Suchergebnisse

The article deals with the current and insufficiently explored issue of Portugal's international relations with Latin American countries. It is shown that after a series of crises, the Portuguese economy managed to reach a growth trajectory, change the image of a European outsider and gain the authority in the world community. Special attention is paid to the current stage of structural modernization, the characteristic of which is the innovatization and digitalization of production processes, the development of high-tech industries. The ongoing changes have led to significant edits in the foreign economic strategy of the Portuguese authorities and the transition to an offensive export policy. The growth of the economy, the course towards its internationalization by supporting exports and expanding foreign economic relations have contributed to the intensification of cooperation with other regions of the world, including Latin American countries. It is noted that the Latin American direction is an important element of the foreign policy activities of the Portuguese authorities. Historically, Portugal's relations with the countries of the region have been built in different formats: at the bilateral level and through participation in regional and interregional groupings. In recent years, there has been an increase in the expansion of Portuguese business in Latin America. And although the process of trade development of Latin American markets faces objective difficulties and develops relatively slowly, the region is assigned the role of a promising partner of Portugal in the implementation of the strategy of export diversification, increasing the share of innovative products of high processing in it. It is emphasized that in every Latin American country, Portugal is trying (sometimes very effectively) to find its trade and economic niche. At the same time, Brazil has a special status in Portugal's relations with Latin American partners.

The trade relations between Azerbaijan and the European Union are a substantial part of enhancing economic and political relations among both parties. Recent years have been characterized by an expansion of the trade volume between two parties; the EU turned out to be Azerbaijan's biggest trade partner, in terms of both imports and exports. Moreover, trade in services and foreign direct investment relations were also on rise. On the other hand, Azerbaijan is one of the main energy suppliers of the European Union among European Neighborhood countries and is a key partner to guarantee energy security. The political ties of Azerbaijan with other commercial partners are diminishing the full expansion of its trade with the EU, for instance the Euro-Asian Union. Besides of political ties, also there are several barriers for the development of trade between Azerbaijan and the EU, for example, the tariff and non-tariff barriers. The latest ones refer to sanitary measures, production process, packaging, labor regulations, quotas, etc.

While scholars have tended to focus on domestic factors as most critical to the consolidation of democracy, the postcommunist European Union (EU) candidate states have exhibited a unique confluence of domestic & foreign policies, due to their objective of EU membership. This article assesses & compares the impact of the EU on policy making in two diverse candidate states -- the Czech Republic & Romania -- in their first decade of transition, focusing on minority rights protection as a fundamental requirement of both EU membership & a stable democracy. I find that the EU has played a principal role in the reform process & democratic consolidation of candidate states, even in the controversial field of minority rights. The degree & nature of the EU's impact, however, has depended in part on the activism of the particular minority, EU interest & pressure, EU member states' own domestic policies, & the persistence of racism in society. 3 Figures, 70 References. Adapted from the source document.

AbstractHow are policy competences allocated between different actors? This article contributes to the literature on institutional development through an in‐depth case‐study of the conditions under which the competence over the negotiation of agreements on foreign direct investment (FDI) was transferred from the national level to the European Union (EU) in the 2009 Lisbon Treaty. Most analysts assume that this competence shift was a rationally designed delegation, intended to maximize European bargaining power in international investment negotiations and conceived as an important element of a teleological drive to make the EU a meaningful external actor. This article tells a different story – one where the competence shift happened by stealth as a result of a combination of neo‐functionalist Commission entrepreneurship and historical accident, against the preferences of the Member States. The article also assesses whether the conditions under which the competence was transferred have implications for the implementation of the new policy.