Political risk in transition economies and the European Union

The article deals with political risk, its definition, assessment and measuring. In the theoretical part different approaches to the definition of political risk are discussed and methodical approaches to its measuring and assessment are explained. The practical part is focused on the analysis of political risk assessment in transition countries of Europe and in countries of former Soviet Union compared to political risks in EU countries. The conclusions indicate that transition economies lag behind substantially in the areas of corruption, law observance and bureaucracy quality. For economic policy it is urgent to improve the quality of the institutional environment.