Marko Kmezić - Böcker

Contributing to our understanding of the impact of the 2015 migrant “crisis” on the future of EU integration, this book views the “crisis” as an accelerant to existing problems, namely Brexit, the growing popularity of anti-immigrant far right parties and the rise of xenophobic and antiliberal governments from the Baltics to the Balkans.Providing analysis at the national, regional level and EU level, this book shows how the countries on the migrant route have been affected according to their degree of integration with the EU and the specific socio-political and economic conditions of each country.The volume will be of interest to scholars or international relations, security studies, border studies, EU policies, migration studies and Southeast European studies.

Contributing to our understanding of the impact of the 2015 migrant “crisis” on the future of EU integration, this book views the “crisis” as an accelerant to existing problems, namely Brexit, the growing popularity of anti-immigrant far right parties and the rise of xenophobic and antiliberal governments from the Baltics to the Balkans.Providing analysis at the national, regional level and EU level, this book shows how the countries on the migrant route have been affected according to their degree of integration with the EU and the specific socio-political and economic conditions of each country.The volume will be of interest to scholars or international relations, security studies, border studies, EU policies, migration studies and Southeast European studies.

Do EU institutions have an influence on the implementation of the rule of law in potential candidate countries and, if so, of what kind? During the compliance monitoring process related to the effective rule of law and democracy the EU Commission tests and criticizes the effectiveness of the judiciary and strengthens the rule of law in preparation for accession. In the Western Balkans this was a process fraught with difficulties. Despite the fact that academic scholarship and democratic politics agree on rule of law as a legitimizing principle for the exercise of state authority, there is no uniform European standard for institution-building or monitoring activities by the EU in this area. With focus on the reform of the judiciary in five case study countries of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia, this empirical research investigates the EU's transformative power with regard to the effectiveness of rule of law and judicial sector reform in its infancy. It analyses the depth and limitations of EU rule of law promotion in the Western Balkans and presents policy recommendations intended to address the shortcomings in judiciary reform.This book aims to fill the gap in the existing academic scholarship of EU politics, law and Western Balkans literature.

Do EU institutions have an influence on the implementation of the rule of law in potential candidate countries and, if so, of what kind? During the compliance monitoring process related to the effective rule of law and democracy the EU Commission tests and criticizes the effectiveness of the judiciary and strengthens the rule of law in preparation for accession. In the Western Balkans this was a process fraught with difficulties. Despite the fact that academic scholarship and democratic politics agree on rule of law as a legitimizing principle for the exercise of state authority, there is no uniform European standard for institution-building or monitoring activities by the EU in this area. With focus on the reform of the judiciary in five case study countries of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia, this empirical research investigates the EU's transformative power with regard to the effectiveness of rule of law and judicial sector reform in its infancy. It analyses the depth and limitations of EU rule of law promotion in the Western Balkans and presents policy recommendations intended to address the shortcomings in judiciary reform.This book aims to fill the gap in the existing academic scholarship of EU politics, law and Western Balkans literature.

This volume casts a fresh look on how the political spaces of the Western Balkan states (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania) are shaped, governed and transformed during the EU accession process.

This volume allows a new generation of scholars, from the Balkans and beyond, to shed light on some of the struggles the region faces. The combination of post-communist and post-conflict transition, together with the current economic and financial crisis, pose difficult challenges for the Western Balkans.What is the state of democracy in the region? Are the countries of the Western Balkans stuck somewhere between authoritarianism and genuine democracy? What are the remaining obstacles to state building? What effect has the crisis had on young people in the Western Balkans?These are some of the questions the authors of this volume seek to answer. The studies look at different countries and combine methods from various disciplines ranging from political science, history, economics and law to sociology, anthropology and cultural studies.