The EU and the Eurasian Economic Union: Conflict, Hybrid Wars and International Business

Brief description

The seminar digs into the full complexity of EU – EEU relations, characterized by conflict. What is the status-quo of relations? What are the areas of conflict? What are the root causes of the conflict? What are the consequences of war and conflict for enterprises? What chances and risks face European enterprises in EEU countries, EU candidate countries in the post-Soviet region, and countries "in-between"? How can they manage these risks? The seminar focuses on the broad spectrum of this relationship between the EU and EEU and its dynamics, i.e. on socio-economic, cultural-historical, political as well as geopolitical-security aspects. Based on this broad perspective, it furthermore asks for its impact on international businesses operating in the region. Starting from this perspective, the course draws on three analytical steps: 1. Status of EU-EEU relations, conflict and hybrid wars: The impact on businesses 2. EEU member states, EU candidate countries in the post-Soviet region, and countries in-between: Risks and chances for European enterprises 3. The challenge of state capture and informality: Risks and chances for European enterprises In order to develop an applied in-depth understanding of the political risk factors at all levels, the course deals with empirical insights from post-Soviet countries. in the first introductory unit, students get familiar with the concept of political risk and the analysis model. Unit two deals with the geopolitical risks (risks at global and international level). Unit three deals with the country level and unit four takes into the Black Box of informal country constellations. Any political risk analysis unveils a certain political risk constellation. The related factors need to be managed. In this regard, the course further introduces political/country risk management strategies.