Civil Society and the ‘Neighbourhood’ — Europeanization through Cross‐Border Cooperation?

Abstract

This collaborative study pursues a dual objective. On the one hand, it focuses on the actual and potential roles of civil society in developing new forms of political, economic and socio‐cultural cooperation within the emerging ‘European Neighbourhood’. On the other hand, through this investigation of civil society networks it contributes to the ‘Europeanization’ debate with regard to the influence of the EU in civil society development in neighbouring states and on cross‐border civil society interaction within the neighbourhood context. This will include a comparative analysis of perceptions of the EU and its role in empowering civil society as related by civil society actors. The rationale for this collection of essays is thus defined by the transformation of political relationships between the 27‐member European Union and countries in its immediate vicinity. Based on research funded by the European Union’s 6^th Framework Programme, the authors will perform this investigation by analysing cooperation processes, the multi‐level contexts within which they operate and, perhaps most importantly, the role of the EU in conditioning civil society relationships within the Neighbourhood.

Key Words:

• European Neighbourhood Policy
• cross‐border cooperation
• civil society
• Europeanization
• EU external governance

Notes

1. Radelli, (2004, 3) provides a comprehensive definition of Europeanization as a process that includes the: ‘… a) construction, b) diffusion, and c) institutionalization of formal and informal rules, procedures, policy paradigms, styles, “ways of doing things” and shared beliefs and norms which are first defined and consolidated in the EU policy process and then incorporated in the logic of domestic (national and subnational) discourse, political structures and public policies’.

2. Reference is made here to the international research project EUDIMENSIONS: Local Dimensions of a Wider European Neighbourhood: Developing Political Community Through Practices and Discourses of Cross‐Border Co‐Operation (contract: CIT‐CT‐2005‐028804), financed by the European Union’s Sixth Framework Programme for Research (see: www.eudimensions.eu).

3. The method mix entailed quantitative surveys and in‐depth interviews of a selected but considerable number of stakeholders and experts as well as newspaper screenings and content analysis. For each of the nine case studies approximately 100 CSOs were identified for short qualitative interviews during the initial phases of the project. From this initial group, approximately 40 CSOs were chosen for in‐depth qualitative interviews. Even if only a limited cross‐section, this number was considered sufficient to understand and interpret dynamics of civil society organizations actively involved in cooperation. The selected CSOs represented all different levels from the local to the supranational and distributions according to activity sectors (i.e. cultural, social, environmental and economic) reflected the overall share of the respective sector in the total number of identified CSOs.

4. According to the ENP strategy paper (Commission of the European Communities 2004, 3): ‘the privileged relationship with neighbours will build on mutual commitment to common values principally within the fields of the rule of law, good governance, the respect for human rights, including minority rights, the promotion of good neighbourly relations, and the principles of market economy and sustainable development’. It then states: ‘The level of ambition of the EU’s relationships with its neighbours will take into account the extent to which these values are effectively shared’.

5. Above and beyond ENP, the Europeanization of the Neighbourhood is being promoted through other means, such as research and education (priority 2.6 in the EU–Ukraine Action Plan as ‘people to people contacts’). The EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technology (FP7), for example, contributes to the envisaged construction of a European Research Area (ERA) by promoting networks of universities and research teams not only within the EU but also internationally.

6. While formally included in the ENP, no agreements have been established to date with Belarus, Libya and Syria.

7. The EU’s security policies with regard to the Neighbourhood are targeted at enhancing public security through combating environmental hazards, terrorism, organized crime, smuggling and other illegal activities (Vitorino 2004). At the same time, peace and stability are to be achieved through closer economic cooperation and the avoidance of divisive gaps in living standards.

8. As defined in Commission of the European Communities (2004a, 11–12).