Open lecture THE DUTCH PERSPECTIVE OF THE EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY
2016, May 26
The Department of International Relations and European Integration (DRIIE), from the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA) organized on May 26th 2016, an Open lecture with Her Excellency Ms. Stella Ronner-Grubacic, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Romania.
The event belonged to a series of reunions with ambassadors of the European Union Member States in Romania, having the overarching theme The Rotating EU Council Presidency. The subject is of utmost importance for Romania, that will hold the Council Presidency in the second half of 2019 for the first time since its accession to the EU; DRIIE started the promotion of this subject during the fall of 2015 through the Jean Monnet Module EU*Ro Media. European Standards, Romanian Application: The Media Roadmap for Romania’s EU Council Presidency.
The EU*Ro Media Module was a partner of DRIIE regarding the organization of the series of reunions taking place over the next three years which is in itself an important step in the implementation of the project’s aim to bring the subject into the public opinion’s attention with the help of Romanian journalists trained in investigating and reporting European Affairs.
The public profile of these events facilitated the participation of a diversified audience – students, representatives of the academic environment, mass-media and civil society – and fosters, on one hand, the debate on the opportunities and challenges of preparing and exercising the EU Council Presidency from a national and European perspective, through the lens of previous Member States’ experience, and, on the other hand, the spread of concerning discussions outside universities.
The third event from the series was dedicated to the Netherlands, a state with which Romania has been maintaining friendly bilateral relations for more than a century and has been intensifying political and economic exchanges predominantly in the last decade. On Thursday, May 26th 2016, Her Excellency Ms. Stella Ronner-Grubacic not only shared particular details regarding the Dutch EU Council Presidency in 2016, but also overall information about the Netherlands’ experience with organizing no less than ten mandates in six decades and across different political, institutional and legal contexts.
Open lecture THE SLOVAK PERSPECTIVE OF THE EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY
2016, April 25
On 25th of April 2016, the Department of International Relations and European Integration from the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration hosted the open lecture on the EU Council Presidency – The Slovak Perspective of the EU Council Presidency – with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Slovakia in Bucharest.
Background
The event was the second from a series of reunions with ambassadors of the European Union Member States in Romania, having the overarching theme The rotating EU Council Presidency. The subject is of utmost importance for Romania, that will hold the Council Presidency in the second half of 2019 for the first time since its accession to the EU, and its promotion started in the academic environment during the fall of 2015 through the Jean Monnet Module EU*Ro Media. European Standards, Romanian Application: The Media Roadmap for Romania’s EU Council Presidency.
The EU*Ro Media Module is a partner of DRIIE regarding the organization of the series of reunions taking place over the next three years which is in itself an important step in the implementation of the project’s aim to bring the subject into the public opinion’s attention with the help of Romanian journalists trained in investigating and reporting European Affairs.
Overview of the event
The Open lecture was given by His Excellency Mr. Ján Gábor, Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to Romania, to over 30 attendees from the academic environment who listened to an overall presentation of the Slovak’s experience in preparing the agenda for the EU Council Presidency that will be taken over from the Netherlands in the second semester of 2016.
H.E. Mr. Ján Gábor initiated the talk with a brief presentation of Slovakia’s efforts for European integration and went ahead with further details on how the membership status positively influenced the development of the Central-European state and how it enhanced the country’s profile in the world. He made it clear that the mandate Slovakia has to carry out is both an opportunity for the country to demonstrate its maturity as a reliable partner for the other member states in the EU and a challenge which is even greater in the present volatile political context. The refugee crisis, the terrorist threat and the prospect of the United Kingdom leaving the EU complicates the framework in which Slovakia has to steer the Union-wide agenda and further the progress on issues of sectoral concern such as the energy union, neighbourhood cooperation, competitiveness, etc. However, Slovakia is confident that the Council Presidency will be easier to manage if it has got the support of the V4 countries and most importantly, of Romania with which it maintains much treasured cultural and economic ties.
Furthermore, H.E. Mr. Ján Gábor provided the audience with details of the EU Council Presidency corps’ training, the number and location of future inter-ministerial meetings and events planned for the second half of 2016 and the rationale behind the budgetary spending for the preparation of the Slovak Council Presidency. Last but not least, the Ambassador promoted the five priorities Slovakia intends to work on during the six month period: a Union of employment, growth and competitiveness; a Union of opportunities for its citizens; an energy union with prospective climate policy; a Union of freedom, security and justice and a Union as a strong global player/actor. These priorities have been agreed and included in the eighteen-month programme after close talks with the other member states of the Presidency trio, the Netherlands and Malta.
Open lecture outcomes
The meeting with His Excellency Mr. Ján Gábor revealed, in the first place, the similarities between Slovakia and Romania, but also the origin and nature of the relations sustained between the two states. Secondly, the meeting emphasized that the historical, cultural and economic ties shared with Romania are sound ground for enhanced cooperation in the future and also that Slovakia has always been a strong supporter of Romania in the EU and thus its ally in the particular institutional setting of the Council. Finally, a formula on how a less influential member state could make its views heard and implemented in a Union dominated by greater economic and political players was suggested to the audience: alliance formation between member states sharing common opinions and/or drawing on older consolidated partnerships. Although there is not a precise recipe on which a state could maximize its influence in the EU, the strategy employed by Slovakia could be used as an example for Romania.
Open lecture THE POLISH PERSPECTIVE OF THE EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY
2016, April 11
On 11th of April 2016, the Department of International Relations and European Integration (DRIIE) from the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA) hosted the open lecture on the EU Council Presidency – The Polish Perspective of the EU Council Presidency – with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Bucharest.
Background
The event was the first from a series of reunions with ambassadors of the European Union Member States in Romania, having the overarching theme The Rotating EU Council Presidency. The subject is of utmost importance for Romania, that will hold the Council Presidency in the second half of 2019 for the first time since its accession to the EU, and its promotion started in the SNSPA academic environment during the fall of 2015 through the Jean Monnet Module EU*Ro Media. European Standards, Romanian Application: The Media Roadmap for Romania’s EU Council Presidency.
The EU*Ro Media Module is a partner of DRIIE regarding the organization of the series of reunions taking place over the next three years which is in itself an important step in the implementation of the project’s aim to bring the subject into the public opinion’s attention with the help of Romanian journalists trained in investigating and reporting European Affairs.
Overview of the event
The Open lecture was given by His Excellency Mr. Marcin Wilczek, Ambassador of the Polish Republic in Romania to over 35 attendees from both the academic environment and the civil society who listened to an overall presentation of Poland’s experience in preparing and carrying out the agenda for the EU Council Presidency for the first time in 2011.
While the presentation had a more general stance, touching upon subjects such as the legal framework for the Council Presidency after the Treaty of Lisbon, the choice of places for the informal inter-ministerial meetings in Poland, the number of experts trained for the Presidency corps and the budget allocated for the traineeships, the promotional campaign and last, but not least, the main achievements and shortcomings of the Polish Presidency, it however sparked a lively debate on other aspects of interest for the audience.
Mr. Wilczek’s account was followed by a series of questions from the public regarding Poland’s success in improving the country’s image in the EU, the promotion of its own agenda and alliance-formation, the relevance of negotiations with Cyprus and Denmark, but also with other member states in setting the 18 month agenda, the convergence of Polish objectives for the Council Presidency across the party system, the cooperation with the civil society, the prioritization of the budget and last, but not least, the partnership between Romania and Poland in the next three years.
Briefly, the answer to all of these questions is that the EU Council Presidency represented both a challenge and also an achievement for Poland in terms of changing the misconceptions about it as an Eastern underdeveloped state, bringing the citizens closer to the EU decision-making process by involving the locals in the organization of the informal meetings with European delegates in different cities in Poland and promoting the national artists through the gifts offered during the officials’ visits in the country. Moreover, holding the Council Presidency was an exercise for Poland which had to prove its ability to work in a team towards achieving results that benefited the EU as a whole and this was most important when working together with member states having different interests and views. The ability to work in a team and most often to play the role of team leader helped cement the image of Poland as an honest broker during negotiations. Overall, the Polish EU Council Presidency was a solid first time experience and its success rests mainly upon the sound cooperation between the national administration and the civil society, including the media, common citizens and the academic environment whose input proved to be decisive in the first phase of the training civil servants had to undergo. This could as well be a model for Romania which has to go through similar preparations for the Council Presidency in 2019. In light of this event that will span over a six month period, Romania can find a reliable partner in Poland primarily on subjects of common geostrategic concern such as security and neighbourhood cooperation in the framework of the EU-NATO relations and the EU policies, but also on economic matters.
Open lecture outcomes
The audience attending the event managed to get a better grasp of the Polish experience prior and during the six month Presidency and understand both the opportunities and challenges arising from such a high level task. Aside from the general information H.E Mr. Martin Wilczek provided, the picture regarding the agenda setting was filled in with more in-depth details following the Q&A session and in the end the attendees were provided with a clearer management model Romania could follow in its steps for the second half of 2019.
In&Out OPENING CONFERENCE
2015, December 10
The 10th of December 2015 marked the launch of the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence “In and Out: Understanding the European Union beyond its Borders” through the international conference entitled “EU border management in Romania, Ukraine and Republic of Moldova” which took place at the headquarters of the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration.
The event gathered researchers, teachers, students, members of the civil society, public servants, diplomats, experts from Romania, Ukraine and Republic of Moldova who engaged into a fruitful dialogue with the invited speakers from the field of diplomacy, defence, internal and border security such as Viorel Tomescu, Viorel Cibotaru, Valentin Niculescu, Nadia Bureiko, Iurie Gotișan, and also from the research field such as Iordan Bărbulescu, George Anglițoiu and Ioan Horga regarding the border management in these three countries, in the context of the recent regional instability that exert pressure on the Eastern borders of the European Union.
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence “In and Out: Understanding the European Union beyond its Borders” is aimed to develop border management trainings for frontier workers from Romania, Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, in order to improve the management of the Eastern border of the EU.
The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence “In and Out: Understanding the European Union beyond its Borders” is co-financed by the Executive Agency for Education, Audiovisual and Culture of the European Commission through Erasmus+ programme and will be implemented in the period September 2015 – August 2018 by the Department of International Relations and European Integration of the SNSPA.
EU*Ro MEDIA OPENING CONFERENCE
2015, November 24
The 24th of November 2015 marked the launch of the Jean Monnet Module “EU*Ro Media, European Standards, Romanian Application: The Media Roadmap for Romania’s EU Council Presidency” through the Opening Conference “The Romanian EU Council Presidency Through The Eyes of The Media: Opportunities And Challenges” which took place at the headquarters of the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration.
The event gathered teachers, students, researchers and members of the civil society who engaged into a fruitful dialogue with the invited speakers from the field of professional journalism such as Ovidiu Nahoi, Adrian Bărbulescu, Luminița Bogdan and Viorica Marin regarding the role of mass-media within the context of preparing the Romanian agenda for the EU Council Presidency in the second half of 2019.
The Jean Monnet Module “EU*Ro Media, European Standards, Romanian Application: The Media Roadmap for Romania’s EU Council Presidency” is aimed at providing media professionals with the necessary education in the domain of European Affairs with a view to consolidate the role of the press in reporting EU developments.
The project is co-financed by: The European Commission, Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency through the ERASMUS+ Programme and its implementation will be carried out by the Department of International Relations and European Integration in the period September 2015 – August 2018.
Conference BREXIT: United Kingdom without the European Union
2015, May 8
The Department of International Relations and European Integration, through the Centre of European Studies, is inviting you to a debate called “BREXIT: United Kingdom without the European Union” which will be held on Friday, 8th of May 2015, at 17:00, Room 428.
The event aims to hold a debate on a theme that has been very controversial for both the British pubic and the European political actors ever since 2013. The United Kingdom’s possible exit from the EU has been placed in the sphere of speculative discussions regarding the consequences that this unprecedented political decision might have, if obtaining a positive vote for withdrawal in a referendum that the Conservator Party promised to organise in 2017, if they won the parliamentary elections to be held on 7th of May. Considering the result of the recent polls, the Conservators have gained a top position next to the Labour Party, but also the higher possibility that this political wave will be insisted on in the next two years, it is necessary to revalue the consequences of withdrawal of the UK will have, both for them and for the common European space. Therefore, the working team of the conference, consisting of the M.A. students of the Department of International Relations and European Integration, suggests that this debate take place on 8th of May, immediately after the conclusion of the general election in the United Kingdom, and to follow the main changes that might intervene in the following dimensions:
- Political: influencing power on the international scene, relations with India, relations between the component regions of the UK, but also with other powers of the international system from the position of a big state outside the Union, relocation and modification of EU regulations, EU’s loss of an influent member in international negotiation, diminishing the EU’s role as a global actor, etc.;
- Economic: decreasing the importance of London as a financial centre, in favour of some competitive capital markets, both from the EU and the world, losing the access to the Single Market and the negotiations regarding regulations that are shaping this market, implementation of protectionist measures, slowing growth and increasing inter-regional economic disparities, prolonged negotiation of independent trade agreements with US, BRICS, the loss of a major trading partner for the EU, etc.;
- Social: loss of jobs, especially in the services sector, of the right to free movement of people, tightening immigration and asylum regulations, increasing anti-British sentiments in Scotland and Northern Ireland due to lower social welfare status, etc.
Conference “Founding Parents of the European Union – Genesis, Values and Evolutions”
2014, December 11
The Department of International Relations and European Integration, the Jean Monnet Association in France and the Centre for European Studies organized a conference-debate called “Founding Parents of the European Union – Genesis, Values and Evolutions”, on December 11th, 2014.
The theme of the event was linked to the genesis of the European Union and its further 
development, the lecture being held in English, by the director of the Presentation Association Jean Monnet et Phillipe le Guen, Mister Philippe le Guen.
The guest speaker was a consultant expert on European projects financed by the European Social Fund, evaluator of public policies and associate professor on themes regarding the origins of the European Union, the founding parents and the Union’s values. Mr. Philippe le Guen has been the director of the Jean Monnet Association since 2010. The Association’s headquarter is located in the memorial house of Jean Monnet in France, a European museum (purchased in 1982 by the European Parliament).
Media coverage: caleaeuropeana.ro
Simulation of the work procedures in the UN Security Council-Oradea
2014, May 29
Organizers:
- Faculty of History, International Relations, Political Sciences and Communication Sciences
- The Department of International Relations and European Integration (DIREI)
Theme:
The Conflict in Ukraine. A threat to the European Security
Europarlamentari Conference
2014, March 12
Organizers:
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration
- The Department of International Relations and European Integration (DIREI)
- The Centre for European Studies (CES)
Guests:
Experts from the European Institute of Romania and media representatives
Theme:
Event for debating the role and the activity of the European Parliament, a subject of a major interest within the social and political European area in an electoral year. Among the subjects proposed for debate were: the 2014 European elections (their classification as secondary elections); how attractive were the campaign’s themes of the European election in comparison with the themes of the national campaigns, and their capacity of increasing the number of voters; strategies to remediate the absenteeism; the overcoming of the democratic deficit, rendered both on a supranational and national level; the legitimacy of the election of any candidate, considering the low rate of the voters; other adverse effects caused by absenteeism, such as the affirmation of the extremist parties, as also discussions about the withdrawal of some EU Member States; perspectives related to the mandate 2014-2019 of the European Parliament and the inter-institutional dimension within the European Union (for example, the issue of the appointment of the future President of the Commission); the position of the guests towards the young generation (the agenda of the European Parliament for youth, their involvement in the elections and the promotion of young voters in Romania).
Europe Day. Event series
2012, May 9
Organizers:
- The Romanian Ministry of European Affairs
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (through the DIREI-CES)
- The Academic Club for European Studies
The European Participatory Democracy In Action: The European Citizens’ Initiative
2012, April 11
Organizers:
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (through the DIREI-CES)
- The Academic Club for European Studies
The European External Action Service – An Instrument for the global affirmation of the European Union. The Relevance of the Association Agreements with Third Countries In the Eastern Vicinity of the EU
2011, October 28
Organizers:
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (through the DIREI-CES)
- The Romanian Association for International Relations and European Studies
- The Academic Club for European Studies
Europe Day. Event series
2011, May 9
Organizers:
- The Department of European Affairs (of the Romanian Government)
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (through the DIREI-CES)
- The Academic Club for European Studies
Conference Series – The Treaty of Lisbon and the Role of Romania in the Process of Deepening European Integration
2010, June – December
The conference series included eight cities from Romania (representing developing regions)
Organizers:
- The Department of European Affairs (of the Romanian Government)
- The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (through the DIREI-CES)
Partners:
- The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- The Commission for European Affairs of the Romanian Parliament
- The Academic Club for European Studies
- local authorities
