30 years after : what has the 1989 democratic transition brought to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe? [Part I]

This contribution was delivered on the occasion of the EUI State of the Union in Florence on 02 May 2019In 1989, peaceful transitions started in the countries of the former Soviet bloc, with the round-table discussions in Poland and Hungary, and with the ‘Velvet Revolution’ in what was then known as Czechoslovakia. Soon after they set up the Visegrád Group with a view to better represent their interests at the EU level. More recently, however, parties with populist tendencies have come into power in some of the four countries creating concerns about the rise of illiberalism. This session will consider the developments in the region and their root causes. The historical circumstances of the democratic transition from an outside perspective. What is the current political role of the Visegrád Group in particular, and Central Europe in general? What do they have in common and what divides Central European countries