The EU as a regional actor: The case of the Czech Republic

Abstract:

This article examines the impact of EU enlargement on regionalisation in the Czech Republic. It asks whether pre-accession preparations for EU regional policy have promoted regionalisation and governmental decentralisation in the Czech Republic, a question prompted by the debate about EU regional policy and regionalisation in the current Member States. After reviewing Czech preparations for EU regional policy and the administration of pre-accession structural aid programmes, it concludes that the EU's impact on regionalisation in the Czech Republic has been both limited and highly ambivalent. The article thus confirms the findings of previous research on EU enlargement and regionalisation in the candidate countries