From fence to wall? Changes in the mental space of border zones in Eastern Europe

Country borders are traditionally interpreted as barriers to trade, since they limit the access to large markets of goods and intermediate assets, with negative effects on production, employment levels, and growth. The European Union is not an exception in this respect and, despite the establishment of the European Single Market, legal and administrative international barriers still exist, affecting economic growth. This paper focuses on the areas where costs and benefits of missed integration and the integration potential are highest, namely, border regions, with the aim to provide the costs of non-Europe at regional level. Results show that the costs of non-Europe are still relevant and justify the need of the European Cross-Border Cooperation Program in the next programming period. Useful guidelines for addressing the next programming period are provided. KEYWORDS border effect, borders, costs of non-Europe, legal and administrative barriers, regional growth JEL CLASSIFICATION R11

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measuring the impact of legal and administrative international barriers on regional growth

Camagni

Capello

Caragliu

2019

“…CBRs represent an interesting case study for analyzing the effects of COVID‐19 measures. In Europe, these areas are penalized by the presence of borders that still represent a major hurdle to full economic integration in the EU (Scott, 2011 ), and the recent emergence of populistic movements has made (internal) borders more important than ever (Székely & Kotosz, 2018 ). The consequences have already been identified, in that empirical evidence shows that borders create obstacles to the full exploitation of local assets (Camagni et al, 2019 ; Kerzhner et al, 2018 ).…”

Section: Setting the Scenementioning

confidence: 99%

Economic costs of COVID‐19 for cross‐border regions

Capello

Caragliu

Panzera

2023

In Spring 2020, the first wave of the COVID‐19 pandemic hit Europe most severely. While empirical evidence regarding the economic costs of the strict lockdown measures enacted during the periods before the widespread diffusion of vaccines is now available, little is known about the economic impact of both strict lockdowns and partial closures on border regions. This is instead a relevant case study to analyze, in particular in the light of the asymmetric nature of border closures. This paper fills this gap and offers two sets of analyses: a first assessment of partial closures, enacted after the first wave of the COVID‐19 pandemic and based on the approach applied to European cross‐border regions to measure the costs of legal and administrative barriers (Camagni et al., 2019); and a second measurement based on simulating the impacts of full closures with the Macroeconometric Social Sectoral Territorial (MASST)‐4 model (Capello & Caragliu, 2021a). These analyses also allow for the pinpointing of the spatial distribution of economic losses, and to identify whether different regional typologies suffered the highest contraction.

“…Regardless of their type, borders are bound to shape perceptions and identities, and certain feelings of belonging. The latest literature on border studies draws ideas and expertise from a wide range of disciplines, including political science, regional economics (Studzieniecki, 2021; Studzieniecki et al, 2021; Székely & Kotosz, 2018) and sociology (Wayne, 2006), as well as human and cultural geography (Brambilla 2015; Bureiko et al, 2021; Newman & Paasi, 1998). Borders and regions are somehow fluid and dynamic, since throughout history, nation states’ borders have undergone continuous historical, political, economic, social and cultural variations.…”

Section: Literature On Identity Borders and Attachmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shifting attitudes towards identity, borders and geopolitical choices: The case of Moldova

Simionov

2023

The ongoing war at the immediate borders of the European Union (EU) poses the greatest security risk Europe has known since the end of the Second World War. Although the entire continent is on high alert, the proximity to the conflict is definitely an important factor to consider when assessing security risks. In this regard, not only is Moldova at Ukraine’s border, but its recent history (especially the frozen conflict in Transnistria) and the complicated relations with Russia, add to enhancing people’s fears and uncertainty. Moreover, the closed cultural, historical and ethnic ties that Moldova shares with Romania – a NATO and EU member – often fuel Russia’s threat perceptions to its Transistrian proxy. Within this context, this paper aims to assess the attitudes that Moldovans – a population that is traditionally divided between West and East, between EU (respectively Romania) and Russia – display towards their own identity and the path that their country should embrace in this difficult geopolitical design through mixed methods research. The main findings indicate a clear shift in Moldovans’ attitudes towards a stronger alignment with European integration that is also reflected in the preference regarding their country’s future geopolitical path.