V. The return of history.

This book analyzes major contemporary political and security problems in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Presenting case studies on various CEE countries, it highlights the persistence of non-democratic political trends in the region, with particular emphasis on authoritarianism in Belarus and the illiberal shift in the politics of Hungary and Poland. Also, the book examines the growing geopolitical and military rivalry between the West and Russia in the CEE region, which led to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. After addressing the increasing involvement of external entities such as NATO, the EU, the USA, Germany, France, and China, it highlights serious internal and external challenges to the democratic institutions and international security of CEE that call for new formats of multilateral cooperation to be established by the region’s countries. This book is intended for scholars and students of European politics, international relations and security studies, and for anyone interested in the political and security challenges facing the CEE region.

The book addresses security threats and challenges to the European Union emanating from its eastern neighbourhood. The volume includes the expertise of policy and scholarly contributors coming from North America, Russia and Central Asia, and from across the EU. Themes and issues include the EU’s capacities and actorness, support from the United States, challenges from Russia, and a range of case studies including Ukraine, other post-Soviet conflicts, the Kurdish question, Central Asia, and terrorism and counter-terrorism. Authors identify current threats and place these challenges into necessary historical context. They offer long-term recommendations for actionable goals to achieve greater stability in this complex and volatile region. This work is explanatory and long-lasting, and will engage readers in the limits and possibilities of the EU in a challenging era and in its most vital and demanding geographic arena.

On April 2-3, 2007 the CSIS New European Democracies Project and the CSIS Defense Industrial Initiatives Group (DIIG) hosted a two-day conference entitled Security Threats and Responses: Regional Perspectives, as the first part of the series "Central and East Europe's Security Agenda." The conference focused on pan-European and Transatlantic security priorities, such as the U.S. proposal for missile defense sites in Poland and the Czech Republic; defense industrial base integration and modernization; internal and external challenges to NATO transformation; collaborative EU and NATO strategies toward frozen conflicts in Eastern Europe; and European energy security. The event featured key security experts, political analysts, and officials from the U.S. and Central-East European (CEE) region.