Search

With the rise of creative industries, culture in international relations achieves strong competitive economic advantages. At the same time, it is often a fertile tool in reconciliation be-tween conflicted communities and long-term consolidation of their relations. Economic peace theory claims economic interdependence as being the key factor in achieving peace between communities. Starting from this premise, this paper analysed the success of specific EU fund-ing within cross-border cooperation schemes between Croatia and Serbia in enhancing social relations between the two states and their cooperation, as indirect effects. Adapted Conflict Management and Mitigation Matrix (CMM) served as a basis to confirm the assumption that international relations are enhanced if direct economic benefits for the communities are involved. The research confirmed this assumption and provided recommendations for future EU financial instruments.

The essay documents indications for cracks in the transatlantic relationship, identifies their potential causes, and outlines possible policy responses. Taking up Fukuyama’s question of whether the West “is still a coherent concept,” we draw attention to the growing dissension in the fields of environmental politics, security, and human rights. Subsequently, we offer preliminary explanations for these developments based on three leading schools of thought in International Relations. These explanations make reference to the distribution of power in the international system (realism), to divergent ideas about the nature and the locus of the democratic legitimization of politics (constructivism), and to the configuration of societal interests within states (liberalism). Finally, we come up with some ideas on how to mend the cracks that have appeared in the West, again drawing on the conceptual resources provided by the three schools of thought.