Restituting victims: EU and NATO enlargements through the lenses of collective guilt

Lašas, Ainius

doi:10.1080/13501760701702249

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Given that communism itself is a global movement that operates 'independently of all nationality' -as Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels famously argue in the 'Communist Manifesto' -it is perhaps understandable that a backlash against its imposition from the outside would result in a renewed emphasis not only on popular, but also national sovereignty. The fact that many of the nations of Central Europe achieved statehood during the interwar period (and in some cases even during Nazi occupation) before they were folded into the Soviet sphere of influence, only reinforces this trend by allowing them to maintain collective memories of democratic selfgovernment at the national level (Lašas, 2008). The uncomfortable history of many of these Quisling regimes, which often collaborated with the Nazis to deport Jews, minorities and other unwanted individuals to concentration and death camps, is forgotten or silenced in these narratives, which look back on these periods of pre-Cold War independence as precursors of post-1989 national sovereignty.…”

Section: Zeitgeistmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, while there is truth to this accusation, such a narrative also threatens to disrespect the historical experiences and collective memories of postcommunist Europe. Despite their feelings of guilt for abandoning Central Europe to the Soviets at Yalta (see Lašas, 2008) and their subsequent commitment to integrating the postcommunist region into the EU as a result, many in the West have found it difficult understand the importance of 1989 to the postcommunist historical imaginary (see Conquest, 2000: xi;Maier, 2002). In Parliament, 2009: §K), the EP argued that 'Europe will not be united unless it is able to form a common view of its history, recognizes Nazism, Stalinism and fascist and Communist regimes as a common legacy and brings about an honest and thorough debate on their crimes in the past century.'…”

Section: Migration and Memory Disputesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Caught between 1945 and 1989: collective memory and the rise of illiberal democracy in postcommunist Europe

Verovšek

2020

Journal of European Public Policy

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Thirty years after 1989 Europe is once again divided despite 15 years of integration within the European Union. In contrast to the West's liberal conception of internationally constrained democracy rooted in the protection of individual and minority rights, Central Europe has developed an illiberal version centered on the popular sovereignty of the nation. I argue that these divergent understandings of democracy and the nation-state are rooted in collective memory. Whereas the West's historical imaginary is based on the traumas of Nazism associated with 1945, Central Europe's is dominated by the legacy of communism signified by 1989. These differing understandings of past teach strikingly different lessons for the present: one focused on the dangers of nationalism, the other on protecting national self-determination from external interference. The future of the EU depends on its ability create a common historical narrative that incorporates the lessons of the traumas of 1945 and 1989.

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Section: Zeitgeistmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Migration and Memory Disputesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caught between 1945 and 1989: collective memory and the rise of illiberal democracy in postcommunist Europe

Verovšek

2020

Journal of European Public Policy

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“…54 Ainius Lašas highlights the role of feelings of collective guilt that stem 'from the historical mistakes that left [these states] behind the Iron Curtain for 50 years'. 55 The historical legacy of World War II vis-a-vis East-Central Europe lay most heavily on Germany. The Federal Republic could not deny post-communist states of the region entry into the EU while simultaneously reunifying with the territories of the German Democratic Republic.…”

Section: Eastern Enlargement (2004 2007 2013)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Expanding Europe through Memory: The Shifting Content of the Ever-Salient Past

Verovšek

2014

Millennium

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Collective memories of war and suffering have been crucial to the development of European integration since 1945. My basic thesis is that remembrance has also played an important role in the accession of new states to the organization that has come to be known as the European Union (EU). As the EU has expanded into new regions of Europe, particularly the post-dictatorial south and the post-communist east, continental institutions and existing member-states have been confronted by conflicting understandings of the past. Although the past has continued to push states towards membership in the EU, the nature of these remembered experiences has changed through the various rounds of expansion. In addition to tracing the role that memory has played in the widening of Europe, I argue that these confrontations have sparked important debates about the meaning of the past for Europe today.

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“…(see, for instance, Cameron 2003;Lasas 2008;Moravcsik -Vachudová 2003;Schimmelfennig 2001;Vaughan -Whitehead 2003;Zielonka 2003). Our knowledge is, for example, rather limited when it comes to the questions of how these new members are perceived, what their roles are in coalition -building in the enlarged Union, what roles they are assigned and what level of influence they enjoy on an informal level.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Newcomer, Normal Player or Regional Leader? Perceptions of Poland in the EU

Kratochvíl¹,

Mišík²

2015

Politics in Central Europe

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This study analyses the status of the new EU member states and, in particular, Poland as it is perceived by the representatives of the older EU members. On a theoretical level, it argues that the transformation of the newcomers into “normal players” or even “regional leaders” is dependent on five specific conditions that each of these countries must fulfil. These range from (1) simple compliance with the EU’s basic norms and (2) a sufficient level of orientation in EU decision-making to (3) establishment of the country’s unique policy expertise, (4) the ability to create winning coalitions and finally and above all (5) a willingness to defend the interests of the Union as a whole. On an empirical level, we draw on an extensive set of interviews with diplomats belonging to the permanent representation of the old member states in Brussels. Based on these data, we conclude that (1) Poland has already established itself as a normal EU player fully comparable with the older member states. In terms of the country’s leadership status, (2) Poland has also moved to the position of frontrunner among the new member states. However, the country still fails in at least one criterion: (regional) leadership. This precludes it from becoming a fully respected and leading state in the EU.

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Restituting victims: EU and NATO enlargements through the lenses of collective guilt

Cited by 6 publications

References 17 publications

Caught between 1945 and 1989: collective memory and the rise of illiberal democracy in postcommunist Europe

Caught between 1945 and 1989: collective memory and the rise of illiberal democracy in postcommunist Europe

Expanding Europe through Memory: The Shifting Content of the Ever-Salient Past

Newcomer, Normal Player or Regional Leader? Perceptions of Poland in the EU

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