Polarisation in the Eastern European Neighbourhood – Moldova Case

Polarisation in the Eastern European Neighbourhood – Moldova Case
This event has been postponed until:

7 September, 13:00-15:00 (CEST)

13 July, 12:00 – 14:00 CEST

On Thursday, 7 Sept., 2023, the second event within the ‘Polarisation in the Eastern European Neighbourhood’ trajectory will kick off. After the country case on Georgia last month (see report here), this (online) country case session is on Moldova.

Register below if you’re interested in:

• Unpacking polarisation in Moldova through the lens of the social contract.
• Perspectives on this topic of two current and former Moldavian politicians.
• Participating in a discussion with them and each other on ways forward to reduce polarisation in Moldova.
• The role the EU and partners can play in supporting rule of law and democracy in Moldova

Background

In established democracies, extreme ideological differences in a left to right scale between political actors is considered the definition of polarisation. However, in the Eastern European region left to right differences are generally not that pronounced and strong societal divides are based on geo-political orientation (Russia or the West) embedded in the value dimensions of social conservatism and social liberalism.

The war in Ukraine has put further pressure on these divides and increased the levels of polarisation in the region. These strong emotions and more extreme political discourse can lead to increasing isolation of various political actors from one another, making interactions more and more destructive and less conducive to democracy. This therefore enhances the possibility of political crisis and destabilisation in countries in the region and makes overcoming these divides more and more difficult. Thereby threatening both security (foreign interference, violence) and rule of law (politicisation, securitisation).

This session & broader trajectory

Amy Eaglestone (researcher at the University of Birmingham) and KPSRL have initiated this event series under the KPSRL Thematic Headline’s subtheme ‘Resilience to Polarisation’, interrogating the specific mechanisms behind polarisation in this region and discussing possible responses from the perspective of the social contract. Moldova is the second of two country cases (the first one being Georgia), after which a roundtable will follow to inform EU-level policy and programming related to support for rule of law and democracy in the Eastern European region.

Register below to join us online on Thursday, 7 September, 2023 from 13:00-15:00 (CEST) via Zoom.

Click here to see the full Concept Note of this session and the broader trajectory.

Agenda