InvigoratEU publications

Long Policy Report on rules alignment of protecting critical infrastructure in interdependent states

The report provides an extensive discussion of evolving landscape of threats to the CI in the EU and selected candidate countries in recent years and the challenges which, while varying depending on particular countries, also are common to all states affected by geopolitical tensions. The analysis of threats to energy, communications, transport and other CI in the Baltic States, Ukraine and the Baltic Sea region shows that hostile activities by authoritarian states, in particular, Russia, or actors linked to them have become increasingly frequent. Their proliferation especially intensiDied after Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022, as it also became a wider confrontation between the West and authoritarian powers. The analysis of CI-related policies in Montenegro, Ukraine and Georgia – three candidate countries, which differ in terms of their state of accession into the EU, their connectivity patterns and risks to their CI associated with them – allows to assess different challenges arising to their CI and provision of vital services to society and state and methods of coping with them in each of them. The report concludes with recommendations emphasising the importance of daily practices of partnership and exercises involving all stakeholders of CI ecosystems and cooperation with the EU and NATO partners, taking into account different patterns of interdependencies and existing threats.

Analytical Glossary

The Analytical Glossary by Funda Tekin and Hannah Brandt provides detailed and concise definitions, terminology, concepts and benchmarks as key reference document for InvigoratEU research.

InvigoratEU conceptual background paper

The InvigoratEU conceptual background paper by Funda Tekin, Hannah Brandt, Pol Bargués and Ramūnas Vilpišauskas provides academic reflections on Europe’s resilience and a (re)invigorated EU enlargement and neighbourhood strategy. It first outlines the milestones of the EU’s policies with its neighbourhood. A guiding question is whether and if so in how far the EU’s enlargement policy can live up to its reputation of being one of the EU’s most successful foreign policies again – a label that has seemed too ambitious for the past two decades in view of the countries in the Eastern Neighbourhood and Western Balkans.  Subsequently, the concept of resilience is introduced and critically assessed in the context of EU foreign policy. The InvigoratEU Triple-R-Approach: Reforming, Responding, Rebuilding guides the remaining part of the study, in which the challenges and potentials of EU enlargement and neighbourhood policies will be assessed. These will be analysed in terms of contribution to democratic consolidation, conflict prevention, capacity-building, enhancing security and the protection against hybrid threats and potentials for connectivity and sustainable (social and economic) development.

Report on EU´s enlargement & neighbourhood policy toolbox

The Report on EU’s Enlargement & Neighbourhood Policy Toolbox by Frank Schimmelfennig and Levan Kakhishvili critically examines the European Union’s (EU) enlargement and neighbourhood policy, focusing on its existing tools, objectives, and necessary reforms. The analysis aims to inform future policy development to enhance the EU’s resilience, particularly in light of evolving geopolitical contexts and the ongoing integration challenges within the Eastern Neighbourhood and Western Balkans. The report divides the evolution of the EU enlargement policy into three phases: the “big bang” enlargement of 1990-2004, protracted enlargement of 2005-2021, and geopolitical enlargement since 2022. It has been found that different sets of factors have determined the variation of the EU strategy for enlargement across the timeframe. These factors include the domestic EU context, the progress of transformation in aspirant countries, and geopolitical considerations. although the policy of conditionality has had profound positive effects on democratization and economic liberalization of Central and Eastern European countries, it has also been associated with undesirable effects. Surveying these effects on the political and economic transformation of the EU aspirant countries reveals areas for improvement for the future of the EU enlargement strategy. Finally, the report recommends strengthening conditionality mechanisms, enhancing civil society engagement, addressing regional disparities, promoting public engagement and adopting a differentiated integration model, to invigorate the EU enlargement strategy and help build a united and prosperous Europe.