DOI: 10.25136/2409-868X.2023.2.39783

Abstract: The subject of the study is the historical conditions in which the disloyal attitude of the Visegrad Group towards the solutions proposed by the EU began to grow during the specified period of time. The analysis of the migration crisis, which has aggravated political, economic, financial, social, and religious problems in the EU countries, is carried out. The EU's efforts to overcome it have become the basis for strengthening the role of right-wing parties in the Quartet. The role of Hungary, which represents itself as a defender of "Europe as a continent for Europeans", which has pursued the most active restrictive migration policy, is considered. The plans of the leadership of Germany and Austria for the management of migration flows, reflecting the ambitions of Berlin and Vienna for the transit and reception of refugees, are presented. The "central" line of Brussels on overcoming the migration crisis is being studied. The tools used by V4 to overcome the migration crisis caused by the vulnerability of the Quartet countries to refugee flows are considered. The article also examines criticism from the "quartet" of the process of overcoming the migration crisis, which saw in the measures proposed by Brussels a threat to the national identity of its small states and a sign of disrespect for the interests of small states in the EU.     In general, the migration crisis has resulted in the strengthening of far-right parties in Hungary and Poland, the radicalization of public opinion, which contradicts the main goals of European integration. Thus, the internal political development in some countries of the "Visegrad Four" has actually become a new noticeable element of confrontation with the European Union. Hungary and Poland reacted extremely painfully to criticism of the EU, appealing for support to partners in the Visegrad Group, to other countries where right-wing and conservative parties are also popular (Italy, Austria). As a counteraction, the EU leadership raised the issue of a threat to EU values in Poland and Hungary and considered the possibility of using a mechanism to influence countries that do not respect the values of the European Union.

DOI: 10.25136/2409-868X.2022.6.38076

Abstract: The subject of the study is the historical conditions in which the process of designing and implementing the Eastern Partnership program began, which became the only significant foreign policy initiative of the Visegrad Four. The role of Poland, which positioned itself as a link between the EU and part of the post-Soviet space, is considered. The plans of France, Bulgaria and Romania in 2003-2004 for a number of post-Soviet countries, reflecting the ambitions of Paris, Sofia and Bucharest in the Black Sea and Mediterranean region, are presented. But under pressure from the European Commission, these initiatives were not further developed, and a decision was made to implement the Eastern Partnership project. The development tools used by V4 for the implementation of the Eastern Partnership project, due to the limited resource base of the Quartet countries, are considered. The criticism of the Eastern Partnership project is being studied, due to the lack of a common understanding among EU members of what prospects the new project can offer to "partner countries". The novelty of the scientific research in the framework of this article is expressed in the analysis of the "energy crises" and the change in the EU's approaches to the post-Soviet space in the late 2000s, which became the basis for the development and implementation by the Visegrad Group in 2004-2014 of the Eastern Partnership program. In this program, the "four" countries played the role of curators and a link between the EU and the post-Soviet space. The implementation of the project allowed V4 to gain political weight within the European Union. When developing relations with the "partner countries", the Visegrad Group tried to make maximum use of all available mechanisms and tools (for example, the potential and experience of implementing joint projects within the framework of the International Visegrad Foundation). At the same time, our own capabilities and resources (coupled with the ambiguous perception of the Eastern Partnership in the EU) did not allow us to fully implement all the stated strategic goals, which seriously affected the effectiveness of the project and the results obtained.

DOI: 10.7256/2454-0609.2021.4.36045

Abstract: The subject of this research is the historical conditions for the creation of Visegrád Group – subregional organization of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland. The collapse of the system of pro-communist regimes in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe allowed the local dissident circles to create the “ideological” framework for subregional organization, which is based on the idea of the Central European identity. In the late 1980s, the idea of subregional cooperation in the socialist camp won support of a number of Western European countries. However, the initiative on the development regional cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe was taken over by the United States. The United States prompted the decision of the G7 member-states on the transfer of the European Commission a coordinating role in assisting Poland and Hungary as the flagships for conducting political and economic liberalization in Central and Eastern Europe. The novelty of this research consists in the analysis of attempts of subregional cooperation outside the framework of the European Economic Community in the late 1980s. Attention is also given to the previously unstudied criticism of the process of accession of the countries of Visegrád Group to the European Economic Community. Critical assessments substantiated by ineffectiveness of the programs of assisting the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, as well as by posing threats to the stability of the European Economic Community member-states due to inclusion of the former socialist countries into the united Europe. The main conclusion lies in the statement that the collapse of the socialist camp at the turn of the 1980s – 1990s actualized the pursuit of identity in the new world by the Central and Eastern European countries. The oath of European integration was selected as a universal method for solution of this problem. However, regional cooperation remained a relevant question, since rapprochement with the Western Europe alone could not eliminate all the contradictions between the countries. The cooperation between Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia became the most successful example of such cooperation and served as the prototype for creation of other subregional structures.