Internship at TEPSA

TEPSA Danish Pre-Presidency Conference Report, 8-9 December 2011 and Recommendations to the Danish Presidency

The Danish Pre-Presidency Conference was organised by the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) in Copenhagen last 8-9 December.The Opening Plenary Session presented the Priorities of the Danish Presidency  and the Presidency Recommendations by TEPSA.

The Conference notably included the following panels: Reform of the Common Agricultural Policy, Differentiated Membership of the EU, The EU budget: a Driver for Growth and Europe 2020?, The Future of the Euro, The EU and the Arab Spring.

Those key issues were presented by members of the Danish government and analyzed by invited speakers and panelists, top officials and scholars from across Europe.

During the Pre-Presidency Conference TEPSA presented the Recommendations to the Danish Presidency. Please click here to read the recommendations to the Danish Presidency. The report of the Pre-Presidency Conference is downloadable here.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on Towards a two-speed Europe?

by Jean Paul Jacqué

Round table Conference's Report: Democracy promotion East and South after the Arab Spring on 1- 2 December 2011

The Conference took place on 1-2 December 2011 at the Maastricht University, Brussels Campus, Avenue de L'Armée / Legerlaan 10, 1040 Brussels and was organised by Maastricht University, the Trans-European Policy Studies Association and the Institut für Europäische Politik.

The popular uprisings in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya and Syria in 2011 not only presented new challenges for EU policy towards the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), but also underlined the need to re-evaluate the EU’s engagement with authoritarian regimes more generally. The conference aimed to analyse what paradigms and strategies have guided EU policies towards authoritarian regimes over the past decades, and the factors which explained the strengths and limitations of EU democracy promotion in authoritarian countries, in addition to presenting concrete policy recommendations for future EU policy towards authoritarian regimes.

Workshop contributions offered historical and theoretical reflections, alongside empirical case studies analysing EU policy towards authoritarian rule in (i) the MENA region: Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Egypt, Algeria, Syria, Jordan; (ii) Eastern Europe: Belarus, Ukraine, South Caucasus and (iiI) Central Asia: Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan.

The conference intended to bring together senior members of the Brussels diplomatic community, European institutional decision makers, academic scholars and relevant stakeholders, to provide a comparative perspective on EU relations with authoritarian regimes on its Eastern and Southern rim in an objective minded, academic setting.

To download the report please click here.

Two commentaries on the reform of the EU courts

Colloquium on The Politics and Economics of the Euro crisis on 2 December 2011 in Malta

The European Documentation and Research Centre (University of Malta) will organize a colloquium on The Politics and Economics of the Euro crisis. The event will take place on Friday 2 December 2011 at the University of Malta at 6.00 - 8.00 pm

Please download the programme here.

TEPSA Newsletter October Edition

Please click here to download TEPSA Newsletter October Edition.

New dates - Job opportunity: Chairholder of the “European Neighbourhood Policy Chair” at the College of Europe - Natolin (Warsaw) campus

The College of Europe is seeking candidates for the “European Neighbourhood Policy Chair” at the Natolin (Warsaw) campus. This post can be full time or part time (minimum 50%). It covers the period of 2012-2014 with an expected starting date on 1st February 2012. The final deadline for applications is 15 November 2011 via e-mail to Professor Paul Demaret, Rector of the College of Europe (rector@coleurope.eu).

Should you require any further information on this position, please contact Mrs. Ewa Stolarczyk-Makowska, Senior Executive (ewa.stolarczyk@coleurope.eu)

Please download the job vacancy announcement here.

Job opportunity: FIIA Researcher

The Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) is now seeking a researcher focusing on Russian foreign and security policy and Russia-NATO relations or, alternatively, on Russian domestic politics and governance for the period of 1.1.2012-31.12.2013 in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood and Russia Research Programme.

Applications may also be submitted by e-mail to kirjaamo@fiia.fi.

The final deadline for applications is October 24th 2011, 4.15 pm Finnish time.

Please download the job vacancy announcement here.

Job opportunity: UI Head of research

Please download the job vacancy announcement here.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on the current state of EU Affairs

by Jean Paul Jacqué

Since this newsletter is published after the summer break, I seize the opportunity to wish you all a good return back to work - despite a difficult climate in the Union. Our Polish Pre-Presidency Conference of last 30 June and 1 July 2011 in the Natolin campus, generously hosted by Paul Demaret and in close cooperation with the European Institute in Lodz, has indeed showed that the economic problems of the Union were far from being solved and that the new institutional architecture has not yet enabled Europe to speak with one voice. We will see whether the request of the Heads of State and Government of the eurozone to President Herman Van Rompuy will bring innovative new initiatives. Also in the field of external relations, the slow implementation of the European External Action Service (EEAS) has not yet fully achieved its objectives.

Please click here to read the entire Editorial as well as August Newsletter.

Opportunities available for scholars

The European Documentation and Research Centre of the University of Malta is looking for a full-time Resident Academic in European Studies. It was pointed out that candidates interested in applying must be sufficiently fluent in the English Language to be able to teach, research, write and supervise in English - apart from the other requirements attached to the post. The closing date for applications is 2nd September 2011. Please click here to download the announcement.

Employment and fellowship opportunities for scholars working on EU-Russia relations have been published at the recently established Centre for EU-Russia Studies at the University of Tartu (Estonia). Please click here to download the document for information about vacant positions, travel grants and postdoctoral fellowship opportunities. The closing date for applications is 1st October 2011.

Please feel free to disseminate these opportunities to persons who might be interested in applying and whose qualifications and experience meet the requirements.

TEPSA Brief: The review of the European Neighbourhood Policy: Increasing the coherence and coordination of EU external action?

By Simon Stroß

The recent events in the Arab world triggered a call for more democracy in the Southern Neighbourhood and, together with the stagnating reforms in some of its Eastern neighbours, forced the European Union (EU) to thoroughly review its European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). Criticised for focussing on the political stability of neighbouring countries rather than on the promotion of democracy, the EU acknowledged that its former approach “has met with limited results”. The newly established European External Action Service (EEAS), which brings together officials and diplomats from the Commission, the Council and the member states and directly serves its head Catherine Ashton, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign and Security Policy/Vice President of the Commission (HR/VP), was supposed to play a key role in the review process. Ashton and her EEAS officials repeatedly stated that the ENP review is among the top three priorities of the service in its first year. In this context the question arises if the EU will use the chance to achieve one of the major objectives of the Lisbon Treaty, namely increasing the coherence of its external action. This concerns both how coherent ENP policy formulation is carried out in the EU system and to what extent the output of the review is coherent.

Please click here to read the entire brief and feel free to contact Simon Stroß at Simon.Stross[at]tepsa.be to discuss and to learn more on the future developments about this issue.

TEPSA Polish Pre-Presidency Conference 30 June-1 July 2011 and Recommendations to the Polish Presidency

TEPSA newsletter editorial on the European Union and the constitutional identity of its member states

by Jean Paul Jacqué

Please click here to read the entire editorial as well as June Newsletter.

The role of the EUCJ in EU integration after Lisbon

On the 6th of May 2011, TEPSA and the  Centre d’études et de recherches européennes Robert Schuman (CERE) held a TEPSA/CERE seminar on “The role of the European Union Court of Justice in EU integration after the Treaty of Lisbon.” The seminar took place in the European Union Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Distinguished EUCJ judges and academics discussed this issue in three panels: "the Court of Justice as EU legislator;" "the role of the EUCJ in Justice and Home Affairs after Lisbon;" and "the contribution of EUCJ to the development of European citizenship."

A report of the conference is available here.

International Summer School and G20 Simulation Exercise 2011 „Security and Stability in the Contemporary Global Order”

The International Summer School and G20 Simulation Exercise on “New Worlds New Ideas – Security and Stability in the Contemporary Global Order” took place on 3-8 July at la Fondation Universitaire.

This event was co-organised by TEPSA and University of Cologne within the framework of the projects THESEUS (www.theseus.uni-koeln.de) and MERCURY (www.mercury-fp7.net/). The Summer School started on Sunday July 3^rd, 2011 and ended on Wednesday July 6^th, 2011. Academic experts from the MERCURY consortium and the broader academic community were invited to share their expertise on the “Security and Stability in the Contemporary Global Order” with the participants.

Preparations of the G20 Simulation Exercise on the topic “New World New Ideas – Security and Stability in the Contemporary Global Order” have been completed and the Simulation Exercise was kicked-off May 6^th, 2011. 25 participants have been recruited from the entire MERCURY consortium and have changed their identities for the sake of the simulation exercise. Eleven delegations currently prepare their position papers for the G20 meeting that is scheduled to take place in Brussels 6-8 July 2011. The delegations were composed of participants from different institutes and hence were required to explore the contemporary negotiation tools in order to communicate and fine tune their positions across borders and greater distances.

Please click here to download the draft report.

UI Occasional Paper No 7: The European Security Strategy: Reinvigorate, Revise or Reinvent?

The EU’s European Security Strategy (ESS) offered the first clear expression of the EU’s global security aims. Eight years later, new attention to the ESS is needed and a new ESS may be required. This is the conclusion of a new Occasional Paper published by the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. The paper argues that the timing is right for a discussion on the EU’s global role, against the backdrop of institutional change, shifting geopolitics, and crises in the EU’s neighborhood. Drawing lessons from previous strategic drafting processes, including in the EU and in NATO, the paper argues that a new process should be launched with one of three goals in mind: reinvigorate the existing strategy, revise the ESS, or reinvent a new document with a broader strategic scope. The analysis in this paper offers the foundation for a rigorous debate on the future of the EU’s strategic intentions in the world.

Conference on "Croatia at the doorstep of the EU"

After six years of intensive negotiations, the accession negotiations between Croatia and the European Union are now in a decisive stage. Closure is still expected by the end of the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU. On the 15^th of June 2011 the conference "Croatia at the doorstep of the EU" will gather experts, government officials and other stakeholders involved to discuss the lessons learned from the process of Croatia’s negotiations as well as the role which Croatia will play as the future member state of the European Union. The conference is jointly organised by TEPSA and the Institute for International Relations (IMO) in Zagreb, the Mission of Croatia to the European Union and the European Office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) in Brussels. The event will take place on 15 June 2011 from 09.00 to 13.45 at the Fondation Universitaire in Brussels.

The programme of the conference can be downloaded here and the conference report is available here.

TEPSA Brief: EU energy security - the Russia factor and future prospects for the Southern Corridor

By Marco Siddi

In the wake of both the uprisings that have destabilized Northern Africa and the nuclear disaster in Japan, future prospects for EU energy security look less and less promising. The rapidly growing public opposition to nuclear power and the current insecurity concerning energy supplies from Northern Africa are only the two latest elements of a series of factors that seriously challenge the European Union’s objectives in the energy field. EU domestic production of all fossil fuels has been decreasing for more than a decade. At the current rate of extraction, oil reserves will be depleted within eight years, which will make the Union more dependent on its Russian, Middle Eastern, Norwegian and North African suppliers. Domestic production of natural gas has been decreasing since 1996, while demand increased greatly in the last 15 years. Dependency on gas imports will increase further to reach an estimated 73-79% of consumption by 2020 and 81-89% by 2030, mostly due to the depletion of indigenous resources. Prospects look bleak also for nuclear power, particularly after the Fukushima accident in Japan has led some of the largest EU countries, notably Germany and Italy, to reconsider their policies in this respect.

Please click here to read the entire brief and feel free to contact Marco Siddi at Marco.Siddi[at]tepsa.be to discuss and to learn more on the future developments about this issue.

THESEUS Award

TEPSA newsletter editorial on the Reflections on the Method

by Jean Paul Jacqué

Since the Treaty of Lisbon has entered into force, one witnesses the revival of the classical debate between the Community method and the intergovernmental method. The establishment of the European Council as institution of the Union is certainly a change largely symbolic, nevertheless the innovation of the creation of the fixed Presidency of the European Council seems to have changed the situation to the disadvantage of the Commission. Member States show greater confidence in their President than in the President of the Commission. The Council is in charge of study tasks and proposals which, in the time of the Delors Commission, were entrusted to the Commission President.

Please click here to read the entire editorial as well as the April newsletter.

A year after the crisis: adjustment in Greece and the Eurozone

The Greek Centre of European Studies & Research (EKEME), the European Center of Economic and Financial Law (ECEFIL) and the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA) are pleased to invite you to the ΕΚΕΜΕ, ECEFIL and TEPSA conference on “A year after the crisis: adjustment in Greece and the Eurozone”.

One year after its eruption and as the crisis deepens, the question of what will be the key strategic consequences and policy implications of the current financial and economic problems warrants an answer. The conference aims to raise public awareness over the current economic situation both in Greece and the eurozone and to kick off a public debate.

The conference will take place on the 31st of May 2011, 15.00-17.30, at the European Parliament, Brussels. 

Download the final programme and the registration form. Please send registration form via email to info@ekeme.gr or fax: (+300210) 3632617 before 25th May 2011.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on the State of play of the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI): the birth of participatory democracy

By Jean Paul Jacqué

Please click here to read the entire editorial as well as the February newsletter.

A series of short essays with fresh thinking on the European Union: What the European Union Did Next

"What the European Union Did Next" addresses the intrinsic quality of European cooperation and it finds reason to be cheerful. Each of the essays collected identifies one undervalued quality of the EU's modus operandi and shows how that quality could revitalise the Union. By reference to a whole range of policy areas, from foreign policy to social exclusion to constitutional policy, the eleven contributions make the case for the EU's strengths - and its limitations. Edited by Almut Möller and Roderick Parkes, it includes the following contributions on The Involuntary Union: European Economic Governance and the Union State by Cornelius Adebahr; The Strategic Union: Rising to the Multipolar Challenge by Thomas Renard & Sven Biscop; The Unromantic Union: Give and Take in EU Home Affairs by Roderick Parkes; The Learning Union: EU Social Inclusion Policy, Lessons from Eastern Europe by Irena Cerovic; The Flexible Union: Rethinking Constitutional Affairs by Almut Möller; The Democratic Union: Strengthening Democracy in the Wider Europe by Deniz Devrim & Jordi Vaquer; The Substantial Union: Recasting the EU’s Middle East Policies by Timo Behr; From Inspiring to Declining Union? Europe at the Tipping Point and the Turkish Solution by Nora Fisher Onar; The Delivery Union: How the 27 Strengths of the EU Can Lead to Better Regulation by Mirte van den Berge; The Sustainable Union: Towards a European Energy Community for the 21st Century by Sami Andoura; and The Restrained Union: Has EU Counter-Terrorism Policy Become More About Having an EU Policy Than About Countering Terrorism? by Toby Archer.

The publication can be downloaded here.

THESEUS/TEPSA Workshop on the Franco-German relationship seen from the outside on 17-18 February 2011

The TEPSA workshop on the Franco-German relationship seen from the outside will take place on 17.-18.02.2011 in Brussels in the framework of the programme THESEUS. Partners of THESEUS alongside TEPSA are the Centre d’études européennes of Sciences Po Paris, the Jean Monnet Chair of the University of Cologne and the Fritz Thyssen Foundation in Cologne.

The aim of the workshop is to discuss the special role of the Franco-German couple in recent and longer term political and institutional evolutions of the EU. The workshop is especially interested in the perceptions of the ‘Franco-German tandem’ from the point of view of other EU-countries. Together with experts coming from all over Europe we will discuss its impact and role in the management of the current financial and economic crisis and the reform of EU governance in this policy field, for the evolution of EU enlargement and external action, and for the reform of the EU budget. A roundtable will discuss the role of France and Germany in the construction of the EU and their bilateral and multilateral relations at crucial points of the evolution of the European Union and ask what role the couple plays after the entry into force of the treaty of Lisbon.

Please find the workshop report here and the programme here.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on enhanced cooperation

By Jean Paul Jacqué

Please click here to read the entire editorial as well as the December newsletter.

IEP/TEPSA Conference's Report: The EU, Russia and Eastern Europe. Dissenting views on security, stability and partnership? 22-23 November 2010 in Berlin

The expert roundtable conference "The EU, Russia and Eastern Europe – Dissenting views on security, stability and partnership?", organised by the IEP and the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA), with kind support of the Volkswagen Foundation, took place on 22^th and 23^th November 2010 at the Representation of the Saarland to the Federation in Berlin.

Forty participants – among them international experts from academia and the policy-making community – gathered at the Representation of the Saarland to the Federation to discuss three different, though interrelated topics: the issue of the ‘shared neighbourhood’ in the EU-Russia relations, the future of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the security dimension of EU external action in the (South) Eastern neighbourhood. The EU-Russia relations in the light of the ‘common neighbourhood’ was the first topic under discussion. The review of possibilities for political cooperation between the EU and Russia in the post-Soviet space crystallized diverging positions on possible policy fields, tools and relevant actors (EU institutions, member states, economic or societal actors). The second panel aimed at discussing and evaluating the impact of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the Eastern Partnership (EaP). While both achievements and limits were highlighted, the discussion focused on the (theoretical, practical and psychological) impact of membership conditionality. In the third panel participants discussed institutional developments of the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). Moreover, the policy was analysed from a regional perspective (i.e. implications for the Balkans) as well as around analytical lenses (i.e. long-term processes that are external to actors’ policy decisions). Finally, a dinner debate with Borys Tarasyuk, former Foreign Minister of Ukraine, focused on the state of affairs of the EU-Ukraine relations, reasons for the failure of the Orange Revolution, and Ukraine’s positioning between the EU and Russia.

The report of the conference is now available here.

TEPSA Brief: Obstacles to overcome in EU's accession to the European Convention of Human Rights – December 2010

TEPSA Hungarian Pre-Presidency Conference Report, 2-3 December 2010 and Recommendations to the Hungarian Presidency

IAI/TEPSA Seminar, the Democratic Control of European Foreign, Security and Defence Policy

 European Parliament, Brussels

Instituto Affari Internazionali and TEPSA have organized a seminar on the Democratic Control of European Foreign, Security and Defence Policy on November 15th. Several TEPSA researchers have examined this issue of democratic control on EU's foreign and security policy more in depth in three papers that have been presented during the seminar. The seminar has dealt with the following topics: The saliency of the issue of the democratic control of European foreign, security and defence policy; The level of democratic parliamentary control: national, transnational or European?; and The Lisbon Treaty and the powers of the European Parliament in the democratic control of CFSP-CSDP.

The report of the seminar is now available here.

Conference on Britain's Coalition Governement and its European Policy

Lunch Conference “Europeanization, Usages of Europe and Welfare State Reforms in Europe”, 1st of December 2010, Fondation Universitaire, Brussels.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on the role of the European Council on the future of the CFSP

TEPSA Brief: European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) – September 2010

by Laura Ventura

The Treaty of the EU introduced a new dimension of participatory democracy for European citizens. With its proposal, the European commission aims at enhancing citizens’ right to participate in the democratic life of the Union by enabling them to bring forward their concerns at the EU level.

This TEPSA brief intends to provide a description of this ongoing initiative while comparing it to initiatives at national level and assessing its democratic power.

Please click here to read the entire brief and feel free to contact Laura Ventura at Laura.Ventura[at]tepsa.be to discuss and to learn more on the future developments about this issue.

Electronic Collection “SPES Policy Papers“ launched

The electronic collection “SPES Policy Papers“ is dedicated to issues of current and future relevance to European foreign and security policy. Written by fellows of the Study Programme on European Security (SPES) for fellows from Central and Eastern Europe – conducted by IEP and supported by the Volkswagen Foundation – as well as researchers from IEP, the papers focus on four thematic clusters:

• The EU and Russia
• European Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy
• The EU’s civilian and military crisis management
• European energy policy and climate change policy

Against the background that the scientific debate on European foreign and security policy is often dominated by Western perspectives, this paper series stands out by providing a platform for alternative viewpoints that focus on external perceptions and assessments of EU policies, actions and discourses.

The first policy paper (to download here) written by Iryna Solonenko attempts to explain to what extent the EU has had an impact on internal developments in Ukraine since the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) was launched in 2005. By tracing the resonance that this EU policy has had on different actors and processes, the paper challenges the dominant discourse about the failure of the ENP.

For more information on SPES please go to http://www.iep-berlin.de/699.html?&L=1

EU-27 Watch No. 9 / EU-27Watch.org released

The new platform, www.eu-27Watch.org, presents the reader enhanced access to the texts. Reports are sorted by country or by question, presenting the reader quicker access to information. The timeline gives an overview of the European political environment since 2004.

TEPSA newsletter editorial on EEAS

By Jean Paul Jacqué

With only two months delay from the original schedule, the European External Action Service (EEAS) has just been established. This delay is due essentially to the negotiations with the European Parliament (EP). The latter linked its consultative opinion on the service to the proposals on the needed adjustments of the Financial Regulation and the staff status, for which it possessed codecision power. This allowed the EP to check all the texts.

Please click here to read the entire text. Please click here to read the entire newsletter.

Please read the Council Decision and the Declaration of Ms. Ashton.

Liber Amicorum Professor Jacqué

We congratulate warmly Professor Jean-Paul Jacqué who received the Liber Amicorum on Monday 14th  June, "Chemins d'Europe - mélanges en l'honneur de J.P. Jacqué”.

The first hommage was written by Jean-Claude Piris, Director General of the Legal service of the Council of the EU who emphasizes Jean Paul Jacqué's successful academic career, his valuable contributions notably to the Council as well as his human qualities.

Other authors are Olivier De Schutter, Loïc Azoulai, Ami Barav, Florence Benoît-Rohmer, Frédérique Berrod, Roland Bieber, Thérèse Blanchet, Claude Blumann, Laurence Burgorgue-Larsen, Florence Chaltiel, Jean Charpentier, Vlad Constantinesco, Jacqueline Dutheil de la Rochère, Jean-François Flauss, Jean-Claude Gautron, Constance Grewe, Joël Rideau, Robert Hertzog, Robert Kovar, Hans Christian Krüger, Marie-Françoise Labouz, Koen Lenaerts, Jean-Victor Louis, Alfonso Mattera, Valérie Michel, Dietmar Nickel, Fabrice Picod, Dominique Ritleng, Patrice Rolland, Allan Rosas, Lucia Serena Rossi, Jürgen Schwarze, Antonio Tizzano, Bruno Gencarelli, Françoise Tulkens, Stefano Piedimonte, Georges Vandersanden, Blanca Vila, Patrick Wachsmann, Jean Waline, Joseph H.H. Weiler, Wolfgang Wessels, Jacques Ziller.

Please click here to read the first hommage and the table of contents.

Robert Schuman on Hungary and Europe

by Graham Avery, former Secretary General of TEPSA, visiting Fellow at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, European University Institute, Florence, Senior Member of St. Antony’s College, University of Oxford and Honorary Director General of the European Commission

Click here to read the publication.

Source:The Hungarian Quarterly

Recommendations to the Belgian Presidency

During the Belgian Pre-Presidency conference organised in cooperation with the EGE network on 20-21st May 2010, TEPSA Network presented the Recommendations to the Belgian Presidency.

These recommendations were drafted by representatives from TEPSA member institutes: Iain Begg (LSE, London), Christian Franck (Catholic University of Louvain, Jean Monnet Chair), András Innotai (IWE HAS, Budapest), Mathias Jopp (IEP, Bonn), Ignacio Molina (Elcano, Madrid), Višnja Samardjija (IMO, Zagreb), Marjan Svetlicic (CIR, Ljubljana), Fabrizio Tassinari (DIIS, Copenhagen).

THESEUS Summer School 2010 and THESEUS Awards

THESEUS Seminar for Young Leaders 2010 will take place on 10-15 July 2010 in Brussels, at the Foundation Universitaire, rue d'Egmont 11, 1000 Brussels.

The THESEUS Seminar will this year discuss "Freedom, security and justice as a common challenge - justice and home affairs in the EU after the treaty of Lisbon". It adresses PhD students and young professionals from administration, research and business and will focus on the recent changes induced by the Lisbon Treaty with in the field of Justice and Home Affairs of the European Union. Like in last years the seminar will feature speakers and high-level experts from international organisations, business, politics, NGOs together with recognised researchers. The deadline for applications is 14 June 2010.

In addition to the Summer School, THESEUS is looking for highly-motivated applicants to respond to these calls for nominations. The THESEUS Award for Outstanding Research on European Integration distinguishes persons with an outstanding academic record in the field of European Integration.The THESEUS Award for Promising Research on European Integration 2010 distinguishes an excellent piece of work of a junior researcher. The deadline for the nominations is 31 May 2010.

More information on the Summer School can be found here.

EP Briefings on Security and Defence

Six briefings have been completed and accepted by the European Parliament (Tomas Ries Global Challenges: navigating a way for the EU as a Global Actor; Prof. Richard Whitman Strengthening the EU's External Representation: the role of the EEAS on the Union's external representation; Nik Hynek Consolidating the EU's Crisis Management structures: civil-military coordination and the future of the EU OHQ; Christian Moelling Bridging the securitydevelopment gap: civilian-civilian co-operation and the need for an EU Peacebuilding strategy; Julia Lieb Consolidating Civilian and Military Training for Crisis Management: taking stock of EU initiatives; Gunilla Herolf Establishing the knowledge base of a smart power: a blue print for an EU Institute for Peace).

Click here to download the briefings

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Reflections on the Schuman Declaration by Jean Paul Jacqué

9 May 1950 - 9 May 2010

On the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of the Schuman Declaration Professor Jean Paul Jacqué, Secretary General of TEPSA, has analysed the Schuman Declaration and its significance both to the process of European integration over the past sixty years as well as to the way ahead for the further development of EU's institutional structure.

Please click here to download the publication.

Conference on Britain, Europe and the upcoming British elections, London 14 April

Federal Trust for Education and Research has organised a conference on  'Britain, Europe and the General Election' on 14th April in London, in cooperation with TEPSA. At this conference the European policies of the main British parties were considered and it was assessed how far the parties will be in a position to carry these policies out after the next British General Election. Among our speakers were Professor Stephen Haseler, a founding member of the SDP, Maurice Fraser, a former special adviser to Douglas Hurd, and the authors of their pamphlet on financial regulation, Sir Brian Unwin and Graham Bishop. The Director of the Federal Trust, Brendan Donnelly, chaired the meeting and summed up its conclusions.

Please click here to read the report.

Recommendations to the Spanish Presidency

Crossfire in the Parliament: The Commission's hearings

The new year in Brussels begins right away with a series of events, which many people have been waiting for for a long time. Commissioner-designates have been preparing - helped by their staff - over Christmas in order to be ready for the questions of the European Parliament. While the most part of the hearings will take place during the week of 11-15 January, some (future) Commissioners will have the joy of travelling to Strasbourg in the following week.

The European Parliament has acquired a certain measure of routine by now in the holding of hearings: Already for the Commission of Jacques Santer hearings were undertaken - although when consulted on this issue the leaving Commission President Jacques Delors expressed his strong dislike. However, the Santer Commission agreed, and since then parliamentary hearings on the future Commission constitute a central part - though without treaty base - of the Commission's appointment, injecting some of the Parliament's legitimacy into the Commission. Andrew Duff, the EP's rapporteur on the hearings even stated in his press conference that this task is picturing the "European Parliament as it ought to be", with the goal to "have at the end a top-class Commission".

Hearings, which are to assess a candidate's general competence, his or her European commitment and personal independence as well as the knowledge of the prospective portfolio and the communication skills have been prepared by written questionnaires. They follow a clear structure: The Commissioner-designate opens after the technical introduction of the committee chair of the committee-in-lead the hearing with an opening statement, and then faces questions of the Parliamentarians. Hearings are restricted to three hours. After the public hearing the committees meet in camera to discuss the appearance of the Commissioner-designate; a letter with the committee's opinion is then sent to the President of the EP. Hearings are not without their pitfalls: In 2004, Italy and Latvia had to send new candidates; Hungary received a new portfolio.

TEPSA is supported by the European Union's Europe for Citizens programme, which stimulates activities in the area of Active European Citizenship

Revising the European Security Strategy: Arguments for Discussion

by Stefano Silvestri, President of the Istituto Affari Internazionali

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Declaration published by TEPSA in view of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, and its own 33rd anniversary

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"Constitution plus" - Renegotiating the Treaty

by Andrew Duff

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