Intersections of Nationalism and Diplomacy in Central Europe

Abstract

Nationalism has become nowadays a serious issue in Europe which has multiple and complex reasons. They include a large immigration wave but also a re-consideration and re-definition of national identity. In many ways the present time is perceived as a historical intersection of roads we know where they come from, but we do not know where they are heading.

Nationalism is one of the key phenomena which influence politics, cultures and identities of Central European countries of Austria and members of Visegrad Group (V-4) Czechia, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. Particularly the Visegrad group states are today criticized in the milieu of European Union for their increase of nationalism and decrease of liberal democracy and for their reluctance to participate at European Union quotas of distribution of immigrants.

The aim of my article is to reflect on what moments in the national histories of these Central European states were crucial in creating deep-rooted traumas and fears in national memory and identity, and to test the hypothesis of a possible reflection of these aspects in the perception of

today´s challenges, specifically in the negotiations on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration in 2018 within the context of official data on migration in the Czech Republic.