|
The Xenophon Paper Series was launched to publish comprehensive policy-oriented studies, considering the lack of such policy papers on the Black Sea region. The analyses have a prescriptive orientation aiming to contribute to a better understanding of the region and its institutions and thus to the debate regarding the major issues on the region’s agenda. Originally published in English, a Greek version of the series is now available.
 Xenophon Paper No. 8 – November 2009
The Policies of the European Union and Russia towards Central Asia
By Fraser Cameron
After many years of neglect, Russia has rediscovered the importance of Central Asia. The EU has also moved to implement a new strategy for the five Central Asian states which inevitably brings it into conflict with Russia in some areas. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, with many differences as well as some similarities, are struggling to establish themselves and at the same time tackle a growing array of threats. They have all been severely affected by the global economic crisis. As the former colonial master, Russia is well positioned to develop its influence in the region. It has a better understanding of business practices than the EU and is also able to offer a range of inducements, from financial to security. The EU was late in coming to Central Asia and its motives were largely concerned with efforts to diversify its energy supplies. Unlike Russia, it seeks to promote democracy and human rights in the region. The main area for conflict between the EU and Russia is energy, with a struggle over new supplies and rival pipelines. The Central Asian states are seeking to play off one side against the other. Several other powers, notably China, Turkey, the US and Iran are also engaged in Central Asia seeking to expand their influence and interests. Rivalry between the EU and Russia in Central Asia will continue with Russia best placed to develop its influence in the short term. But many in the region are attracted to the EU, especially because it eschews great power politics and has developed a political, social and economic system much admired in Central Asia.
 Xenophon Paper No. 7 – May 2009
The Big Caucasus: Consequences of the "Five Day War", Threats and Political Prospects
By Sergey Markedonov
Clashes over borders and identities within the independent post-Soviet states of the Caucasus have been an inevitable consequence of the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Their subsequent development and the prospects for resolution or resumption of the ethno-political conflicts have been shaped by the political trajectories of the states involved as well as the profound transformation of the geopolitical dynamics that have taken place during the last years in the region. The war of August 2008 between the Russian Federation and Georgia marked this ongoing process of the decomposition of the post-World War II global construct while sending, at the same time, a strong signal to regional and extra-regional actors concerning the security processes affecting stability in the Caucasus. Sergey Markedonov, a prescient analyst of the Caucasus, assesses in this Xenophon Paper the possible implications of the August 2008 “five day war”. He initiates a discussion on the region’s “unfreezing of the conflicts” and provides an in-depth description of the existent non-recognised state entities and the other ethno-political conflicts with which the Caucasus is ridden. The author also explores the perspectives of major regional and extra-regional stakeholders in the area and the ambitious policies they deploy at the moment. In the twilight zone between war and peace, the author sheds some light on the most recent developments taking place in the Caucasus region, by explaining both the dynamics leading up to the “five day war” and the significance that it has in the re-shaping of the political and security realities in the “Big Caucasus”.
 Xenophon Paper No. 6 – December 2008
Good Governance and Public Administration Reform in the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) Member States
By Stella Ladi Public administration reform, aiming at good governance and modernisation of the state, is a target for every nation on the globe. The term “good governance” has been discussed in the literature and has been extensively used by international organisations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC). It is a broad term that includes values and practices such as legality, justice, trust in laws and institutions, efficiency, responsible budgeting, management of human resources and crisis management. It is argued that the theoretical framework of “Policy Transfer Network” is useful for the description and the analysis of the changes that are taking place in the BSEC member states following the good governance principles. The BSEC is an interesting case-study because it includes countries with different levels of development, countries that are members of the European Union (EU), namely Greece, Romania and Bulgaria, and candidate countries (Turkey). The BSEC is also an interesting international organisation because, as it is argued, it acts as an agent of “soft” policy transfer of good governance practices. A stronger push towards modernisation can be observed among the BSEC member states that are also members of the EU. This comparison leads to some interesting conclusions on the impact of Europeanisation on cases of successful policy transfer.
 Xenophon Paper No. 5 – April 2008
Regional Cooperation in the Black Sea Area in the Context of EU-Russia Relations
By Nadia Alexandrova-Arbatova
Recent years have witnessed the growing strategic importance of the Black Sea region that has become closely intertwined with the adjoining regions – the Caucasus, Balkans and Central Asia. Nowadays the Wider Black Sea Area is seen as one of the most important European and Asian transport and energy hubs, an area of dynamic political transformation, socio-economic processes and unresolved conflicts. It ranks high on Euro-Atlantic agenda and it constitutes the most crucial area in Russia’s foreign policy because its importance goes far beyond the regional boundaries. Strictly speaking, Russia’s problems with the GUAM countries or rivalry with the Western countries over alternative pipelines are not only regional problems. They are regional projections of fundamental problems that exist in the CIS space or the Russia-West relations. Therefore, with all the importance of multifaceted regional cooperation, one cannot but recognise that stability and security in the Wider Black Sea Area (as well as regional cooperation itself) will depend, first and foremost, on the major trends and processes in Russia-EU relations and Russia-West relations at large.
 Xenophon Paper No. 4 – November 2007
Global Trends, Regional Consequences: Wider Strategic Influences on the Black Sea
By Ian O. Lesser
Over the last decade, the Black Sea has emerged as a focus of strategic attention on both sides of the Atlantic. But even as interest in the region has grown, it has become clear that its security future will be driven as much - and perhaps more - by trends and developments outside the region, in adjacent areas, and on a global basis. This analysis takes an ‘outside-in’ approach, placing Black Sea security in context, thinking through the nature of the region as a strategic space, identifying broader influences, and assessing their meaning for regional and extra-regional stakeholders.
 Xenophon Paper No. 3 – October 2007
Energy Cooperation among the BSEC Member States. Towards an Energy Strategy for the BSEC
By John Roberts
The geopolitics of global energy have changed significantly since the beginning of the 21st century. For all the rising importance of gas, which will be discussed in the paper along with electricity, it is oil that retains crucial importance. Azerbaijan and Russia, of the BSEC member states, thus play a disproportionately large role in determining how evenly the world’s oil market is balanced. Similarly, several other BSEC member states play pre-eminent roles in the core issue of energy transit. But, in the Russia-EU context – and thus in a BSEC context as well – Russia, as the world’s biggest energy supplier, and the EU, as the world’s biggest energy importer, both stand to benefit from a long-term strategic accord leading to mutual energy security.
This study of Energy Cooperation among the BSEC Member States is intended to contribute to the development of an energy strategy for the BSEC, and will seek to utilise in particular the conclusions of the G8 summit in St. Petersburg in July 2006, not least since they represent the best prospect for a consensus between the two most important political determinants of energy development in the BSEC area: the European Union and Russia. The study is a valuable contribution to a research effort launched by the ICBSS during the past year, focusing specifically on issues of energy security in the wider Black Sea region.
 Xenophon Paper No. 2 – July 2007
Unfolding the Black Sea Economic Cooperation: Views from the Region
By Panagiota Manoli (ed.)
What have been the main policy concerns of the countries of the Black Sea region when joining a regional structure such as the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC)? This is the main question that this edited volume of the Xenophon Paper series deals with. As the Organisation of the BSEC has reached its fifteenth Anniversary it is of value to identify common stands along with diversified views on the priorities of Black Sea cooperation as seen by experts coming from the region. In devising a future strategy for the BSEC, in particular, but also in assessing the prospects of regional cooperation in any area of the world it is imperative to identify the main concerns of the local players and stakeholders.
Includes articles by:
Styopa Safaryan, Elkhan Nuriyev, Marin Lessenski, Joseph Chakhvashvili, Panagiota Manoli, Igor Munteanu, Nicolae Micu, Nadia Alexandrova-Arbatova, Aleksandar Fatic, Mustafa Aydin and Omer Fazlioglu, Grigoriy Perepelytsia
 Xenophon Paper No. 1 – July 2006
Decision-Making in the BSEC: A Creative Cartography of Governance
By Ioannis Stribis
The Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) is currently considering a set of proposals for reform with a view to increasing its effectiveness and cohesion. This Xenophon Paper is intended to contribute to the effort for improved governance of the BSEC in order to enable the Organisation to cope with current and future challenges. The focus is on the cardinal issue of decision-making, identifying existing shortcomings and suggesting concrete ways to overcome them.
The proposed remedies aim to make full use of the provisions already inscribed in the BSEC statutory documents and to propose amendments of the existing normative framework in order to improve decision-making procedures and practices. The other axis of envisaged reforms concerns the transparency of decision-making process. Informed decision-making needs to be accessible to all stakeholders and to provide them with an opportunity to voice their opinions and proposals. The paper also compares the operation of the BSEC with other European institutions, in particular the European Union, and presents concrete proposals for engaging professional associations, civil society and the wider public in the BSEC decision-shaping process.
|
