This open access book provides an in-depth look into the background of rule of law problems and the open defiance of EU law in East Central European countries. Current illiberal trends and anti-EU politics have the potential to undermine mutual trust between member states and fundamentally change the EU. It is therefore crucial to understand their domestic causes, context conditions, specific processes and consequences. This volume contributes to empirically informed theory-building and in...

This book explores the diverse landscape of citizenship practices in Central and Eastern Europe, an area often overlooked in research.Through an interdisciplinary lens, the contributors explore how education and political participation shape these practices in a region marked by historical and social complexities. The book offers fresh insights into how citizenship is perceived and practiced, highlighting the role of civic education in fostering political engagement.By addr...

Hungary was once a frontrunner of democratization. However, since Viktor Orbán came to power in 2010, the country has been the subject of critical media coverage and concerns due to illiberal policies and anti-EU rhetoric. The book helps to analyze and evaluate the developments by providing relevant case knowledge. It provides sound insights into Hungary’s system of government, society, parties and media, as well as selected policy areas. It focuses on how different policy areas have been ...

This open access book provides in-depth and comparative analyses of how young people in peripheral areas in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania perceive EU citizenship. It also informs the reader about the challenges faced by EU Youth Dialogue projects that aim at promoting active (EU) citizenship in these areas and it offers context-specific recommendations for local, regional, national and European policymakers and people working with young people. The contributions...

Romania is the sixth-largest country in the European Union by population. However, after decades of democratization and integration into the Euro-Atlantic organizations, many Romanian voters now seem willing to abandon this path of development. Does this change of direction indicate the beginning of a transition to a new era? This book summarizes how politics and society in Romania changed after the 1989 revolution and how these changes were connected to the country’s EU accession. It also...

This open access book deals with the backsliding of the rule of law in Poland and Hungary as one of the main problems of the EU. What began as a national phenomenon has become a general threat for the EU because the respect for the rule of law is a prerequisite for all other values of the EU enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union. Media coverage and scholarly publications on these developments mainly focus on backsliding governments and judicial decisions concerning the iss...