGBT rights have become politicized at both the European and the national level in Poland. The EU both discursively and legislatively supports LGBT rights while alleging its (pro-LGBT) values that are both universal and European apparently leading it to be an example around the world. Therefore, the pro-EU governments in Poland were clearly more pro-EU. The Civic Platform-led government, as a generally pro-EU government, was hesitant to politicize LGBT rights because of its sensitiveness. However, through the years its discourse and policy towards LGBT rights became more explicit in supporting LGBT rights. On the other hand, the PiS-led government was highly critical of LGBT rights while using its opposition to LGBT rights as a tool to campaign. Its stance on LGBT rights exemplifies its ambiguous position vis-à-vis Europe; while asserting a European identity and favoring EU membership, the government rejects some the EU’s core values. Overall, this thesis argues that the politicization of LGBT rights can be both beneficial and harmful for LGBT people. The danger of politicization though, is that LGBT rights could be used to further political ends rather than being primarily concerned with the well-being of those people.Show less
Absorption capacity has been argued to be an essential indicator of the effectiveness of cohesion policy in European Union (EU) member states. Using the Principal-Agent framework to study the...Show moreAbsorption capacity has been argued to be an essential indicator of the effectiveness of cohesion policy in European Union (EU) member states. Using the Principal-Agent framework to study the implementation stage of cohesion policy, this thesis aims to find whether the Commission as a principal can influence the absorption capacity of countries (the agents) through its control mechanisms, namely the ex-ante conditionalities and priority axes. By doing a comparative analysis of Bulgaria and Romania, findings suggest that while Bulgaria did not follow the Commission’s rules and absorbed a significant amount of funds, Romania, which strictly followed EU’s conditionalities, had its absorption capacity negatively influenced by the Commission. This negative influence is even more evident with the increased funding a member state receives for some of its operational programmes as larger financial assistance requires the country to follow more EU rules.Show less
For many years, the European Commission has been a champion for the environmental acquis Communautaire of the EU. In December 2019, it reinforced this role with the introduction of the EU’s new...Show moreFor many years, the European Commission has been a champion for the environmental acquis Communautaire of the EU. In December 2019, it reinforced this role with the introduction of the EU’s new growth strategy: the European Green Deal. Its cornerstone is the first European Climate Law that binds the Union and its member states to climate neutrality targets. The negotiations to adopt this policy proposal happened via trilogues between the Commission, the Council and the Parliament. This research aims to open the doors of this secluded venue of decision-making to better understand the Commission’s role in them. It analyses the role of the European Commission in trilogue negotiations by using two theories: agenda-setting and politicisation. Process-tracing and document analysis were used as the main data collection and analysis methods. The analysis shows that the Commission uses a two-step strategy to be able to influence trilogues. During agenda-setting it uses its informal power to strategically use public support and the support of other institutions and its expertise to shape the future outcome of negotiations and draw on its political resources to act as a policy entrepreneur. After the proposal is on the table, the Commission uses (de)politicisation strategies to influence the negotiations and their outcome. This research shows that Commission’s influence on trilogue negotiations is dependent on its ability to use strategically its political and informal power during all stages of decision-making.Show less
