IEP Policy Papers on Eastern Europe and Central Asia, No. 1/2012, Institut für Europäische Politik Berlin

About the authors

Barbara Gaweda is currently working as a public affairs consultant on EU affairs in Brussels. Before, she studied International Relations in Vienna (MA) and Toronto, Canada (BA). Her main field of interest is the post-Soviet space as well as post-communist transitions in general.

Marco Siddi is a Marie Curie Researcher at the University of Edinburgh. His main focus is on EURussia relations and Russian foreign policy. Previously, he worked at the Trans European Policy Studies Association (Brussels) and at the Institute of World Economics (Budapest). He studied at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna (MA) and the University of Oxford (BA).

Abstract
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, there remains a number of protracted conflicts, within and between the successor states, concerning irredentist entities. This article examines four cases of such de facto states, the self-proclaimed republics of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, NagornoKarabakh and Transnistria. After reviewing the genesis and geopolitical significance of these  conflicts, the article focuses on the role of the European Union in conflict resolution. We argue  that the EU plays a marginal role in all the protracted conflicts. Based on an analysis of its recent policies, we claim that the Union will maintain a low profile in the foreseeable future.

The full article in PDF can be downloaded by clicking here (1.66 MB)

'No settlement without a proactive policy: the European Union and the secessionist conflicts in the post-Soviet space',

by Marco Siddi & Barbara Gaweda

IEP Policy Briefs on Enlargement and Neighbourhood, No. 5/2012

Twenty-one years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the international community has not yet managed to solve the four separatist conflicts that broke out in the wake of the USSR’s demise. With the help of their patron states (Russia and, in the case of Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia), the selfproclaimed Republics of Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh have become  de facto states with separate political institutions and economic structures.

The existence of these entities, which have obtained very limited or no international recognition, constitutes a security challenge for EU countries. Following the launch of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) in 2006, the European Union has become more involved in the resolution of the four conflicts. The ENP Action Plans with Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan
and Armenia set a list of priorities for the EU to contribute to conflict resolution. Brussels deployed border monitoring missions in Moldova and Georgia in 2005 and 2008 respectively. In addition, it attempted to increase its presence in the field by appointing Special Representatives for Moldova, the South Caucasus and the 2008 crisis in Georgia.

The full article in PDF can be downloaded by clicking here (553 KB)

Source: IEP - Institut für Europäische Politik