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and the process of rebuilding and more than, the information given. But cooperation started. In the countries maybe this was the aim of the author, like Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland to capture the readers’ attention and Regions in Central and Eastern Europe, Past and Present. or the three Baltic states, it can be said make him search for the final destiny By Tadayuki Hayashi and Hiroshi Fukuda (eds). Sapporo: Slavic Research that they successfully confirmed to the of Masaryk’s proposal or others similar Center, Hokkaido University, 2007. norms and values of Western Europe to his. while preserving their own identity The attention then moves up to the The presented book is compounded the eyes of ‘outsiders’, researchers from and nationality, but there are still the North into the chapter Regionalization of the papers that were presented at the Slavic Eurasian Studies Program based remaining countries which struggle as Europe-Making: The Case of Europe’s an international symposium entitled in Hokkaido. Some of the presented for acceptance, internal integrity and North. Compared to the first chapter, Regions in Central and Eastern Europe: papers draw a smart line from the past, progress. For those the stories of the Pertii Joenniemi discusses a more Past and Present, held at Hokkaido marking the early beginning of creating mentioned states could serve as an recent period of time and brings in University on December 14 – 16, a region or discuses the intensifying example and lesson on their way to the question of cooperation based 2005. The Slavic Research Center (SRC) cooperation of activities between states political grouping based on certain on internal and external security of which organized the symposium is at a higher national or lower level while common values of past and present. Russia and its relations with the EU a national collaborating institution others also make broader conclusions The whole book is divided into four for example, to the War on Terrorism for comprehensive studies on Slavic or reference to the future. parts but a clear distinction of the topics which divided Europe in the eyes of Eurasian areas (former Soviet and The topic of regional cooperation is on which they focus can not be well the US between an ‘old’ and ‘new’ East European areas). The authors always an actual one and the region of found and the concept of region and Europe where also the states of the are working at Universities in Japan, Central and Eastern Europe is one that regionalism is repeated frequently. North occupied two different camps. , Russia, Czech Republic, can be viewed as a political laboratory The first part entitled Regions in the An interesting debate is then formed Greece, Poland and Norway which and as a model for other regions of Strategy for War and Peace begins with including theoretical backgrounds and covers also the themes and topics the world. The states of the CEE are for us a well known part of our history, reasons for or against cooperation in the discussed in the book. Each author deeply influenced by the project of the in particular Masaryk’s demand to region where the two determinants are refers to works of many European but European Union, by their own domestic create the independent Czechoslovak the EU and Russia each accentuating a also world wide scholars and writers problems and issues and also by their state together with an independent different way of political thinking. The which supplies the short papers with closest neighbors with whom they have Poland and Yugoslavia and an entire overall idea which is promoted by the a lavish of details, sometimes maybe strong historical relations (ranging zone of independent states between author is that a configuration with two not necessarily needed. On grounds from bilateral or multilateral treaties, Germany and Russia. That is the cores, Brussels and Moscow would be of the reason that it results in touching cooperation, ethnic or national conflicts, region of Central and Eastern Europe the optional for further cooperation more than a few aspects of the topic wars etc). The region was marked which he called a ‘zone of small which would be an alternative to the and creating an accumulated overview heavily by the two world wars and left nations’ and the new states in which two excessive approaches: concentric rather than going into depth. But on the the countries economically, spiritually the ‘small oppressed Slavic’ nations Europe and the Olympic rings. contrary the book can serve as a good and culturally devastated. The Balkan would exercise their political freedom, The second part of the book presents starting point if wanting to understand wars still resonate in the hearts of the should be created within historical and a smart shift out of the pure political the evolution of the region and its people and the message of the Russian natural borders. The author lays down thinking as it was in the first part prospects to the future. domination and communist regime is the facts, years and concepts but leaves and brings in a broader and brighter Basically the reading offers an still haunting from the past. But doing an open end to the outcome of the ‘zone perspective of the region starting with interesting miscellaneous vision on the nothing would harm the countries even of small nations’ which is the point the search of identity of the Baltic region of Central and Eastern Europe in more, so a decision had to be made that seems to be as interesting, if not States as complex of culture, politics, 76 Reviews Reviews 77 ethnics and economy. Under each The third part headlines Regional more narrative style and is easy to did far more in Bosnia and Yugoslavia aspect Eiki Berg gives a brief summary Concepts and Locus of Nation, and tries follow which can be marked as a big during war time and afterwards. I where each of the three states, Estonia, to trace the nation building process of positive in comparison with some other would not quite agree with the author and Lithuania stand creating a the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, papers presented earlier. on his opinion because in the present, solid and comprehensible overview. Slovakia (by the person of Ľudovít Štúr), Coming to the end of the book the work of the Office of the High The next chapter then continues to Czech Republic (employing literature) the authors finally reach the more Representative is marked positively elaborate how the ‘Baltic’ is perceived and Greece (cultural changes). The southern parts of the CEE region, and leading Bosnia to become a more internationally and makes final first mentioned paper was probably the Balkans. At the beginning the stable country. remarks that the region is important, the most interesting. The reason why is usage and occurrence of the concept The publication does not have a especially for the US related to the the way in which the author elaborates ‘Balkan’ is introduced, reminding formal epilogue, leaving the reader war on terrorism. Going back into the the Commonwealth (the third largest more of a grammatical lecture, but as to come up with his own conclusion theme of relations between the EU country in the first half of the 17th the author puts it, it will be a clue to and giving him space to absorb all the and Russia, Kaliningrad is introduced century in Europe). The Commonwealth understanding the change of language information given. All in all, the entire in the following chapter. Although is discussed in two aspects: internal performance and of the society which book meets its end as an outcome of being one of the shorter papers, the diversity and political organization and uses it, helping us to keep up with the a symposium on the Regions of Central aim of the author is to broaden the integration of such a huge territorial Balkans. And, last but not least is the and Eastern Europe: Past and Present. For understanding of Kaliningrad’s current complex which strongly reminds me of final paper by Dzemal Sokolovic which the people not living in this region and place in European politics and its the European Union and its functioning could be remarked as one of the best not knowing probably as much as a future was achieved by answering the on the same bases. A comparison of ones, discussing the relations of the US native inhabitant the book can serve fundamental questions that concern the past and present here would be a and Europe towards Democratization for general understanding. Anyone both the EU and Russian sides. The compelling point. On the contrary the in the Balkans, specifically Bosnia and who is interested in studying the topic of the distinction between the Slovak and Czech cases are written in a Herzegovina. The controversial point ‘central’ region from a broader aspect West and Russia seems to dominate more complex way and a basic level of is that Sokolovic perceives Europe as not only the historical-political one, the whole second part. At the end of background knowledge about Slovak a threat to Bosnia and makes remarks but also encountering the cultural it, the last chapter introduces a small history and Czech literature is vital to that the people in the Balkans have dimension linked with myths or discourse on whether there exists fully understanding the processes of a good reason to be scared of any even morphological background and a ‘central European’ consciousness nation building. further steps coming from Europe and literature should find this publication through literature using the examples The fourth and final part of the rather the US is the one that really attractive. of (Czech), Witold book, Regional Identities in Central and helps. Europe is portrayed as the one Gombrowicz (Polish), Jaan Kross Eastern Europe leads us into the period that offers democracy but only as a Rebecca Murray (Estonian), (Albanian) after the Second World War and turns seductive carrot through out the Office Faculty of Social and Economic and Milorad Pavić (Serbian). From my the focus on the search for identity of the High Representative and its Bonn Sciences, Comenius University, point of view and literature that I have of the after-war states especially Powers while the US is the one that Bratislava read I would agree with the authors focusing on a certain effort to escape conclusion that the central European from the German domination. Various literature is keenly aware of its position processes are presented ranging from between Western Europe and Russia the deportation of the Germans from by stressing its difference from Russia Czechoslovakia to changing names of and wishes to assimilate itself to the the ex-German territories in Poland. West but always related to both. This part of the book is written in a