Working method and organisation of the workshop:

Transcription

1 Working method and organisation of the workshop: Accession of the Western Balkans to the EU May 11 th, 2010 PLANNING Dijon, May 11 th 2010

2 Bourgogne Balkans Express with the support of: SciencesPo Paris; European Commission; Conseil Régional de Bourgogne ; Ville de Dijon ; Le Monde ; BalkanInsight.com It is with great honour that the members of the Bourgogne- Balkans Express association, in partnership with SciencesPo Paris and the European Commission, confirm the organisation of a Workshop on the Western Balkans whose main objective is to gather practitioners and researchers to debate on very diverse questions relating to the Europeanization of the Balkans region. The Workshop will be held on May 11 th, 2010 at the Collège Universitaire of Sciences Po Paris in Dijon (Central and Eastern Europe). As we already mentioned in our previous correspondences, we are eager to initiate a real exchange of ideas, of information and of political views on the future of the Western Balkans, in order to discuss about real solutions, which might respond to the challenges that the Balkan region faces nowadays. Association Bourgogne Balkans Express (law 1901) 14 Avenue Victor Hugo, 21000, Dijon, France 2

3 1. PLANNING: Date Event / Time Potential participants Where Monday 10 May Introductory session / Public conference 18h30 20h Address by: - François REBSAMEN, Senator and Mayor of Dijon, - Ylljet ALICKAJ - Dusan BATAKOVIC - Mirko GALIC Ambassadors in France from Albania, Serbia, Croatia City Hall of Dijon, Salle de Flore Address by: Opening session 9h00-10h30 - François PATRIAT President of the Regional Council of Burgundy (to be confirmed) Regional Council of Burgundy - Arnaud DANJEAN, President of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence MEP Tuesday 11 May 3 Round tables 11h00 17h00 Workshop All the participants Address by: Central and Eastern Campus, Sciences Po Paris, Dijon Rendez-vous Bourgogne Balkans Closing Round Table Buffet 17h30-19h00 -Pierre LELLOUCHE, Secretary of State for European Affairs of France Present : - all the participants of the Workshop -institutional and economic representatives from Burgundy - Balkans Ambassadors in Paris - Media partners (BIRN, LeMonde, Euractiv etc.) City Hall of Dijon, Salle de Flore Wednesday 12 May Trip - visit / Burgundy wine tasting 10h00 16h00 Free discussion 20h30-22h00 ALL THE PARTICIPANTS Balkans EU accession seen from the Balkans Three SciencesPo students from Albania, Croatia and Serbia Visit of the route des vins Beaune and of the Cave du Patriarche Bar à vin «La Part des Anges», 3

4 2. SUBJECTS AND PARTICIPANTS: Round table1 : Specific obstacles to the European integration of the Western Balkans IMPORTANT : We kindly ask each Speaker to respect a 10 minutes limit of discourse which will be followed by a 50 minutes debate for a total length of one hour for one subject. Subject to be debated Hour Speaker Participants 1. Multiple bilateral issues: obstacles to the Thessaloniki Agenda? Unresolved borders, contested sovereignty, identity, history or nationality: how can the EU avoid blocking the membership process by bilateral questions? How can the EU act as a negotiator? What are the risks of a new veto? 2. The prevalence of corruption and organized crime: a barrier to Western Balkans membership in the EU? Is there a risk of the Bulgarian example repeating itself in the Balkans? Corruption: simple burden of public administration or deeply-rooted in Balkan society? From where does this problem stem? 3. "Soft" national consensus regarding the EU: can big promises without real application be responsible for progress? Very strong national consensus with regards to the EU altered by weak governmental involvement and insufficient measures put in place? The decentralization and judicial reforms unachieved? 4. The European Union and civil society: what interactions? A lack of transparency in the enlargement process within civil society? How do Balkan peoples feel about the EU? What is the image of the Balkans within European public opinion? What are the prospects for the RECOM Initiative? 11h00 12h00 12h00 13h00 14h30 15h30 15h30 16h30 Odile Perrot Gordana Igric Doris Pack Miljenko Dereta - Tim Judah (Moderator) Journalist, The Economist - DERETA Miljenko Executive Director, Balkan Civil Society Development Network - IGRIC Gordana Director Balkan Investigative Regional Network (BIRN) - PACK Doris MEP, Member of the Delegation for relations with Albania, BiH, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo - PERROT Odile Dr. In Political Sciences Specialist of the Balkans - BEJA Fatos President of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Albanian Parliament, Member of the Parliament - DANJEAN Arnaud MEP Chairman Subcommittee on Security and Defence - MIREL Pierre Director, Relations with Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo (DG Enlargement), European Commission 4

5 Round table 2 : Strategies and methods of enlargement IMPORTANT : We kindly ask each Speaker to respect a 10 minutes limit of discourse which will be followed by a 50 minutes debate for a total length of one hour for one subject. Subject to be debated Hour Speaker Participants 1. EU action in the Balkans: a fragmented presence as a source of role confusion. Will the Treaty of Lisbon change the cards? - SMOLAR Piotr (Moderator) Journalist, Le Monde What is the role of the EU institutional triangle in defining enlargement strategy? What divergences exist between the Council of the European Union, the European Commission and the European Parliament? What will advance with the Treaty of Lisbon and the creation of the European External Action Service? Is there a representation "too" fragmented in the Balkans? 2. Is the EU strategy the most adapted strategy to the Balkan region? Lessons learned from the fifth enlargement? Is the EU strategy, from association to membership, the most appropriate to the needs and particularities of the Balkans? How can the problems linked to unwieldy administrative procedure and of the limited capacity of adopted reform application be remedied? Membership by group or on a case-by-case basis? 2014 or 2018 as time for the accession of the Western Balkans? 3. Integration instruments: are they the most appropriate for Western Balkans membership to the EU? Evaluation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA), the progress reports, partnerships and benchmarks for accession negotiations. Does the European Union insist enough on the practical implementation of the acquis communautaire rather than its mere adoption by governments? The enlargement process: "technocratic" or "political"? The merits of benchmarking? 4. The Instrument for Pre-Adhesion (IPA): a mid-term summary 11h00 12h00 12h00 13h00 14h30 15h30 Jacques Rupnik Eduard Kukan Momčilo Radulović - RUPNIK Jacques Senior Research Fellow CERI, Institute of Political Sciences Paris - BUSHATI Ditmir Member of the Parliament, Albania - RADULOVIĆ Momčilo Secretary General - European Movement, Montenegro - KUKAN Eduard MEP, President of the Delegation for relations with Albania, BiH, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo - FAJON Tanja MEP, Rapporteur Visa Liberalisation - LYS André Head of Unit, Financial instruments and contracts DG Enlargment, European Commission - ANDONOVSKI Jovan State Secretary in charge of EU Affairs, FYROM Are other means of financial support conceivable? If so, which? Should the European "calls-for-proposals" be simplified to increase Balkan participation? Are European funds allocated for the best? Have the mid-term goals been reached? 15h30 16h30 Ditmir Bushati 5

6 Round table 3 : Economic actors and the process of adhesion IMPORTANT : We kindly ask each Speaker to respect a 10 minutes limit of discourse which will be followed by a 50 minutes debate for a total length of one hour for one subject. Subject to be debated Hour Speaker Participants 1. Foreign investment in the Western Balkans What repercussions will the financial crisis have on the prospects of development and growth of Balkan states? What are the major factors of the weak level of direct foreign investment? Are the existing national economic policies adapted to the needs of the European market as well as favorable to an accelerated adhesion process? 2. Economic monopoly and political influence What are the links between policy and the principal businesses in the Balkans? Does the influence of policies block free market competition and economic development? Can direct foreign investment be stimulated independently of local policy involvement? 3. Can the CEFTA be effective without substantial national reform? Is the CEFTA (Central European Free Trade Area) still topical? Might it play a concrete role in the enlargement of UE to the Western Balkans? What are today's Balkan businesses? Will they withstand the weight faced with tomorrow's European competition? How can enterprise synergy be reinforced in the region? 4. What type of fiscal policy is needed to foster the economic development of the Balkans? Are existing fiscal policies compatible with the conditions set-forth by the EU? Do they consider sufficiently social and wage needs? Is there a need for coordination, if not harmonization, between the fiscal and monetary policies of the Western Balkans? What is the place of the Euro in the region? 11h00-12h00 12h00 13h00 14h30 15h30 15h30 16h30 Visnja Samardzija Shpend Ahmeti Mirjana Prljevic Fikret Causevic -CAUSEVIC Fikret PhD (Moderator) Member of the Governing Board of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina - AHMETI Shpend Director - Institute for Advanced Studies (GAP), Pristina - SAMARDZIJA Visnja Institute for International Relations, Zagreb - PRLJEVIC Mirjana Secretary General of the International association CIVIS - ILIC Slobodan State Secretary of Finance of Serbia - SVETCHINE Michel Central Bank of France, Former Managing Director, of Central Banking Authority of Kosovo - DE LA ROCHEFORDIÈRE Christophe Pavret Deputy Head of Unit, Economies of Candidate and Potential Candidate Countries, DG ECFIN, European Commission - BUREAU Maxime Director, Europe, General Electric 6

7 3. DEADLINES, FORM AND CONTENT The final aim of this Workshop on the Western Balkans is to write a Publication that would contain all of the propositions and all of the solutions discussed during the three round tables of this workshop. The publication will be diffused among researchers, practitioners and desk-officers interested by the issue and will serve as a basis for further decision-making reflection in the Western Balkans, Brussels and Paris. For this reason and in order to have a synthetic and practical approach, we would kindly request by each Speaker, to articulate her/his 10 minutes intervention according to the SWOT model of analysis: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats. The Speaker should enumerate a maximum of 4 pertinent propositions, aiming at answering the main question to be debated. Limiting the presentation to 4 propositions will allow to all the Speakers to respect their time delays. The final written version can be sent after the workshop but no later than the 20th of May. We would be grateful if the written versions didn t exceed 5 pages, including the swot table. What Hand in the 4 propositions and a written version of your oral presentation by mail to the organisers (text + swot table) Final publication and diffusion Before May 11th June SWOT method: Round table X : Subject X :. Propositions : 1. Proposition 1 Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats b. c. Proposition 2 b. c. 7 b. c. b. c. Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats Proposition 3 Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats Proposition 4 Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

8 4. TRAVELING - For the participants coming by plane, (depending on your terminal, you might need to take a bus to go to the RER station) : ~ Buy 1 ticket RER for Paris (8 euros) (RER=metro) ~ Take RER B : Direction Robinson (B2) [or] Saint Remy les Chevreuse (B4) ~ Change at Châtelet les Halles (it takes close to 30 minutes from the airport to this station), ~ Without getting out from the Station, get out from RER B line and take Metro 14 direction Olympiades ~ Arrival at Gare de Lyon metro station - For those participants that have to stay in Paris, their Hotel is 5 minutes walk from the Gare de Lyon (reservation and payment already arranged) ~ Adresse : Hotel Lyon Bastille, 3 rue Parrot, Paris ~ Téléphone : +33.(0) / Fax +33.(0) ~ - All trains for Dijon leave from Gare de Lyon - We will be very grateful to you if you preserve all your tickets (airplane/rer/train) and give back to us - Most important: Don t hesitate to contact us for any question ANTONINI Céline celine.antonini@sciences-po.org +33.(0) BERONJA Sanja sanja.beronja@sciences-po.org +33.(0) CHATEL Martin martin.chate@sciences-po.org +49.(0) CLERC Blandine blandine.clerc@gmail.com +33.(0) KRAJA Akil kraja.akil@gmail.com +33.(0) MOLAR Mirta mirta.molnar@gmail.com +33.(0)

9 Once in Dijon, the Sciences Po Campus is very close to both, the Train Station and Hotel du Nord / Hotel Ibis : 5 minutes by walk for each. If you plan to arrive on Monday evening, we kindly invite to join us for a dinner with the three Ambassadors of Albania, Croatia and Serbia in France starting 20h30. If you plan to arrive on Tuesday morning, you can either join us directly at the Conseil Regional de Bourgogne (if you arrive before 10h00) or to the Sciences Po Campus. 9