Articles and Publications

As part of the internships provided by our Brussels office to Czech researchers, Tereza Stašáková wrote a policy paper on rising electricity prices and developments in the EU. It analyses the reasons for rising prices and how EU Member States have reacted to the situation. And whether the solution is to restructure the electricity market.

In her EU Monitor, Zsanett Gréta Papp discusses the current energy situation in the EU Member States. Where to look for a replacement for gas from Russia? And how will this decision affect the EU's green policy agenda?

The war in Ukraine and the subsequent economic crisis caused by Europe's dependence on Russian fossil fuels showed Europeans the danger of keeping too tight economic ties to autocratic regimes. However, while Europe is shedding its dependence on Russia, another economic reliance is gaining strenght, namely that of Germany on China. In her blog, our intern Kristina Kropáčková explores the broader context of this phenomenon and its implications for EU cohesion.

The recent US midterm elections made headlines around the world. The main issues that voters were interested in were the state of democracy and the rule of law, abortion, the economy and education. Our intern Tomáš Moudrý addressed these topics in his blog. "The most expensive midterms in the US history are over. Republicans gained the House majority with 221 seats and the Democrats retained the Senate with 51 seats. Is this a surprising result? Partly yes, partly no. Firstly, polls and even Republicans were sure about a “Red wave“ that would sweep across the US. Instead, there was a tossup in both Chambers of the Congress. Secondly, the President’s party usually lose the midterms. One can argue that midterms from the incumbent President’s party perspective traditionally have just one major goal – to mitigate losses by the closest possible margin. The Democrats seem to have found a way to deal with this fate, despite Biden's low approval rating."

When will the Czech Republic be ready to adopt the euro, as it committed to when it joined the EU. Why do we not have the euro yet and what will be the impact of its adoption? Our intern Šárka Váchalová covered this topic in her blog.

In his EU Monitor, Jonathan Lyons writes about the future of solar energy in the Czech Republic. "Harnessing the full potential of solar energy will not only help to meet the EU's decarbonisation targets, but also boost energy security and create local jobs. The potential for solar energy in the Czech Republic is considerable, up to 12 GW," writes Lyons.

In her blog, our intern Leonor Tavares focuses on the new European media freedom act. Independent media as a means of freedom of expression is under threat in some EU member states and is being used for political propaganda or is being shut down altogether. The new law should ensure that public service media provide a plurality of information in an impartial manner, while regulating their funding and the acquisition and protection of journalistic sources.

European Union countries are facing a period of gas consumption cuts. Although the proposal agreed by Member States aims for a voluntary reduction of 15% in consumption in the coming months compared to the average of the past five years, the pressure for even greater savings will grow. And not only in natural gas consumption, but also in electricity. Our researcher Michal Hrubý has written an overview of gas and its use in the Czech Republic, in which he highlights the need for savings to help us get through this year's heating season and answers several questions related to gas consumption. Where does the Czech Republic stand on gas? What are our supplies and where to get new capacity? And how can we save for next winter? These questions are also answered in the review. We will update the overview gradually (originally published on 1 August 2022).

In her blog, our intern Barbora Volkova discusses the new Franco-German proposal regarding the Kosovo-Serbia disputes. She analyses what this initiative entails and what relevance it may have for the accession negotiations within the European Union.

This report, written by Tatiana Mindekova, is the first part of the future publication for our project “Decarbonization of the Industrial Sector: Sustainable finance as an opportunity?“, which is funded by the European Climate Initiative. It offers an overview of the key climate policies of the European Union, with special attention paid to the heavy industry sector.

Our Danielle Piatkiewicz contributed with her chapter on "Securing a Digital Future" to the publication "Strategic partnership for a secure and digital Europe", published by the Centre for European Perspective. Danielle and other authors have created a publication on transatlantic cooperation and its impact on the digital future.

This policy brief summarizes the conclusions of the EU Enlargement Think-Tank Forum “Rethinking Enlargement in times of Geopolitical Earthquakes” organized in cooperation with Heinrich Böll Stiftung Prague Office and other partners.