Where is Central Europe today?
What role can the idea of a distinct Central European community play today when Europe’s division is a thing of the past? There is no longer a demand for a buffer zone or cordon sanitaire in the middle of the continent and any form of grey area would be an obstacle along the road to a united Europe. The explicit political objective on both sides of the previous wall today is integration, not separation. A new geopolitical situation has arisen. But what do these countries have in common now that the Soviet tanks have disappeared? President Havel hoped that Central Europe would become a counterbalance to the growing nationalism and that regional solidarity would prove stronger than national rivalries. In reality, Central Europe turned out to be the vision of a minority. Not only did Yugoslavia fall apart – Czechoslovakia was also divided and prime minister Klaus feared that the concept of Central Europe would be used as a parking lot or waiting room for states that wanted accession into
