The Refugee Crisis and the Return of the East-West Divide in Europe

• Published in: Slavic review Vol. 76; no. 2; pp. 291 - 296
• Main Author: Krastev, Ivan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, USA Cambridge University Press 2017
• Subjects: Attitudes; Capital cities; Citizenship; Communism; Cosmopolitanism; Countryside; Crises; CRITICAL FORUM: THE EAST EUROPEAN RESPONSE TO THE 2015 MIGRATION CRISIS; Demography; East and West; Election results; Gauck, Joachim; Globalization; Historical perspectives; Islamization; Migration; Nazi groups; Obligations; Political attitudes; Politics; Populism; Portuguese literature; Postcommunist societies; Presidential elections; Referendums; Refugees; Saramago, Jose (1922-2010); Social cohesion; Values; Europe
• ISSN: 0037-6779; 2325-7784
• DOI: 10.1017/slr.2017.77

Of the many crises that Europe faces today, it is the migration crisis that most profoundly defines the changing nature of European politics. It is also a turning point in central and east European societies’ attitudes to the European Union, and it signals the return of the east-west divide in Europe. The article argues that what Brussels describes as a lack of solidarity is actually a clash of solidarities: national, ethnic, and religious solidarity chafing against our moral and legal obligations with respect to the refugees. The east-west divide over migration has its roots in history, demography and the twists of post-communist transition, while at the same time representing an east European version of popular revolt against globalization. The attitude divide between Europe's west and east on issues of diversity and migration strongly resembles the divide between the big cosmopolitan capital cities and the countryside within western societies themselves.