Mechanisms for Institutional Reinforcement: The Case of European CBM Regime

Abstract

The objective of this article is to investigate the mechanisms underlying institutional reinforcement of the European CBM regime from Helsinki to Stockholm to Vienna and onwards in terms of path dependence theory. The research demonstrates that the creation of an institution is conditioned by particular junctures of history. The European CBM regime was a product of the particular situation of the divided Europe. The institutional reinforcement of the European CBM regime is doomed to be conditioned by this initial condition. The research also demonstrates that institutional reinforcement should be understood in the context of particularities of culture, identity, interest and experiences. Therefore, any effort to transplant a particular institution into other region in different historical context will turn out to be a failure.