Minority strains in Eastern Europe threaten EU unity

Subject

Central-Eastern Europe's ethnic and national minorities.

Significance

Ethnic and national minority rights in Central-Eastern Europe (CEE) were once prominent in European discourse; today's silence hardly indicates policy success. They have been swept under the carpet by nationalist forces coming together to form a new, illiberal 'pole'. Exclusionary nationalism challenges largely symbolic minority protection regimes and encourages prejudice, fuelling social instability and threatening severe intra- and interstate conflicts.

Impacts

• EU cohesion will be further undermined as neighbours brawl over national minorities.
• For lack of a coherent and legitimate EU approach, the integration of recent arrivals will pose a serious challenge.
• Russia's use of ethnic Russians and CEE's exclusionary identity politics will continue in a mutually reinforcing cycle.