CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2007
| Author | Kerashvili, Ketevan |
|---|---|
| Title | The Role of Identities and Perceptions in EU-Russian Relations: Assessing the Challenges on the Path to the New Agreement |
| Summary | In view of the upcoming expiration of the PCA in 2007, it has become widely accepted in the EU and Russia that the construction of the updated coherent strategic document forming the legal basis for the future of EU-Russian relations is necessary. Nevertheless, today, despite the declared commitment of the parties the discussions over the new agreement remain in a stalemate, with little indication of progress in the coming months. Consequently, the aim of the present thesis has been to analyze the reasons for the challenges encountered by the EU and Russia on the path to the new agreement. Approaching the question through the prism of the constructivist theory, the present study attempted to trace the identities and perceptions of the partners using the method of discourse analysis. Based on the examination of the normative identity of the EU, on the one hand, and the great power identity of Russia, on the other, the study has concluded that the reasons for the existing tensions between the partners are rooted in the identities and perceptions forming the basis for the interests of the partners. Consequently, the great power identity and perceptions derived from the identity leads Russia to request the agreement demonstrating equality of the partners, while based on its normative identity and perceptions, the EU discourse reveals the sustained desire to maintain the commitment to democratic principles and norms as the groundwork for the new agreement, resulting in considerable difficulties for the adoption of the agreement. |
| Supervisor | Balazs, Peter |
| Department | International Relations MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2007/kerashvili_ketevan.pdf |
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