Abdulla Azizi From 2008 to 2010 he was a Director of the Center for Research in Public Administration at SEEU, and from 2012 he is a member of the Macedonian National Council for sustainable development. He has also been engaged and worked as a national expert in a number of OSCE and the European Commission funded programs/projects.

Among the main stumbling blocks of European Union-Western Balkan integration are the differences in perceptions on both sides. Today, the gap between what the Western Balkan politicians and citizens think about the European Union and what the politicians and citizens in the EU member states think about the Western Balkans is probably wider than ever. This volume offers fresh insights about these misperceptions and how to possibly bridge the gap. It examines perceptions about the region’s “European perspectives” both on the side of the six Western Balkan countries - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia – and the key European Union member states (Italy, Germany, Croatia), international donors, USA. An analysis of the diverse views regarding the prospects of EU – Western Balkan integration is today highly relevant, in view of the current uncertainties regarding European Union’s enlargement policy, particularly after the attack of Russia on Ukraine and candidate status granted to Ukraine and Moldova.

North Macedonia is a landlocked country located in the Balkan Peninsula of southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Kosovo to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south, and Albania to the west. North Macedonia has a diverse landscape that ranges from high mountains to pristine lakes and rivers. The country's climate varies, with warm summers and cold winters in the interior and mild winters and hot summers in the south. North Macedonia has a rich cultural heritage influenced by its location at the crossroads of various empires and civilizations throughout history. The country has a mix of ethnic groups, with Macedonians being the largest group, followed by Albanians, Turks, and Roma. North Macedonia has a developing economy that is based on industry, agriculture, and tourism. North Macedonia gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 and became a UN member in 1993. The country has a parliamentary democracy with a mixed presidential-parliamentary system of government. The president is the head of state, while the Prime Minister is the head of government. North Macedonia has made significant progress in its democracy and economy since the early 2000s, but it still faces challenges, such as political instability, corruption, and high unemployment rates. The country has a strong relationship with the European Union and NATO and is currently in the process of joining the EU. North Macedonia's rich cultural heritage, natural beauty, and friendly people make it a fascinating destination for tourists.

The monographs ‘European Integration: Conditions, Essence and Consequences’ and its follow-up ‘The Future of the European Union’ were compiled in the course of the project ‘Quo vadis Unio? a racja stanu Polski’ under the DIALOG research programme between 2019 and 2023. They are the result of contributions by Europeanists, political scientists, lawyers, economists, cultural scholars and historians who study the issues of European integration. The content presented in both publications reflects the research outcomes and views of the individual authors. The first monograph was designed as an attempt to summarise the integration process within the European Union to date and its legal and institutional dimension. The monograph consists of four parts: ‘The State of European Integration’, ‘Selected Problems of European Integration’, ‘EU and National Concepts of Reforms of the European Union’ and ‘Theoretical Problems of Research on European Integration’. We hope that the issues discussed in the monograph will attract the interest of potential readers, especially academics and students involved in European studies, political science, economics, sociology, history, law and cultural studies. Insight into these issues may also be useful to government officials and NGO activists, as well as to a wide audience interested in European issues.

This book examines the degree to which the European Union has responded as a coherent and strategic actor towards the developmental and security needs of its immediate neighbourhood in the post-Cold War era.

The Economies of European Union Small Member and Candidate States deals with the small states and candidate states of the EU, with a focus on their economic structure and performance, and the impact of EU membership (past, actual and potential) on the economy. The small states to be covered are those with a population of 3 million or less, namely: Cyprus, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovenia. This title adds to the literature on the EU, on regional integration generally and on small states. It delves into the special constraints of small economic size, and examines why and how the small states of Europe manage to compete, albeit not without difficulty, with the larger states in the block, where free trade prevails. The book answers the following research questions: What are the special economic development constraints faced by the small states of the EU? What policy options have been used by, or are available to, these small states to address these constraints? How can the economic resilience and competitiveness of these states be enhanced? Has EU membership been mostly advantageous for these small states? What are the economic prospects for these states as EU member states? The book is aimed primarily for students of EU affairs and of regional integration in general. It will also be useful for students of subjects relating to small states. It may also appeal to policy makers of small states, and to officials of international and regional organisations that have a constituency that includes small states.

This book examines the perception of European Union’s identity by the main actors in international relations. Analysing issues related to public discourse in third countries as demonstrated by, amongst others, their political elites, civil society, and think-tanks, the book highlights a ‘normative gap’ with regards to the European Union's self-definition/perception and its perception in the international environment. It also shows that the European Union’s perception of normative power in international relations is not shared consistently by the main principal actor yet is differentiated relative to geographical area and scope of activities undertaken by the EU. It demonstrates that the perception of the EU’s normative identity is a source of the crisis of the European Union as an effective and significant player in the international arena. This book will be of key interest to scholar and students of European Union politics, European politics/studies, European integration, identity politics, and international relations.

The book examines the integration of environmental protection requirements into EU external relations focusing on unilateral, bilateral and inter-regional instruments, which have been less explored than the multilateral dimension of EU environmental policy. The book also explores for the first time the complex interplay and mutual influences between EU environmental integration initiatives and environmental multilateralism. On the one hand it identifies the legal and other instruments used by the EU to support the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements in third countries (particularly developing ones). On the other hand, it singles out the legal and other tools employed by the EU as a means to build partnerships with third countries in order to influence ongoing multilateral negotiations concerning the environment and sustainable development, or to contribute to the development of new international environmental norms in the absence of such multilateral negotiations. Ultimately, the book traces the significant evolution of the various tools deployed by the EU to integrate environmental concerns in its external relations, with a view to identifying emerging challenges and future directions.

Macedonia Investment and Business Guide Volume 1 Strategic and Practical Information