Central and Eastern European countries have large differences in many aspects such as national size, economic development level, history and culture, ethnic religion, and relations with different major countries, and these characteristics provide many "entry points" for think tanks to influence decision-makers. In recent years, think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries have played an important role in the decision-making of governments inside and outside the country, especially in the context of economic transformation, national governance and other difficulties that have added more uncertainty to the integration process, and provided a large number of case studies for scholars in Europe and even the world. These cases include not only internal problems in Central and Eastern European countries, but also other policy issues, such as the tensions between NATO and Russia, the governance crisis brought about by the EU's "eastward expansion", economic and trade exchanges, and contradictions in transition, which have affected the development choices of these countries. Understanding the complex region of Central and Eastern Europe requires a better understanding of the development of its think tanks, including research priorities, roles, dilemmas and solutions. Due to the multiple definitions of "CEECs", this article focuses on the 16 CEECs covered by the "China-CEEC Cooperation" mechanism of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China.
The think tank system presents regional characteristics
In 2004, with the accession of a large number of Central and Eastern European countries to the European Union, the number and variety of think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries increased significantly. According to a report released by the "Think Tank Research Project" (TTCSP) of the University of Pennsylvania, as of 2020, there are 558 think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries, accounting for 30% of the number of think tanks in European countries. The distribution of the number of think tanks among Ceeoche countries is uneven. The larger numbers are 72 in Poland, 58 in Romania, 54 in Hungary, 47 in Bulgaria and 34 in Serbia, while Latvia (16) and Estonia (16) next to the Baltic Sea and Montenegro in the Western Balkans (12) are even fewer. From the perspective of think tank rankings, among the top 100 think tanks in the world in terms of comprehensive strength, there are relatively few think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries.
Looking at the history of the development of think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries, a particularly obvious phenomenon is that the rise of think tanks in these countries is highly consistent with the process of EU integration. Judging from the time of establishment, many think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries were established in the early 1990s and were most concentrated in the early 21st century, coinciding with the historical process of the European Union's "eastward expansion" at the end of the 20th century. In Poland, for example, there were fewer than 10 think tanks in the early 1990s, and by 2000 there were 35 in just a decade. It can be seen that in the period of major adjustment, social change has put forward a huge demand for think tanks. From the perspective of research priorities, the research focus of most think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries today mainly focuses on economic development, social governance and foreign relations.
The think tank system in Central and Eastern European countries is still evolving, with the following outstanding features. First, unlike the U.S. think tanks, which directly influence and shape decision-making at the highest level through the "revolving door" mechanism and the congressional hearing system, the "revolving door" mechanism of the think tanks of Central and Eastern European countries is a two-tier (EU regional level and the domestic level of European countries) flow structure, affecting the formulation of these national policies. Second, many think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries have obvious partisan and official overtones, and some think tanks have shown a tendency to develop in the direction of pressure groups or lobby groups. Because the supranational EU coexists with sovereign states, political parties, trade union associations, trade associations and various types of political, interest and lobbies in Central and Eastern European countries often cross countries and form a system of alliances that transcend national borders. Such joint systems tend to pool resources and set up or fund specific think tanks on their own. In this context, the research topics and research starting points of some think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries also have a relatively obvious tendency. Affected by factors such as the short history of think tank development, think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries have a higher degree of government funding, or government funding is an important driving factor for the development of these think tanks. Some think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries do not shy away from their close relationship with the government or political parties, and relying on the government or a political party has become a realistic choice, and a unique political party-think tank mechanism has been formed.
There is an urgent need to improve professionalism
The development path of think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries also faces many challenges and problems. At present, many think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries still face a series of challenges such as competing with their well-funded Western European or EU think tanks, the lack of foreign language talents who can promote international cooperation, the lack of domestic donors, the political bias of government and university-affiliated think tanks, and the brain drain.
The first is the issue of the independence of think tanks. The phenomenon of think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries receiving external funding is relatively common, resulting in a lack of independence in the setting of research topics for think tanks. For example, some American think tanks and organizations have begun to set foot in Central and Eastern Europe in their own ways, such as the Marshall Foundation, the American Democracy Foundation (NED), and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, which have set up branches in Central and Eastern European countries. However, the above-mentioned think tank branches are more based on the diplomatic and foreign economic interests of the country, focusing on the national conditions of the target country or its foreign policy, etc., rather than in line with the interests of the country where the think tank is located.
In addition, many think tanks specializing in foreign policy work closely with the government's foreign affairs department, thus representing the national interest to some extent. For example, the International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS) in Estonia, all of its board members are subordinate to government agencies. At the same time, most think tanks in Estonia have a clear pro-EU stance, as they exist primarily to promote cooperation with the EU and to promote their political values. At the same time, some think tanks strongly advocate NATO interests and aim to strengthen Estonia's role in NATO. However, due to political instability, changes in government will bring about a constant change of priorities, which also limits the influence of think tanks and the continuity of research.
The second is the issue of funding. Since the European Union launched the European Transparency Initiative, think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries have been required to disclose budget funding and funding sources. Therefore, think tanks want to maintain the independence of policy analysis on the one hand, and on the other hand, they want to ensure that sponsors fund them, and in order to balance these two aspects, think tanks face more and more challenges. In countries such as Hungary and Romania, think tank research is often limited by funding cuts. Coupled with the impact of the epidemic, the budget source is not stable enough. At the same time, the production of think tanks requires a certain cost, but its products do not necessarily bring large profits and have a certain publicity. In this case, it is difficult for the support from the domestic government or enterprise to fully meet the needs of think tank operations.
The third is the lack of innovation. The research topics of think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries are often divorced from reality and lag behind. Among them, the main reason is that the composition of the think tank is relatively single. Thanks to the "revolving door" mechanism, world-class think tanks are usually made up of people from different sectors, including policy makers and business leaders in addition to researchers. It is difficult for think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries to combine multi-sectoral personnel, which is not conducive to collaborative innovation.
Finally, there is the lack of a global perspective. Think tanks in CEE Countries tend to discuss issues from a national perspective, rather than from a European or global perspective. Especially in the complex decision-making environment of the EUROPEAN Union, where the problems faced by policymakers are often transnational, think tanks can only explain the complex environment from a global perspective, and thus support decision-makers to make appropriate decisions. Moreover, in the post-pandemic era, the economic downturn in Europe has spawned a populist trend in the political sphere. Populist politicians tend to weaken the role of experts and evidence-based facts, and opposition to elite and expert positions affect the effective functioning of think tanks, stripping think tanks of their ties with society on the one hand and alienating them from the government on the other. In an age of disinformation, think tanks are negatively influenced by anti-elite positions like populism, and it is difficult to provide effective, professional advice. Politicians' criticism of experts and think tanks will also further create an anti-elite atmosphere in society, indirectly accelerating the spread of disinformation.
In general, under the structure of multi-level governance between the EU and member states, the interests faced by think tanks in Central and Eastern European countries are more complex, and the ability to deal with practical problems is still very insufficient, and improving professionalism is a key to future development.
(This paper is a phased result of the Shaanxi Provincial Social Science Foundation project "Research on the Impact of Anti-Establishmentism in Central and Eastern Europe on China-CEEC Cooperation" (2020E015))
(Author Affilications:Polish Research Center, Xi'an University of Foreign Chinese)
Source: China Social Science Network - China Social Science Daily Author: Gu Hongfei