This paper is an attempt to analyse European leadership and the role played by a reunited Germany in the European Union. The author proposes five fundamental theses: 1) the reunification of Germany ruined the balance of power in Europe; 2) the Eastern enlargement of NATO and the EU has moved the zone of political and military influence of the USA to the line of the Bug river; 3) the Germans have confirmed their position as a European power; 4) the foreign policy of Angela Merkel is a continuation of Gerhard Schroder's policy, meaning a transfer of the focus from European policy to prioritising German national interests; 5) the German issue has remained open. ; This paper is an attempt to analyse European leadership and the role played by a reunited Germany in the European Union. The author proposes five fundamental theses: 1) the reunification of Germany ruined the balance of power in Europe; 2) the Eastern enlargement of NATO and the EU has moved the zone of political and military influence of the USA to the line of the Bug river; 3) the Germans have confirmed their position as a European power; 4) the foreign policy of Angela Merkel is a continuation of Gerhard Schroder's policy, meaning a transfer of the focus from European policy to prioritising German national interests; 5) the German issue has remained open.
"Yearbook of Eastern Studies" has been established as a forum for the debate on the multifaceted nature of transformations in Central and Eastern Europe and Asia, with particular focus on the post-Soviet area. The conceptual content of the periodical was born thanks to the professors Zdzislaw J. Winnicki and Walenty Baluk, who edited the first three volumes, which were published formally as separate monographs, but already under the banner of "Wschodnioznawstwo". Since 2010, the Yearbook has the status of a scientific journal, and two years later it has been listed on the journals of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. In addition, the periodical is indexed in national and international databases such as Index Copernicus, Central European Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, BazHum and Polska Bibliografia Naukowa. The scientific profile of the periodical, which has consistently been implemented since the beginning of the activity of "Yearbook of Eastern Studies", focuses on the field of social sciences, with particular emphasis on the science of politics and science of safety. Its great advantage is its internationalization, which manifests itself both in terms of composition of the scientific council, reviewers, and authors of texts published in the "Wschodnioznawstwo" in Polish, English and Russian languages. Up to now, researchers from Poland, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Macedonia, Russia, Slovakia and Ukraine have published on the cards of the journal. ; Wydawany przez Zakład Badań Wschodnich od 2007 r. rocznik "Wschodnioznawstwo" powstał jako forum debaty nad wielowymiarowością przemian w regionie Europy Środkowej i Wschodniej oraz Azji, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem obszaru postradzieckiego. Koncepcja merytoryczna periodyku zrodziła się dzięki profesorom Zdzisławowi J. Winnickiemu oraz Walentemu Balukowi, którzy redagowali wspólnie pierwsze trzy tomy, wydane jeszcze z formalnego punktu widzenia jako odrębne monografie, ale już pod szyldem "Wschodnioznawstwa". Od 2010 r. rocznik posiada status czasopisma naukowego, a dwa lata później trafił na listę czasopism punktowanych Ministerstwa Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego. Ponadto periodyk jest indeksowany w krajowych i międzynarodowych bazach, takich jak Index Copernicus, Central European Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, BazHum czy Polska Bibliografia Naukowa. Profil naukowy periodyku, który konsekwentnie jest realizowany od początku działalności "Wschodnioznawstwa", koncentruje się wokół dziedziny nauk społecznych, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem nauk o polityce i nauk o bezpieczeństwie. Ogromnym atutem rocznika jest jego umiędzynarodowienie, które przejawia się zarówno w aspekcie składu rady naukowej, recenzentów, jak i autorów tekstów zamieszczanych na łamach "Wschodnioznawstwa" w językach polskim, angielskim i rosyjskim. Do tej pory na kartach periodyku publikowali naukowcy z Polski, Azerbejdżanu, Białorusi, Czech, Gruzji, Japonii, Kazachstanu, Łotwy, Macedonii, Niemiec, Rosji, Słowacji, Ukrainy i Węgier.
Austria's political and economic interest in the countries of Central Europe was diverse. Neighborhood policy was interpreted as "a small relaxation that without direct union with the USSR could have contributed to relaxation between East and West". In initiating economic cooperation, it was assumed that the economic stability of Eastern countries would be conducive to the implementation of the basic task of the SPÖ, which is maintaining full employment, would be an optical expression of Austria's neutrality and would contribute to alleviating the effects of Austria's unilateral economic links with Western countries, in particular with Germany. The assumption adopted in Vienna concerned the consent to undertake economic cooperation where it was profitable, but also while respecting the principles typical of the free market. At the beginning it was assumed that industrialization concerns only East Germany and Czechoslovakia. Over time, this approach has changed. Analyzing the foreign policy of Austria, research tools characteristic of the historian and political scientist's workshop were used. The method of analysis and synthesis was adopted. Additionally, the conducted research was supplemented with the institutional method (legal acts regarding the competence to create foreign policy and state treaties). A statistical method was also used to show the scale of trade.
Publikacja recenzowana / Peer-reviewed publication ; The objective of the article is to indicate similarities as well as discrepancies between the Polish and German governments' stands on the crisis and conflict in Ukraine. The author tries to respond to the question: What will be the implications of the conflict in Ukraine for the "Eastern policy" of Poland and Germany? Will they result in the continuation of their current "Eastern policy", its evolution or maybe they will bring an essential change to their policy in the region? In author's opinion, taking into account significant differences between the Polish and German foreign policies towards Russia and Ukraine between 2014 and 2015 as well as before that period, the possibility for enhanced cooperation between the two governments in relation to their foreign policy towards Russia and Ukraine will continue to be remote in the upcoming years.
In this paper an attempt is made to outline the views on the transformation of the former GDR formulated in the German scientific literature. Due to the limited scope of the paper and the magnitude and complexity of the phenomena, discussion is limited to the most important and most controversial - according to the author - aspects around which discussions were held between leading economists from academia and politicians. The study starts with a brief introduction regarding the merits of the transformation of the economic order of the former GDR. Further outlines early assessments of the economic condition of Eastern Germany and ideas on eventual reunification of the country. Then, following, if possible, the chronological order, an overview is provided of the most important assessment about elements of a new order, such as the monetary union and the deregulation of prices, changes in the ownership structure, the creation of the institutional framework and the situation on the labor market and financial transfers. The main scientific method applied is analysis of literature, evaluation of official documents and historical analysis.
School chronicles are an important but sometimes underestimated source of information for the history of education. The difficulties with their use result from their dispersion, lack of availability and subjective nature. However, despite their subjectivity, they can provide extremely interesting information, e.g. on the biographies of individual educators. This article focuses on the war fate of school teachers in the Eastern Greater Poland. Almost all of them lost their jobs as a result of the closure of schools. Many were deported to the General Government or to forced labour in Germany. Those who stayed undertook off-an-on work or jobs that had nothing to do with the teaching profession. Despite the threat to their lives, some of them were also engaged in secret teaching. Unfortunately, there were also those who decided to collaborate with the German occupier. The research included in this article should be considered an introduction to research in this source area. ; School chronicles are an important but sometimes underestimated source of information for the history of education. The difficulties with their use result from their dispersion, lack of availability and subjective nature. However, despite their subjectivity, they can provide extremely interesting information, e.g. on the biographies of individual educators. This article focuses on the war fate of school teachers in the Eastern Greater Poland. Almost all of them lost their jobs as a result of the closure of schools. Many were deported to the General Government or to forced labour in Germany. Those who stayed undertook off-an-on work or jobs that had nothing to do with the teaching profession. Despite the threat to their lives, some of them were also engaged in secret teaching. Unfortunately, there were also those who decided to collaborate with the German occupier. The research included in this article should be considered an introduction to research in this source area.
The aim of the present article is to outline the characteristics of Polish and German policy towards East, especially towards Russia. The author indicates the areas of common and different interests as well as objectives in the Polish and German policy towards East, particularly at the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century. In spite of observing fewer differences between Poland and Germany in their present policy towards Russia, the article aims to emphasize the discrepancies that still exist and are visible in the bilateral as well as multilateral relations. At the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century, the Polish and German positions towards Russia and post‑soviet countries are noticeably more coherent than before. One of the main reasons is the modification of Polish Eastern policy by introducing pragmatic thinking (so‑called positive realism), implemented at the end of 2007 by the Polish government run by the Civic Platform (PO) and Polish People's Party (PSL). At the same time, the Angela's Merkel government introduced more critical attitude towards Russia. Nonetheless, in spite of growing convergence of interests in Polish and German policy towards Russia, there have been significant discrepancies. The main differences have been related to the role of Russia in the Commonwealth of Independent States and in the European security system. Therefore, Poland and Germany have had different opinion on the role of Russia: should it be a partner or a threat? To what extend the process of Europeanization of Russia should be introduced? There is also a discrepancy between Poland and Germany related to the following question: which relations among the post‑soviet countries should be prioritized, should it be relations with Ukraine or with Russia?
