NATO,the EU and Central Europe: Differing Symbolic Shapes in Newspaper Accounts of Enlargement

This essay investigates the contemporary evolution of the symbolic shape of Central Europe by conducting a quantitative and qualitative content analysis of newspaper articles from the Lexis–Nexis database covering NATO and EU expansion. The results of this content analysis show that Central Europe is associated with different symbolic shapes at different times and in different political contexts, and therefore the idea of one hegemonic Central Europe, either transcending time and context or tied to an institutional identity, is a fallacy. ‘Central Europe’ has shaped NATO and EU expansions, but similarly those processes have constructed differing geopolitical images of Central Europe that are mediated to the consumers of the newspapers. In contrast to these differing symbolic shapes, a series of common structures of expectation were associated with Central Europe that constructed the region as different from Eastern Europe.     

基于博弈论视角的俄欧贸易关系

经济互补性促进了俄欧贸易关系的发展，但由于双方利益诉求的不同，在俄欧贸易关系发展中体现出了更多的博弈思想。本文从博弈论视角探讨俄欧贸易关系的发展，其结论是合作是俄欧贸易发展的永恒趋势     

Do the Retired Elderly in Europe Decumulate Their Wealth? The Importance of Bequest Motives,Precautionary Saving,Public Pensions,and Homeownership

We use microdata on a large number of European countries from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) to examine the wealth accumulation (saving) behavior of the retired elderly in Europe. We find that less than half of the retired elderly in Europe are decumulating their wealth and that the average wealth accumulation rate of the retired elderly in Europe is positive though relatively moderate (6.6 percent over a 3-year period). These findings suggest that the Wealth Decumulation Puzzle (the tendency of the retired elderly to not decumulate their wealth or to decumulate their wealth more slowly than expected) applies in the case of Europe. Moreover, our regression results suggest that bequest motives, generous public pension systems, and the reluctance of retired elderly homeowners to sell or borrow against their owner-occupied housing are the primary explanations for the existence of the Wealth Decumulation Puzzle in Europe.     

The good,the bad and the ugly – the future of patent assertion entities in Europe

Most of the available evidence on patent assertion entities (PAEs) is coming from the United States, while little is known for Europe. The up-coming Unitary Patent (UP) and the Unified Patent Court (UPC) system are considered to be game-changing elements for strategic patent options and for patent assertion activity in Europe. Many patent practitioners are watching Europe as the future market place for patenting. PAE activity in Europe is increasing and one reason for this trend is that PAEs originating from the United States are becoming more active in Europe. In the future, fuzzy boundaries of patent claims in general and of software-related claims in particular, new combinations of technologies and enhanced interoperability under the schemes of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things could attract PAE activity in technological fields where it has not been seen before. Altogether, some of the features of the new UPC have the potential to play into the hands of PAEs in Europe. The future will much depend on the implementation of the new UPC system, how the different divisions of the court will establish case law decisions and how PAEs will make use of the new system. The intention of the article is to provide an overview of ongoing PAE activity in Europe and to assess the future strategic options of PAEs in Europe based on the design of the new UP and UPC system.     

UNIFIED CHINA AND DIVIDED EUROPE

This article studies the causes and consequences of political centralization and fragmentation in China and Europe. We argue that a severe and unidirectional threat of external invasion fostered centralization in China, whereas Europe faced a wider variety of smaller external threats and remained fragmented. Political centralization in China led to lower taxation and hence faster population growth during peacetime compared to Europe. But it also meant that China was more vulnerable to occasional negative population shocks. Our results are consistent with historical evidence of warfare, capital city location, tax levels, and population growth in both China and Europe.     

ICT and productivity growth in the 1990s: panel data evidence on Europe

What has been the quantitative effect on productivity growth of information and communication technology (ICT) in Europe after 1995? Based on a multi-country sectoral panel data set, the authors provide econometric evidence of positive and significant productivity effects of ICT in Europe, mainly due to advances in total factor productivity. The impact of ICT in Europe has happened against a negative macro economic shock not related to ICT. This is in contrast to the established evidence for the US. Our main results challenge the consensus in the growth-accounting literature that there has been no acceleration of productivity growth in Europe, mainly due to a dismal performance of ICT-using sectors.     

Book reviews

Book reviewed in this article
Transition Banking-Financial Development of Central and Eastern Europe. By Ronald W. Anderson and Chantal Kegels, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.
Paying the Price. The Wage Crisis in Central and Eastern Europe. By Daniel Vaughan Whitehead, (ed.) Basingostoke: Macmillan Press, 1998.
Restructuring Eastern Europe: The Microeconomics of the Transition Process. By Soumitra Sharma, (ed.) Aldershot: Edward Elgar, 1997.
Kremlin Capitalism. Privatizing the Russian Economy. By Joseph R. Blasi, Maya Kroumove and Douglas Kruse Cornell Univeristy Press, 1997.
Privatization, Politics, and Economic Performance in Hungary. By Zoltan Antal-Mokos, Cambridge University Press, 1998.
Macroeconomic Instability in Post-Communist Countries. By Jacek Rostowski, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1998.
Recreating Europe: The European Union's Poticy towards Central and Eastern Europe. By Alan Mayhew
Enlarging the EU Eastwards. By Heather Grabbe and Kirsty Hughes
The Economics of German Unification: An Introduction. By Thomas Lange and Geoffrey Pugh
Postsocialist Path ways: Transformiitg Politics and Property in East Central Europe. By David Stark and László Bruszt
Tax Modelling for Economies in Transition. By Paul Bernd Spahn and Mark Pearson (eds)     

Europe as social reality

What is “Europe”? There exist European legal rules, emergent from the institutional structure constructed from the treaties negotiated among the separate nation-states over the half-century since World War II. The social reality that is Europe in 1996 remains far removed from the social reality that is the United States, where individuals are directly subject to federal laws as well as those laws promulgated through the separate states. Europe is not yet a federal union or a federalism, but may qualify as a confederation of nation-states. Europe, as observed, does not correspond to the theorists' model for political federalism. It remains open as to whether or not any approximation to this model will ultimately be realized.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
Batt, Judy, East Central Europe: From reform to transformation
Prindl, Andreas, et al., Banking and Finance in Eastern Europe     

Southeastern Europe,Transitions, and the EU – Is Ever-widening Desirable?

The paper addresses the issue of further widening of the EU, given theevident tensions between deepening and widening, in light of thecommitments made to southeastern Europe since the Kosovo intervention.After clarifying the portent of Kosovo for the EU's enlargement, themeaning of EU integration in its proper context is recalled. Mext thepaper sketches how the approach to southeastern Europe fits into therelations the EU has built up with transition economies. Thereafter itexamines the promises made to southeastern Europe, the nature of theagreements entertained for southeastern Europe, and what has since cometo the fore. Before concluding, the paper proposes a more realisticassistance approach, given the area's urgent need for economic, political,and social transformations prior to lodging a credible request for EUmembership.     

欧洲页岩气开发现状及面临的挑战

美国页岩气革命取得巨大成功,由此可能带来的全球能源、经济和政治格局变化,引发了全世界的关注。欧洲希望复制美国成功模式。对欧洲页岩气开发现状及面临的挑战进行了研究和分析：目前,欧洲页岩气开发工作进展缓慢,在技术、成本和环境等方面面临重大挑战;但在开发方面也有诸多积极因素,如,油气资源衰竭、减排和环境保护等。我国页岩气资源潜力远高于欧洲,加快页岩气开发,对于改变我国油气资源格局,保障国家能源安全,促进经济发展,意义重大。     

Why is China different from Eastern Europe? Perspectives from organization theory

We draw from recent work in organization theory to explain the differences in reform strategies between China and Eastern Europe. An experimentation approach was adopted in China whereas a big bang approach was more favored in Eastern Europe. The explanation is based on differences in the organizational structure of central planning: U-form in Eastern Europe and M-form in China. The M-form is more flexible because it makes local experiments possible, contrary to the U-form where this would give rise to major complications in coordination.     

Book reviews

Book reviewed in this article
Coming to Terms with Accession. Forum Report of the Policy Initiative
The Technology of Transition. Science and Technology Policies for Transition Countries. By Dyker, David A.
Transforming the core: Restructuring industrial enterprises in Russia and Central Europe. By Ernst, Maurice
Economies in Transition: Comparing Asia and Eastern Europe. By Woo, Wing Thye, Stephen Parker and Jefferey D. Sachs, eds., Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England
nade growth in transition economies: Export impediments for Central and Eastern Europe, By Richard N. Cooper     

A Structuralist Approach to the Economic Trajectories of Russia and the Countries of East-Central Europe since 1900

I introduce geographical specificity to world-systems concepts of core and periphery to develop a structuralist approach on semiperipheral development in the world-economy. I apply this approach to the historical trajectory of economic growth in Russia and east-central Europe since 1900. I find circumstantial support for Wallerstein's classic assertion that mercantilist semi-withdrawal is a potentially effective development strategy for semiperipheral countries and show that Russia raised its economic output above historical trend levels during the Soviet period. In contrast, east-central Europe fell short of historical trends during the Soviet period, suggesting that Russia's gains may have been made at the expense of its satellite empire. With the end of communism, both Russia and the countries of east-central Europe quickly returned to their long-term historical output levels relative to the core countries of western Europe.     

气候变化对欧洲农业的系统影响及对策

本文基于欧洲气候变化的历史演进与未来情景,系统分析了气候变化对欧洲农业的历史和潜在影响,提供了欧洲农业应对气候变化的适应性措施,及其对中国未来农业发展的启示和建议。     

FDI and domestic investment in Germany: crowding in or out?

This paper estimates the effects of outward FDI on domestic business investment in Germany at the industry level for a panel of 19 industry and 10 services sectors. We pay particular attention to the different motivations behind FDI, and distinguish between FDI to high-versus low-wage countries, to Europe versus the rest of the world, and FDI in services and industry sectors.We find that, in industry, FDI to low-wage countries crowds out domestic investment, whereas FDI to high-wage countries outside Europe crowds in domestic investment. In services, FDI to Western Europe crowds in domestic investment.     

The evolution of post-communist systems

I propose in this article a new interpretation of the evolution of post-communist systems by comparing the evolutions in Central and Eastern Europe and in China. Transition is reinterpreted as the result of a collapse of communist state structures in Central and Eastern Europe and, in China, in contrast, as the result of the will to prevent such an outcome. This reconceptualization helps us to better understand the emergence of bad institutions and corruption in Eastern Europe under the market economy as well as the absence of political liberalization in China and the strengthening of the power of the Communist Party in recent years.     

European unification: a new proposal

My contribution presents a possibility to unify Europe based on newly emerging political units focused on solving problems rather than on historically given nation states. These Endogenous Political Entities (EPE), as they shall be called, are better suited to reach the goals of European unification as they strengthen the fundamental European values of variety and freedom. I make three propositions: to base the unification of Europe on nation states is unfortunate as the latter are responsible for the political disaster of the two World Wars; the unification must proceed in a problem-oriented manner. The constitution of Europe must allow and promote EPE to emerge specifically to deal with particular problems; the new political units can be introduced in marginal steps. Over time, a flexible and dynamic net of political entities will arise taking care of the large economic, social and cultural diversity in Europe.     

Book Reviews

Books reviewed:
V.E. Bonnell and T.B. Gold (eds.), The New Entrepreneurs of Europe and Asia. Patterns of Business Development in Russia, Eastern Europe and China
Gerald A. McDermott, Embedded Politics: Industrial Networks and Institutional Change in Postcommunism     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
Winters, L. Alan, ed., Foundations of an Open Economy: Trade laws and Institutions for Eastern Europe
Åslund, Anders, ed., Russian-Economic Reform at Risk
Chang, Ha-Joon & Nolan, Peter, eds., The Transformation of the Communist Economies. Against the Mainstream
Faini, Riccardo & Portes, Richard, eds., European Union Trade with Eastern Europe: Adjustment and Opportunities
Howell, John, Understanding Eastern Europe: The Context of Change
Csaba, László, The Capitalist Revolution in Eastern Europe. A Contribution to the Economic Theory of Systemic Change
Boycko, Maxim, Shleifer, Andrei and Vishny, Robert, Privatizing Russia
Hardt, John P. & Kaufman, Richard R., eds., East-Central European Economies in Transition
Jackson, Marvin, Koltay, Jenö & Biesbrouck, Wouter, eds., Unemployment and Evolving Labour Markets in Central and Eastern Europe
Commander, Simon & Coricelli, Fabrizio, eds., Unemployment, Restructuring and the Labor Market in Eastern Europe and Russia