Final Exam Flashcards
What countries is Poland sandwiched between?
Germany and FSU
Has Poland traditionally opposed the state/institutions?
Yes
Who does Poland look at as a whole to fix world problems?
Europe
Is Polish Foreign Policy Pro-Western?
Yes
Who divided Poland during the late 1700s
Russia, Prussia, and Austria
Percentage of Poles in Poland in 1920’s vs. 1989
68% vs. 91%
1st Independent prime minister, minister of foreign affairs, and president of Poland came about when?
1989-1990
When was Germany unified?
1990
When was the Warsaw Pact/USSR/COMECON dissolved?
1991
Polands main goals after dissolution of USSR?
Maintain relationship with Russia, support new surrounding republics, and support their newfound independence
Who are Poland’s 2 Geopolitical pivots?
Belarus and Ukraine
Council of Europe (COE)
Poland applied in 1991, to show the rest of Europe they shared the western ideals and wanted to be a democracy
in 1998, Poland became the 28th member of which European organization?
Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (where European nations help each other economically, raise living standards etc.)
Nato Memberhip
Poland joined in 1999, NATO started in 49
PHARE Program
1 of 3 pre-accession instruments used by the EU to prepare Central/Eastern European countries to join the EU
The task of the Plenipotentiary was:
To prepare EU accession negotiations (head of negotiations team(, present opinions on legal documents, and report regularly on his activities
National/Personal Identity
Polish people feel very Polish and a part of their own Polish cultures/traditions/religion, but they don’t necessarily feel ‘European’
- ‘European’ identity can feel like a threat to ‘national’ identity
Europeanization
The introduction and implementation of formal and informal rules by which a country governs itself and its policies (westernization)
Rule of Accession Agreement:
“Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed on”
- Anything can be changed until the final version of the treaty is decided
Acquis Communitaire
Covers all EU legislation, treaties, negotiations, agreements (overview of European Union Law)
Transitional Arrangement
a 12 year transitional period where changes in agriculture and movement of workers etc. are allowed gradually
Environmental Transitional Arrangement
Improving
- Sulphur content of liquid fuels
- Emissions of volatile compounds
- Recycling
- Waste landfills
- Water treatment
- Air pollution
How long is the Acquis Communitaire?
100,000 pages
Why was Poland viewed as the most difficult country to include in Europe?
Size and Agriculture
What percentage were in favor of the 2003 accession?
77%
What’s the biggest reason for ‘Pro-European’ Attitudes
Distrust in Domestic politics
What country has been most successful taking advantage of EU economic opportunities?
Poland, nearly quadrupling its exports in the past 10 years
Unemployment rate in Poland across the last 10 years?
20% to 9%
Overall fear of Eurosceptics and Eurorejects
- Losing independence/change in borders
- Domination by bigger countries
- Loss of Polish identity
- EU destroying nation’s economy
- Reduction of Christian values
What is the European Council?
Group appointed to help improve and prioritize EU tasks
- Includes heads of states + president of organization
- Meets quarterly
Treaty of Nice
Provides weighted voting in the EU so that countries with larger populations have a bigger voting influence
Double Majority Voting means:
55% of the EU council must approve, and account for 65% of EU citizens
The Polish Council of Ministers duty is:
To conduct internal affairs and foreign policy
Polish Parliament is split into 2 houses:
Lower House (Senate) - 100 Upper House (Sejm) - 460
