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112. Liberty above All: Vladimir Ryzhkov and the Republican Party of Russia
- Author:
- Leon Aron
- Publication Date:
- 10-2005
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
- Abstract:
- Since its disastrous showing in the 2003 Duma elections, Russia's badly splintered and quarrelling democratic opposition has been trying to find ways to forge a common platform that would unite and energize its sizeable but apathetic and disillusioned constituency. The stakes are very high. The liberal (that is, in Russian political parlance, right-of-center, pro-market, pro-reform, and pro-Western) forces view the Putin Kremlin's turn to recentralization of national politics and the economy as a dead-end street, leading to creeping authoritarianism, rampant corruption, political crises, economic slowdown, and even disintegration. In this perspective, forging a united opposition strong enough to contest the Kremlin's control over the Duma in 2007 and the presidency in 2008 acquires particular urgency.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Economics, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Asia
113. Balancing act: Taiwan's cross-strait challenge
- Author:
- Malcolm Cook and Craig Meer
- Publication Date:
- 04-2005
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Lowy Institute for International Policy
- Abstract:
- Taiwan is in the middle of a deep social transformation that is redefining the way its people identify themselves, how it sees its place in the world and, most urgently, its relationship with China. Taiwan's metamorphosis, and China's reaction to it, are making it more difficult to maintain peace across the Taiwan Strait. Washington and its regional allies, including Australia, need to understand these changes better and to incorporate responses to them into their policies.
- Topic:
- International Relations and Democratization
- Political Geography:
- China, Washington, Taiwan, Asia, and Australia
114. Afghanistan: Old Problems, New Parliament, New Expectations
- Author:
- Emily Hsu and Beth DeGrasse
- Publication Date:
- 10-2005
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- With the September 18 parliamentary elections, Afghanistan completes its internationally mandated blueprint for democracy and enters a new phase of state building in uncharted waters. This transition occurs against the backdrop of rising threats to security and an economy dominated largely by illicit production and export of opium. On October 12, 2005, the U.S. Institute of Peace convened a meeting of the Afghanistan Working Group to review the recent parliamentary elections. The presenters at the meeting included Robert Varsalone, resident country director for Afghanistan for the International Republican Institute; Sam Zia-Zarifi, research director for the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch; Larry M. Sampler, former chief of staff for the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan; and Barnett R. Rubin, chairman of the Afghanistan Working Group. The following USIPeace Briefing summarizes views expressed at the meeting. The views expressed here do not reflect those of the Institute, which does not take positions on policy issues.
- Topic:
- Democratization, Development, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, United States, and Asia
115. E.U.—RUSSIA RELATIONS: Interests and Value—A European Perspective
- Author:
- Rolf Schuette
- Publication Date:
- 12-2004
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- Russia easily comes first in the time and energy that the E.U. has devoted to developing relations with outside partners, both in the economic field and regarding the political dialogue within the context of the E.U.'s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP). Russia has been the subject of many fundamental policy documents, policy implementation instruments, and internal discussions during the past decade. The density and frequency of the bilateral dialogue between Russia and the E.U. are unique.
- Topic:
- Democratization and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Asia
116. Stability, Security, and Sovereignty in the Republic of Georgia
- Author:
- David L. Phillips
- Publication Date:
- 01-2004
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Abstract:
- The Republic of Georgia suffers from pervasive problems. Popular frustrations boiled over after the November 2, 2003, parliamentary elections, which international observers determined were fraudulent. Facing mass protests and civil disobedience, President Eduard Shevardnadze resigned. The so-called revolution of roses culminated in a peaceful transfer of power when Mikhail Saakashvili assumed the presidency after receiving 96 percent of the vote in a special ballot on January 4, 2004.
- Topic:
- Security, Democratization, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- Central Asia, Asia, and Georgia
117. Russia and Europe: A Finnish View
- Author:
- Henrikki Heikka
- Publication Date:
- 12-2004
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- In recent months, several prominent Finnish politicians have criticized the Finnish government for lack of vision in its foreign policy. Liisa Jaakonsaari, Chairman of the Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee and a prominent social democrat), has argued that the government “lacks one thing, and with it, everything: a vision”. Member of the European Parliament Alexander Stubb (the Conservative party's vote puller in the last EP elections) has publicly called contemporary Finnish foreign policy as “pitiful tinkering” (säälittävää näpertelyä). Editorial writers have begun to recycle the old the term “driwftwood” (ajopuu), a term originally coined to describe Finland's flip-flopping during World War II, in their attempts to find an appropriate label for the present government's foreign policy.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Democratization, Diplomacy, and International Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Europe, Finland, and Asia
118. Free Trade and the 2004 Presidential Race
- Author:
- Claude Barfield
- Publication Date:
- 10-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
- Abstract:
- Senator John Kerry and President George W. Bush offer distinct visions of how free trade would operate for the next four years. Senator Kerry has staked out a more unilateralist position with promises to review all trade agreements to strengthen labor and environmental sanctions, while President Bush reinstated trade promotion authority and expanded free trade agreements. The next president will face challenges regarding the WTO Doha Round and markets in Latin America and Asia.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Democratization, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Asia and Latin America
119. High-Tech Cluster Bombs: Why Successful Technology Hubs Are the Exception, Not the Rule
- Author:
- Scott Wallsten
- Publication Date:
- 04-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
- Abstract:
- Although success stories do exist, most high-technology cluster-development projects do little to enhance regional economic growth. The taxpayer costs for a wide array of tax incentives offered by politicians to corporations and research institutes as inducements to move facilities into their districts are rarely recouped, and often only wealthy organizations and developers benefit from the projects.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Democratization, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Asia
120. The Emptying of Russia
- Author:
- Nicholas Eberstadt
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
- Abstract:
- Russia, whose birth rates have declined and whose mortality rates have dramatically increased in the last several decades, faces a demographic crisis. Thus far, Russian political leaders have focused on trying to increase birth rates, but a greater sense of urgency must be applied to diminish mortality rates and to respond to health threats, including HIV/AIDS.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Democratization, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Asia