The EU's Eastern Partnership - a misunderstood offer of cooperation

"The European Union's Eastern Partnership, initiated by Poland and Sweden, may fall through without ever having really gotten off the ground. Sweden, the current holder of the EU's rotating presidency, has failed to give the deserved priority and attention to its own initiative. In Russia, the fear is that the EU is seeking to strengthen its influence in the East. Meanwhile, the leadership of Ukraine, one of the strategically most important target countries of the Partnership, opposes the initiative. As such, EU members, the target countries, and Russia misunderstand the purpose of the proposed partnership. It is important to use the Eastern Partnership as a basis for developing a essentially new policy towards EU's neighbors in the East. The Eastern Partnership is of fundamental importance for European energy supplies and the future viability of the EU. Therefore, the EU countries finally must commit themselves to a strategic development of this region and conduct an interests-oriented neighborhood policy that integrates or, if necessary, pressures Russia." (author's abstract) "Die polnisch-schwedische Initiative einer Östlichen Partnerschaft der EU könnte scheitern, bevor sie überhaupt richtig begonnen hat. Denn die schwedische EU-Ratspräsidentschaft behandelt ihre eigene Initiative nicht prioritär und verleiht der Östlichen Partnerschaft so nicht das Gewicht, das sie bräuchte. In Russland besteht der Verdacht, die EU wolle ihr Einflussgebiet weiter in den Osten verlagern. Und in den Adressatenstaaten opponiert gerade in der strategisch wichtigen Ukraine die Führung gegen die neue EU-Initiative. Dabei fehlinterpretieren einige EU-Staaten, die Adressaten-Länder und Russland die Rolle dieser Initiative. Wichtig wäre, die Östliche Partnerschaft als Grundlage für eine substanziell neue Politik gegenüber den östlichen Nachbarstaaten der EU zu entwickeln. Die östliche Nachbarschaft ist von entscheidender Bedeutung für die europäische Energieversorgung und für die Zukunftsfähigkeit der Union. Deswegen müssen sich die EU-Staaten endlich zur strategischen Entwicklung dieser Region bekennen und eine interessenorientierte Nachbarschaftspolitik unter Einbeziehung von, aber – falls nötig – auch mit Druck auf Russland betreiben." [Autorenreferat

Testfall Belarus: Konsequenzen für die EU aus den Präsidentschaftswahlen 2010

Alexander Lukaschenko hat am Abend der belarussischen Präsidentschaftswahlen am 19. Dezember 2010 gezeigt, dass nur ohne ihn ein demokratisches Belarus möglich ist. Die gewaltsame Auflösung von Protesten, die Inhaftierung von über 600 Personen, die Durchsuchung von Büros von Menschenrechtsorganisationen und Medien, die Missachtung elementarster Menschenrechte durch die belarussischen Sicherheitsorgane sollten mit harten Sanktionen der EU beantwortet werden. Die EU-Mitgliedstaaten müssen das Regime Lukaschenkos ökonomisch und politisch unter Druck setzen, ohne dabei die belarussische Zivilgesellschaft zu isolieren. Gleichzeitig muss Russland in die Verantwortung genommen werden, da es im Hintergrund das System Lukaschenko stabilisiert. Meint die EU ihr Eintreten für Demokratie und Menschenrechte ernst, muss sie Belarus zum Testfall für eine konsequente Außenpolitik machen

Die Östliche Partnerschaft der EU - ein Kooperationsangebot mit Missverständnissen

"Die polnisch-schwedische Initiative einer Östlichen Partnerschaft der EU könnte scheitern, bevor sie überhaupt richtig begonnen hat. Denn die schwedische EU-Ratspräsidentschaft behandelt ihre eigene Initiative nicht prioritär und verleiht der Östlichen Partnerschaft so nicht das Gewicht, das sie bräuchte. In Russland besteht der Verdacht, die EU wolle ihr Einflussgebiet weiter in den Osten verlagern. Und in den Adressatenstaaten opponiert gerade in der strategisch wichtigen Ukraine die Führung gegen die neue EU-Initiative. Dabei fehlinterpretieren einige EU-Staaten, die Adressaten-Länder und Russland die Rolle dieser Initiative. Wichtig wäre, die Östliche Partnerschaft als Grundlage für eine substanziell neue Politik gegenüber den östlichen Nachbarstaaten der EU zu entwickeln. Die östliche Nachbarschaft ist von entscheidender Bedeutung für die europäische Energieversorgung und für die Zukunftsfähigkeit der Union. Deswegen müssen sich die EU-Staaten endlich zur strategischen Entwicklung dieser Region bekennen und eine interessenorientierte Nachbarschaftspolitik unter Einbeziehung von, aber – falls nötig – auch mit Druck auf Russland betreiben." (Autorenreferat

Revisiting the Uniform Information Density Hypothesis

The uniform information density (UID) hypothesis posits a preference among language users for utterances structured such that information is distributed uniformly across a signal. While its implications on language production have been well explored, the hypothesis potentially makes predictions about language comprehension and linguistic acceptability as well. Further, it is unclear how uniformity in a linguistic signal -- or lack thereof -- should be measured, and over which linguistic unit, e.g., the sentence or language level, this uniformity should hold. Here we investigate these facets of the UID hypothesis using reading time and acceptability data. While our reading time results are generally consistent with previous work, they are also consistent with a weakly super-linear effect of surprisal, which would be compatible with UID's predictions. For acceptability judgments, we find clearer evidence that non-uniformity in information density is predictive of lower acceptability. We then explore multiple operationalizations of UID, motivated by different interpretations of the original hypothesis, and analyze the scope over which the pressure towards uniformity is exerted. The explanatory power of a subset of the proposed operationalizations suggests that the strongest trend may be a regression towards a mean surprisal across the language, rather than the phrase, sentence, or document -- a finding that supports a typical interpretation of UID, namely that it is the byproduct of language users maximizing the use of a (hypothetical) communication channel

Longitudinal association between positive affect and blood lipids in patients following acute myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVE Unfavorable blood lipid profiles are robust risk factors in predicting atherosclerotic disease. Studies have shown that positive affect (PA) is associated with a favorable lipid profile. However, longitudinal studies regarding the course of PA and lipid profiles in myocardial infarction (MI) patients are lacking. Therefore, the aim of this study was to prospectively explore the association between PA and blood lipid levels across three inv estigations over 12 months following acute MI. METHODS Patients following an acute MI were examined at hospital admission (n = 190), and at 3 months (n = 154) and 12 months (n = 106) thereafter. Linear mixed effect regression models were used to evaluate the relation between PA, assessed with the Global Mood Scale, and blood lipid levels. Potential confounding variables were controlled for in the analysis. RESULTS Higher PA was significantly associated with higher high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels and a lower total cholesterol (TC)/HDL-C ratio over time, independent of demographic factors, indices of cardiac disease severity, comorbidity, medication use, health behaviors, serum cortisol and negative affect (p≤0.040). No association was found between PA and the two blood lipids low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglycerides (TG). CONCLUSIONS Positive affect was independently associated with HDL-C levels and the TC/HDL-C ratio in patients up to 1 year after MI. The findings support a potential role of PA for cardiovascular health through an association with a favorable blood lipid profile

Positive psychosocial factors and the development of symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms following acute myocardial infarction

Introduction: Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is a potentially fatal condition, leading to high psychological distress and possibly resulting in the development of depressive symptoms and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). The aim of this study was to investigate the association of clusters of positive psychosocial factors (resilience, task-oriented coping, positive affect and social support) with both MI-induced depressive symptoms and PTSS, independent of demographic factors. Methods: We investigated 154 consecutive patients with MI, 3 and 12 months after hospital discharge. All patients completed the short version of the German Resilience Scale, the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), the Enriched Social Support Inventory (ESSI) and the Global Mood Scale (GMS). The level of interviewer-rated MI-induced posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms at 3- and 12-months follow-up was evaluated through the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Depressive symptoms were assessed at 3- and 12-month follow-up with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II). Results: Three different clusters were revealed: (1) lonely cluster: lowest social support, resilience and average task-oriented coping and positive affect; (2) low risk cluster: highest resilience, task-oriented coping, positive affect and social support; (3) avoidant cluster: lowest task-oriented coping, positive affect, average resilience and social support. The clusters differed in depressive symptoms at 3 months (F = 5.10; p < 0.01) and 12 months follow-up (F = 7.56; p < 0.01). Cluster differences in PTSS were significant at 3 months (F = 4.78, p < 0.05) and 12 months (F = 5.57, p < 0.01) follow-up. Differences in PTSS subscales were found for avoidance (F = 4.8, p < 0.05) and hyperarousal (F = 5.63, p < 0.05), but not re-experiencing, at 3 months follow-up. At 12 months follow-up, cluster differences were significant for re-experiencing (F = 6.44, p < 0.01) and avoidance (F = 4.02, p < 0.05) but not hyperarousal. Discussion: The present study contributes to a better understanding of the relationships among different positive psychosocial factors, depressive symptoms and PTSS following acute MI. Future interventions may benefit from taking into account positive psychosocial factors to potentially reduce patients’ depressive symptoms and PTSS after MI

Positive psychosocial factors and the development of symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms following acute myocardial infarction.

INTRODUCTION Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is a potentially fatal condition, leading to high psychological distress and possibly resulting in the development of depressive symptoms and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). The aim of this study was to investigate the association of clusters of positive psychosocial factors (resilience, task-oriented coping, positive affect and social support) with both MI-induced depressive symptoms and PTSS, independent of demographic factors. METHODS We investigated 154 consecutive patients with MI, 3 and 12 months after hospital discharge. All patients completed the short version of the German Resilience Scale, the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), the Enriched Social Support Inventory (ESSI) and the Global Mood Scale (GMS). The level of interviewer-rated MI-induced posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms at 3- and 12-months follow-up was evaluated through the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Depressive symptoms were assessed at 3- and 12-month follow-up with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II). RESULTS Three different clusters were revealed: (1) lonely cluster: lowest social support, resilience and average task-oriented coping and positive affect; (2) low risk cluster: highest resilience, task-oriented coping, positive affect and social support; (3) avoidant cluster: lowest task-oriented coping, positive affect, average resilience and social support. The clusters differed in depressive symptoms at 3 months (F = 5.10; p < 0.01) and 12 months follow-up (F = 7.56; p < 0.01). Cluster differences in PTSS were significant at 3 months (F = 4.78, p < 0.05) and 12 months (F = 5.57, p < 0.01) follow-up. Differences in PTSS subscales were found for avoidance (F = 4.8, p < 0.05) and hyperarousal (F = 5.63, p < 0.05), but not re-experiencing, at 3 months follow-up. At 12 months follow-up, cluster differences were significant for re-experiencing (F = 6.44, p < 0.01) and avoidance (F = 4.02, p < 0.05) but not hyperarousal. DISCUSSION The present study contributes to a better understanding of the relationships among different positive psychosocial factors, depressive symptoms and PTSS following acute MI. Future interventions may benefit from taking into account positive psychosocial factors to potentially reduce patients' depressive symptoms and PTSS after MI

Longitudinal association between positive affect and blood lipids in patients following acute myocardial infarction

Objective: Unfavorable blood lipid profiles are robust risk factors in predicting atherosclerotic disease. Studies have shown that positive affect (PA) is associated with a favorable lipid profile. However, longitudinal studies regarding the course of PA and lipid profiles in myocardial infarction (MI) patients are lacking. Therefore, the aim of this study was to prospectively explore the association between PA and blood lipid levels across three inv estigations over 12 months following acute MI. Methods: Patients following an acute MI were examined at hospital admission (n = 190), and at 3 months (n = 154) and 12 months (n = 106) thereafter. Linear mixed effect regression models were used to evaluate the relation between PA, assessed with the Global Mood Scale, and blood lipid levels. Potential confounding variables were controlled for in the analysis. Results: Higher PA was significantly associated with higher high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels and a lower total cholesterol (TC)/HDL-C ratio over time, independent of demographic factors, indices of cardiac disease severity, comorbidity, medication use, health behaviors, serum cortisol and negative affect (p≤0.040). No association was found between PA and the two blood lipids low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglycerides (TG). Conclusions: Positive affect was independently associated with HDL-C levels and the TC/HDL-C ratio in patients up to 1 year after MI. The findings support a potential role of PA for cardiovascular health through an association with a favorable blood lipid profile