The EU has taken a major role in The Republic of Kosovo, creating a new future for the country via the EU office in Kosovo with its role in implementing EU norms in Kosovo. Kosovo is a potential candidate state for the EU and has declared its interest in becoming an EU member state.  Kosovo has implemented crucial reforms and shows commitment to advancing on its European path. Kosovo does not fulfil the general requirements for the accession based on the Copenhagen criteria yet, and there remain major internal and external hindrances to its membership. The rule of law, despite the progress made in adapting the legal framework, Kosovo needs to step up its efforts to strengthen the independence of the judiciary. Additionally, Kosovo must fight corrupted structures and organised crime by building strong and independent institutions. Furthermore, reforms in the economic area are needed to tackle Kosovo's informal economy and unemployment. Despite, the Copenhagen Criteria, the main hindrances are the five non-recognizers in the EU and the required normalization process with Serbia. Kosovo must get its independence recognized by the five non-recognizers in the EU and stabilize its relations with Serbia before focusing on the accession to the EU.

This dissertation is a case study of Albania regarding the influence institutions have over the utilization of the EU financial aid, more specifically, the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance II (IPA II) for the period of 2014-2020. Albania has been struggling with EU accession despite the allocation of numerous funds in the form of development programs for several years. The study attempts to identify the endogenous obstacles to development and the utilization of funds due to both formal and informal institutions. The reviewed literature shows a clear correlation between economic growth and good quality institutions. Besides, it indicates that informal institutions play a major role in the development process. Therefore the role of the Kanun in Albania is examined. As defined by mainly Douglas North, the New Institutional Economics theory is used to dive into Albania’s formal and informal institutions and discover how those determine the politico-economic and social structures. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine key participants who work in IPA II projects at the local level across the country. The country was divided into three regions in order to identify variations in the role of IPA II funds, institutions, and degree of development. Before the analysis is done and the results are presented, the historical background of the three key historical periods of the country, Ottoman, Communist and Democracy, is provided to set the base of the origin of present institutions. The results from the interviews and the macro-economic indicators of the three regions show a correlation between good defined formal institutions and economic growth and strong informal institutions and stagnation, as the theory suggested.

L’Union européenne est, selon l’article 2 TUE, « fondée » sur des « valeurs » précisément identifiées. L’affirmation juridique de cette dimension fondatrice est d’autant moins neutre qu’elle est systématiquement revendiquée. Elle renvoie à une recherche d’essentialité laissant supposer que l’Union accorde volontairement une place centrale à ses valeurs. Ce choix s’exprime concrètement dans différentes dispositions issues des traités constitutifs. Les valeurs exercent notamment une influence décisive sur des questions aussi fondamentales que celles de la définition des objectifs de l’Union (article 3 TUE), du prononcé d’éventuelles sanctions à l’encontre d’États membres qui menaceraient leur intégrité (article 7 TUE), de l’orientation des relations qu’elle tisse avec son voisinage (article 8 TUE), ou encore des modalités de l’éventuelle adhésion d’un État tiers à l’Union européenne (article 49 TUE). Au-delà de la portée symbolique, juridique et politique de ces différents thèmes, les valeurs participent en réalité à déterminer l’identité spécifique de l’Union européenne. Il convient alors de s’interroger quant à la traduction concrète de cette dimension fondatrice. Afin de démontrer la consubstantialité et l’irréversibilité du lien que partagent l’Union européenne et ses valeurs, il est d’abord nécessaire de mettre en relief la vocation structurante et fonctionnelle des valeurs pour l’Union. Il reste ensuite à mesurer à quel point leur portée existentielle dépend de l’enjeu de leur protection, qu’elle soit politique, administrative ou juridictionnelle / The European Union is, according to Article 2 TEU, "founded" on "values" precisely identified. The legal affirmation of this fundamental dimension is systematically claimed. It refers to a research of essentiality suggesting that the Union voluntarily gives a central place to its values, which confirms the analysis of the main stages of its history. This choice is expressed in various provisions of the founding treaties. These values carry a decisive influence on fundamental issues such as the definition of the objectivesof the Union (Article 3 TEU), the imposition of any sanctions against member states that threaten their integrity (Article 7 TEU), the orientation of the relationships it forges with its neighbours (Article 8 TEU), and the terms of the possible accession of a state outside the European Union (Article 49 TEU). Beyond the symbolic, legal and political scope of these themes, the values determine the specific identity of the European Union. Thus, it is appropriate to question the concrete translation of the founding dimension of the values in the integration project and, therefore, to test the strength of community beliefs. The aim of the research is to determine whether a Union based on values can withstand the rigour of scientific analysis as well as the pressure of events. In order to demonstrate the consubstantial nature and the irreversibility of the link shared by the European Union and its beliefs, it is crucial to highlight the structural and functional vocation of the values for the Union. Lastly, their existential scope is yet to be assessed as this will depend from the level of their protection, whether political, administrative or judicial

Transition in Europe is one of the most important transformations in modern history. This research investigates the impact of economic and political transition on the liner sector of post-Soviet Europe. Former socialist shipping corporations have begun to offer services under market conditions and left behind the rigid leeway of central planning (Cottam and Roe 2007). Extensive adjustments in ownership, organisation, fleets and markets have transpired. Successful transformation of the maritime industries has a major influence upon the speed and route of economic development in transition countries (Von Brabant 2011). Despite this, liner shipping has received very little attention from academia. There have been no profound investigations, nor a recognised transition model concerning the Eastern European liner sector. However, developments within this field and its importance for liner shipping internationally make transition shipping a topic worthy of rigorous analysis. A review of Eastern European liner shipping during the period of transition was undertaken in order to assess the level of adaptation to the demands of the free market placed upon the Eastern European liner shipping corporations by the post-1989 transformations. Eastern European maritime literature supported the application of the concept from a transition context and assisted in the development of a conceptual model. The role of the model is to provide a visual representation of the most important elements of restructuring processes used in the facilitation of liner shipping in the European free market. Analysis of the research synthesis resulted in the identification of key dimensions crucial to successful transition. A three-tiered Delphi survey classified major areas of change and the relationship of changes to the liner industries. From a systemic point of view, research findings indicate the existence of a number of transitional processes utilised in the restructuring of liner shipping fleets. These are: liberalisation, deregulation, commercialisation, privatisation and European Union accession. Such processes are intricately linked and deeply dependent upon evolutionary timing and sequencing. A discussion of the results provides serious implications for world practitioners. Based on the findings of this study, European Union competitors may take advantage of the fact that transitional liner shipping has largely lost touch with market decisive players, although it has undergone broad privatisation and restructuring. Conversely, Eastern European liner corporations can analyse the effect of transition upon shipping, and draw comparisons between the varying techniques applied and the results achieved by national fleets in order to identify the most advantageous commercialisation strategies. Government initiative will now be required to overcome the conflict between the interest of the liner industry and that of the national citizen, such that there will be public acceptance of free competition, privatisation and foreign investment.

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / A Markov Model was used to determine the number of nurses the Navy must gain each year in order to maintain desired end strength. Significant characteristics affecting career progression of individuals in the Navy Nurse Corps were identified. The characteristic of primary concern, accession source, was determined to be significant. Markov models were created to identify personnel flow from ENS through LCDR. The models end-strength projections for 2006-2009 were then compared to Nurse Corps targeted end-strengths for this same period. Several scenarios were run to minimize overages and underages in rank distribution. Optimization was achieved by changing both the distribution of accession sources and the distribution of recruited ranks. Optimal distribution of accession source and rank are dependant upon the degree of accepTable deviation from these targets. As stated above we were not able to acquire this information limiting our ability to accurately forecast optimized distribution of accession source or rank. The Markov Model demonstrated that the Nurse Corps current business practices optimize accessions for two year projections. Increasing variation between the current force structure plan and our models projections suggest that greater efficiency could be obtained in the out-years. This Markov Model provides a tool for improving extended forecasts. / Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy

The volume deals with the analysis of the relationship of the two dominant theoretical approaches of European integration - supranational and intergovernmental - towards the EU enlargement policy on the example of the accession process of Montenegro. The research goes into depth by analysing not the complex accession process as such, but the relations and attention of various European institutions and the EU member states to the particular and deliberately selected negotiation chapters of the Acquis Communautaire. The main aim of the thesis is to find out to what extent and whether at all does the behaviour of the EU institutions and its member states by the accession process correspond with the internal structure of the EU policies and competences stipulated in the EU treaties. The thesis succeeded to show that there is no reason to believe that the activities of the supranational institutions of the EU - the Commission and the Parliament - are dominant by chapter which is closely connected to the exclusive competence of the EU or that they would pay any special attention to this chapter. Similarly, there is no explicit proof that the activities of the incumbent EU member states are dominant by chapter which is closely connected to the shared competence of the EU or that they would pay any...

Les actionneurs à base de polymères électroactifs ioniques constituent une alternative prometteuse par rapport aux actionneurs conventionnels, en particulier lorsqu’une réponse comparable à celle d’un muscle naturel est recherché. Parmi eux, les actionneurs à base de polymères conducteurs constituent une voie prometteuse pour des applications biomédicale où la biocompatibilité, la compacité et un positionnement précis sont requis. Néanmoins, l’essor de dispositifs fonctionnels est fortement ralenti en raison de la faible efficacité d’actionnement et de la rapide dégradation des performances de ce type d’actionneurs. L’absence de rétroaction sur la force ou sur la position est également un autre aspect limitant le développement de cette approche. L’objectif de cette thèse est de proposer une technique de fabrication à grande échelle pour l’élaboration d’actionneurs à base de polymères électroactifs ioniques et permettant également l’intégration de capteurs pour un contrôle rétroactif. L’impression par jet d’encre est une technologie clé pour le dépôt de polymères et une des plus alternatives les plus prometteuses pour la production d’actionneurs à base de polymères conducteurs. Cependant, la fabrication d’actionneurs par technique jet d’encre n’est pas encore totalement maîtrisée à cause des propriétés rhéologiques des solutions de polymères conducteurs qui rendent difficile le contrôle de l’éjection de gouttes mais également en raison de la nature complexe des interactions entre la solution et l’échantillon qui peut conduire à une faible adhésion et un mauvais contrôle de l’infiltration de l’encre. Pour optimiser cette méthode de fabrication, des membranes hybrides contenant des ions ont été développées. Le greffage d’un monomère hydrophile par plasma argon avec un dépôt contrôlé en profondeur a été utilisé pour obtenir des membranes en polyfluorure de vinylidène (PVDF) avec des surfaces hydrophiles tout en conservant une zone centrale hydrophobe. Ces membranes hybrides ont permis d’obtenir, par dépôt de gouttes, des actionneurs de morphologies très variées à base de polymères conducteurs. En outre, la durée de vie d’actionneurs obtenus avec une solution conductrice de poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) a été sensiblement augmentée avec des déformations de plus de 0.6% sans qu’aucun signe de délamination ne soit perceptible. Enfin, la nature complexe des mécanismes physico-chimiques à l’origine des interactions entre le film polymère et la membrane poreuse a été mieux appréhendée durant ce travail. Les conditions nécessaires pour assurer une forte adhésion et les effets conduisant à un mauvais contrôle de l’infiltration ont été partiellement identifiés. Ces résultats ont permis de définir les paramètres clés concernant la préparation de la membrane et la composition de la solution polymère. En associant l’ensemble de ces résultats avec les exigences liées à l’utilisation de l’impression de solutions par jet d’encre, nous avons réalisé, en utilisant cette technique de dépôt, les premiers actionneurs ioniques à base de PEDOT:PSS. / Onic electroactive polymer based artificial muscles are promising alternative to traditional actuators, especially where compliant muscle-like response is desirable. Among them, conducting polymer actuators (CPAs) are most promising for biomedical applications, where biocompatibility, compactness and accurate positioning is essential. Nevertheless, development of applicable devices is hold down by their low efficiency and fast performance deterioration. The absence of a tactile, force or position feed-back is another feature limiting the development of functional devices. The goal of this thesis is to develop a fabrication technique for conducting polymer based actuators that could be up-scalable and enable facile integration of sensory feedback. Inkjet printing is key technology in the field of defined polymer deposition as well as in fabrication of strain sensors. It is also one of the most promising alternatives to prevalent fabrication of conducting polymer actuators. Nevertheless, inkjet printed actuators were not yet realized due to rheological properties of conducting polymer solutions that challenge jetting and the complex solution - membrane interactions, that lead to poor adhesion or uncontrolled infiltration. In order to enable this fabrication method, hybrid ion-storing membranes were developed. Argon plasma induced grafting-to of hydrophilic macromonomer with limited-indepth deposition was used to obtain polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes with hydrophilic upper surfaces and hydrophobic centre. Functionalized PVDF membranes were shown to withhold good adhesion to the conducting polymer films and preserve electrically insulating layer in between them. Hybrid membranes were demonstrated to be advantageous in fabrication of CPAs by drop casting and enable production of actuators with various morphologies. Furthermore, fabricated poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) based actuators demonstrated long lifetime with no signs of delamination as well as large strain of more than 0.6%. In addition, the complex nature of the physico-chemical mechanisms of the interactions between the polymer film and the porous membrane was better understood during this work. The conditions necessary in order to ensure strong adhesion as well as circumstances leading to uncontrolled infiltration were partially identified. These were used to set up limits to membrane preparation and polymer solution composition. Combining obtained knowledge with known requirements for inkjet printable solutions lead to the realization of the first inkjet printed PEDOT:PSS based ionic actuators.

Much of the public policy discourse about immigration in the UK has drawn on the experiences of post-war immigrants from the former British colonies. The volume and composition of immigration flows has changed significantly in recent years with substantial increases in the number of immigrants, particularly from countries without links to the UK, and as a result of the large scale immigration from the EU Accession countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Immigration remains a contested issue with public and political debates focusing on the nature and impact of immigration and its perceived negative effects on employment, public services and social cohesion. In spite of the growing number of studies examining the experiences of new immigrants in local neighbourhoods and labour markets there is a lack of comprehensive evidence about how these experiences differ across immigrant groups and the role of place in shaping the experiences and outcomes of new immigration. This research draws on a variety of data from the census, national surveys, administrative sources and qualitative interviews to explore the settlement patterns, labour market outcomes and neighbourhood experiences of new immigrants. The findings show that new immigrants are more likely to locate in ethnically diverse and socially deprived neighbourhoods upon arrival although there is variation in the factors determining immigrant settlement by world area of origin in line with differences in migration motives and entitlements in the UK. The findings from the qualitative interviews highlight the range of motivations and constraints that shape immigrant settlement patterns and how these change over time with secondary migration and family formation. Analysis of the labour market position of immigrants defined by country of origin and ethnicity shows the persistence of ethnic penalties in the labour market. Immigrants from ethnic minority groups both from established and new immigrant groups are found to be more disadvantaged in the labour market than white immigrants and the White British. The neighbourhood context, specifically neighbourhood deprivation and ethnic diversity, is associated with poorer employment outcomes, with the relationship between area deprivation and employment shown to depend on ethnicity. The qualitative evidence highlights the role of social networks and a range of other factors in facilitating and hindering the socio-economic integration of new immigrants. The findings, particularly in relation to immigrant social networks, access to welfare, settlement intentions and housing aspirations, challenge common perceptions about new immigrants living in deprived areas in the UK. The research evidence contributes to a better understanding of the settlement patterns and experiences of new immigration and has implications for national and local policies.

Pasture plants already adapted to acidic soil conditions are required as part of an integrated approach (with lime amelioration) to managing acid soils on the Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. The objective of this thesis is to evaluate the usefulness of Austrodanthonia species for this purpose. The material evaluated in this study was collected during a previous survey of the distribution of Austrodanthonia on the Central, Southern and Monaro Tablelands of New South Wales. It was hypothesised that the genus Austrodanthonia has a wide range of tolerance to acid soils. A series of experiments that provided information on the growth and physiology of Austrodanthonia in relation to soil acidity, with a view to the identification and eventual domestication of the most promising plant material have been conducted through pot, hydroponics and field investigations. Firstly, soils were acidified or limed to obtain a range of soil pH and Al concentrations. This experiment showed that adding aluminium sulfate and calcium carbonate followed by washing excess salts with water is a simple, rapid and convenient method for adjusting soil pH for pot experiments. The pH of the amended soils remained relatively unchanged eight months after treatment. The experimental set-up also resulted in a wide range of soluble Al (2-52 mg/kg) across the soils. The relative Al-tolerance of 183 accessions from 15 Austrodanthonia species was tested in a pot experiment using a range of soil pH. Emergence, survival and growth of all accessions were drastically reduced by high soil acidity (pH 3.9, P < 0.001). About 11% of plants emerged at pH 3.9, whereas at pH 4.4 and 5.3, ~72% of plants emerged. Accessions exhibited large variation within and between species in their tolerance to soil acidity. From the species/accessions tested, 49 accessions from eight species were selected for further study (on the basis of being more acid tolerant). Hydroponic experiments conducted in the glasshouse evaluated: (i) formulation of nutrient solution with a stable pH, (ii) effectiveness of the formulation using tap water and deionised water and (iii) estimation of free ion activities of Al and Mn in the nutrient solution and their effects on Austrodanthonia growth. These experiments showed that a NO3-N/NH4-N ratio of 9:4 is the most appropriate ratio to obtain a stable pH 4.0 without affecting plant growth; that there was little difference between tap water and deionised water on the ionic effects of Al and Mn, and plant-size did not play a role on accession survival and that accessions of Austrodanthonia could grow well within a wide range of pH (3.5-5.5), Al (50-250 �M) and Mn (100-2000 �M). Growth of Austrodanthonia accessions declined under high acidity (pH < 3.5) and Al (300 �M), but tolerated high concentrations of Mn (2000 �M). Root-tips stained with hematoxylin grouped accessions in a similar way to the pot and hydroponic experiments for most of the accessions tested. The intensity of root staining with hematoxylin and the differential distribution of Al in the shoots and roots provided an indication that different tolerance mechanisms may be involved with Austrodanthonia accessions. It appears that both exclusion and internal mechanisms may operate for Al- and Mn-tolerance. A field experiment was conducted at Carcoar (33037�S, 149013�E, elevation 800 m) using gradients in soil pH and Al available on-site to grow selected accessions of Austrodanthonia. The accessions exhibited a range of responses to soil acidity. The accession responses to acidity from the pot and hydroponic experiments were similar to those obtained in the field, especially where Al was present as a low Al-challenge. Overall, this study shows that Austrodanthonia exhibits a wide range of acid tolerance between species and accessions within species. Among the species tested, A. duttoniana and A. fulva appeared to have the greatest commercial potential, because of their productivity and acid tolerance. The variability that exists in the accessions may be exploitable in breeding and selection programs for improved cultivars.

L'obbiettivo della tesi è la ricostruzione del discorso sull'identità europea. Inizialmente vengono rintracciate varie correnti di questo discorso su diversi livelli discorsivi (politico, scientifico e mass mediale). L'analisi empirica si rivolge poi sul dibattito sull'ingresso della Turchia nell'Unione Europea svoltasi nei mass media tedeschi ed italiani. A questo scopo vengono analizzati articoli di respettivamente tre grandi quotidiani per ogni area discorsiva (Germania ed Italia) che trattano la questione dell'ingresso della Turchia nell'UE. Il quadro metodologico si rifa alla analisi del discorso foucaultiano. / Gegenstand der Diplomarbeit ist die Rekonstruktion des Diskurses zur europäischen Identität untersucht am Beispiel der Türkeibeitrittsdebatte in Deutschland und in Italien. Dazu wurden Beiträge aus jeweils drei überregionalen Tageszeitungen im Zeitraum 2005 einer wissenssoziologischen Diskursanalyse unterzogen.