On 19-20 June the DAU hosted a two-day training programme entitled Understanding the EU from the Inside: Institutions, Decision-Making, and the Road Ahead. The participants represented Ukrainian state institutions as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diplomatic Missions of Ukraine.

The training was conducted by Dr. Stefano Braghiroli, Associate Professor of European Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies, Tartu, Estonia.

The purpose of this programme was to shed light on the functioning of the EU institutional system and to provide participants with analytical tools to critically engage – in their area of competence – with the logic of EU decision-making, the distribution of competences, and ongoing debates on institutional reform.

Among the topics discussed were:

• EU as a hybrid system of governance.
• The roles of the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU as part of the legislative triangle.
• Types of competences and legislative procedures.
• Cooperation and conflict within the institutional triangle.
• The European Council and high-level agenda setting.
• Role of Member States and national influence.

The training was arranged by the DAU Professional Training Center under the Trilateral Diplomatic Initiative in cooperation with the Swedish Institute and The Estonian School of Diplomacy.