This book analyses the role of the European Union in the process of institutional change in its Eastern neighbourhood and explains why EU policies arrive at contradictory outcomes at the sectoral level. Combining EU studies approaches with insights from the fields of new institutionalism, international development studies and transnationalisation, it explains how the EU policies contribute to rule persistence or lead to institutional change. Highlighting the importance of investigating how the policies of external intervention interact with domestic institutions, the book also provides a coherent presentation of the political and economic problems of Ukraine and Moldova and a comparative analysis in key areas at critical junctures of their development. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Union politics and more broadly to International Relations, post-Soviet and Russian studies.

Traditionally Belarus has always had a special status in Russia’s foreign policy. Russia’s approach towards a key political and military ally and a “Slavic brother” was always an indicator of how Russia would see the optimal relationships with other countries of the post-Soviet space. At this moment Belarus-Russia relations are evolving in unexpected ways. The two interconnected crises – the Belarusian mass protests of 2020 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – have had a profound impact on the Belarusian regime and society, the regional security and Russian policy towards Belarus. This book explores the ongoing development of Belarus-Russia relations and discusses the future of the relationship. This edited volume reviews the state of the relationship and underlines key emergent trends of Belarus’s and Russia’s policies towards each other to identify new mechanisms and practices as they shape into a new model. The book is comprised of in-depth empirical contributions in a range of interdisciplinary perspectives on cooperation in political, economic, security, media, and societal domains within a broader regional context.

This book analyses the role of the European Union in the process of institutional change in its Eastern neighbourhood and explains why EU policies arrive at contradictory outcomes at the sectoral level. Combining EU studies approaches with insights from the fields of new institutionalism, international development studies and transnationalisation, it explains how the EU policies contribute to rule persistence or lead to institutional change. Highlighting the importance of investigating how the policies of external intervention interact with domestic institutions, the book also provides a coherent presentation of the political and economic problems of Ukraine and Moldova and a comparative analysis in key areas at critical junctures of their development. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Union politics and more broadly to International Relations, post-Soviet and Russian studies.