The EU's Democracy Promotion Meets Informal Politics: The Case of Leaders' Meetings in the Republic of Macedonia
Journal
Region: Regional Studies of Russia, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia
Date Issued
2018-07
Author(s)
Markovikj, Nenad
DOI
10.1353/reg.2018.0017
Abstract
Previous studies of the effects of EU political conditionality on democratic
consolidation in the candidate countries have been predominantly centered
on the formal aspects of institutional compliance. But what happens when
EU demands are met by EU brokered decisions in an informal, extra institutional
setting? International actors, predominantly the USA and the EU,
have played an essential political role in the democratization of the Republic
of Macedonia ever since its independence. In times of political crises, the role
of the international actors is further accentuated by the inability of domestic
political parties to find a solution to specific political dead ends that seem to
occur regularly in Macedonian politics. The paper analyzes the effects of EU
engagement in stimulating, instigating, and managing extra-institutional political
formats of decision making on democratization and institutionalization
in Macedonia. The analysis focuses on the leadership meetings during political
crises that have resulted in such package deals as the Ohrid Framework Agreement,
the Law on Territorial Organization, and the May Agreement, with a
predominant accent on the 2014 political crisis in Macedonia and its ongoing
resolution. The paper argues that while such informal practices of conflict resolution
might be effective in the short run, they could negatively impact the
long-term prospects of institutionalization.
consolidation in the candidate countries have been predominantly centered
on the formal aspects of institutional compliance. But what happens when
EU demands are met by EU brokered decisions in an informal, extra institutional
setting? International actors, predominantly the USA and the EU,
have played an essential political role in the democratization of the Republic
of Macedonia ever since its independence. In times of political crises, the role
of the international actors is further accentuated by the inability of domestic
political parties to find a solution to specific political dead ends that seem to
occur regularly in Macedonian politics. The paper analyzes the effects of EU
engagement in stimulating, instigating, and managing extra-institutional political
formats of decision making on democratization and institutionalization
in Macedonia. The analysis focuses on the leadership meetings during political
crises that have resulted in such package deals as the Ohrid Framework Agreement,
the Law on Territorial Organization, and the May Agreement, with a
predominant accent on the 2014 political crisis in Macedonia and its ongoing
resolution. The paper argues that while such informal practices of conflict resolution
might be effective in the short run, they could negatively impact the
long-term prospects of institutionalization.