Strategic communication themes in the EU and its Member States. Decision and common policies

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Subtitle: 
For communication professionals in preparation for Romania's 2019 EU Council presidency

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Aims and scope: 
This course aims to offer participants an in-depth understanding of the political processes and major themes of the EU; to introduce them to key debates on EU cooperation and involvement at an international level; to present the current state of the integration process in correlation with the support and opposition to this process; and last but not least, to acquaint the participants with the recent and major events which influence the EU’s position in the international arena.
Topics: 
1. The challenges of European integration process. 2. Democracy, citizenship and legitimacy in the European Union. Progress to increase the democratic legitimacy of the EU under the Lisbon Treaty. Provisions on democratic principles. 3. Member States and the policy behind closed doors. Transparency in the EU Council. 4. Policy-making and the Europeanization of foreign policy. 5. Representation of interests in the European Union. Lobbyists influence on decision-making. 6. Economic and Monetary Union. 7. The economic crisis in the euro area - a short history. 8. Justice and Home Affairs: back to Fortress Europe? 9. Energy - a strategy for development and security. 10. The external dimension of the EU. The need for reform of the Eastern Partnership. 11. The European Union and international negotiations: consistency and credibility. 12. The European Union as a global actor - opportunities and challenges.
Indicative reading: 
• Anderson, Karen M. 2015. Social Policy in the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Baun, Michael and Dan Marek. 2014. Cohesion Policy in the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Boswell, Christina and Andrew Geddes. 2010. Migration and Mobility in the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Buonanno, Laurie and Neill Nugent. 2013. Policies and Policy Processes of the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Dreyer, Iana and Gerald Stang. 2014. Energy moves and power shifts. EU foreign policy and global security. Paris: EU Institute for Security Studies. • European Commission: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation. 2014A global actor in search of a strategy. European Union foreign policy between multilateralism and bilateralism. • General Secretariat of the Council. 2014. Foreign Policy: Key terms in 24 languages. • Greenwood, Justin. 2011 Interest Representation in the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Hix, Simon and Bjørn Høyland. 2011. The Political System of the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Leuffen, Dirk, Berthold Rittberger and Frank Schimmelfennig. 2012. Differentiated Integration. Explaining Variation in the European Union. Palgrave Macmillan. • Prifti, Eviola. 2014. Strategy matters: 2003-2014. Paris: EU Institute for Security Studies. • Soetendorp, Ben. 2014. Foreign Policy in the European Union: History, theory & practice. Routledge.
Teaching modules: