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Europe has been recently shaken by the great number of persons coming from Syria and neighbouring countries which were calling themselves “refugees”. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, since 2015 more than 1 million refugees travelled to Greece. This paper aims to analyze the notion of “refugees” in light of international legal instruments applicable and to draw up distinctions between different categories of migrant persons and those who are really refugees and may apply for international protection under the 1951 UN Convention on refugees. The distinction regarding the use of terms is relevant for shaping the legal status of different persons who leave their country of origin.

Eastern Partnership includes, in addition to bilateral components (Association Agreements, Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas/DCFTA), also a multilateral dimension as "economic integration and convergence with EU policies". This stated purpose of the partnership involves the need for adaptability to regional conditions and a differentiated approach to economies in the region in order to establish common objectives. Partner countries have aspirations that vary by geographic location, state of relations with the European Union and Russia, foreign policy objectives in medium and long term, real prospects of joining the European Union, or internal stability in economic and social aspects. Macroeconomic indicators specific to each country must undergo a dynamic analysis aimed on current situations and also on evolution of economic life. Thus, it requires processing a huge volume of historical data, creating possible scenarios based on policies implemented or being implemented to reach comprehensive information to provide a realistic picture of the economic growth at the macro level. Successfully implemented in enterprises, Business Intelligence (BI) applications can be used to analyze large volume of data required to be processed to reach full and useful reports for the process of negotiation between the partners involved in the agreements referred and, very importantly, to establish a common language for all bodies and institutions co-opted into negotiations. Differences between the EU and other Eastern Partnership countries are obvious but economic common terms and methods or techniques of similar work can help plan positive developments in the negotiations and the desired convergence of economic policies. Business Intelligence tools simplify the presentation of needed information for discussions and provide a foundation in starting up joint analysis of economic dynamics in the area to reach complete and actual lines of future possible cooperation. This paper aims to reveal practical aspects on possible implementation of BI capabilities in the field of data analysis that is needed for the economic integration promoted by the Eastern Partnership.

In the current decentralization reforms and severe budget constraints faced by Eastern European countries, we consider as imperative to analyze the effectiveness of structural funds management at regional level. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to estimate the technical efficiency of attracting structural funds by the regions in Poland, Bulgaria and Romania, determining the factors that influence efficiency and its implications for local development. The calculations were based on the mathematical model Data Envelopment Analysis, the main source of data being EUROSTAT. The estimates confirm the strong need for systemic reforms in the organization and operation of the development regions: modification of current transfer system, strengthen financial autonomy and solve the problem of excessive fragmentation of administrative-territorial structure, all having a negative impact on the efficiency of absorption of European funds developing regions of analyzed states.