Jerzy Menkes

The aim of the study is to identify the effects of free trade and investment protection agreements between the EU and Vietnam. We argue that these agreements are part of a broader strategy, pursuing not only economic but also socio-political objectives. They affect relations between the parties, but also have a pluri- or even multilateral dimension.

In the article, we compare the process of German unification (more generally, of defining the German unity and, more broadly, the unity of German-speaking territories) after WWI and WWII. A search for similarities and differences between these processes allows us to analyse the present stage of the European integration, as a part of which the unification of two German states was accomplished at the cost of Germany’s acceptance for the creation of the European monetary union, and so – for the deepening of the integration. We analyse various consequences of the unification of Germany and the creation of the eurozone, which, in our opinion, go far beyond the economic or political ones and are connected with the EU Eastern enlargement.

The Pacific region is confronted with many challenges that determine its importance in international relations. The aim of the study is to analyse the possibilities of cooperation of countries in this region – geographically close but with different historical experiences and differing in terms of socio-political and economic systems at the time of instability of US politics. Changes in this pol- icy are a source of turbulence in the region and transregional relations. In interdisciplinary economic and legal research we use methods of economic qualitative and quantitative analysis as well as legal methods of studies on international institutions. We positively verify the thesis that lasting and deep regional and transregional cooperation is determined by the representation of common values, and geographic proximity alone is not enough for such cooperation to take place. The barrier for the cooperation may be the inability to work through the past experience and in- stability, resulting from the changes in US policy.

In the paper we analyze the Trade and Investment Partnership between the United States and the European Union indicating its specific character. It comes with the parties’ particular characteristics (i.a. one party to a contract, the EU, is a collective entity).Weexamine both parties to the agreement and their position in the international trade in goods and services. The point of reference is global economy and BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China). We also examine the EU and the USA trade relations. The examination covers the years 1995–2012.Weprove that the unification allows both the EU and the USA to take advantage of their significant role in the world trade to increase their impact on the global economic order. EU-US free trade and the agreement conclusion shall allow to intensify trade in services, and FDI flow shall allow to increase the advantage over BRIC countries (primarily China) and to make their economies independent from the instability of the emerging markets.