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1331. Chechnya Weekly:Putin: Other North Caucasus Regions "More Worrying" Than Chechnya

Publication Date:
02-2006
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
The situation in Chechnya and the North Caucasus was among the subjects that President Vladimir Putin addressed during his January 31 Kremlin press conference. "I think that it is possible to talk about the end of the counter-terrorist operation since Chechnya's law enforcement agencies will, in practice, take upon themselves the basic responsibility for law enforcement in the Republic," the Kremlin's website quoted Putin as saying in answer to a question from a Chechen newspaper reporter about whether the military operation in Chechnya could be considered over. "All bodies of state power have been created in the Chechen Republic; I have already spoken about this and you are well aware of it. This means that the law enforcement agencies can and will get stronger—the office of the public prosecutor, courts, lawyers, notaries and, of course, the Interior Ministry of the Chechen Republic. In the aggregate, I hope, I am confident, that all of this together will result in further stabilization."
Topic:
Security, Civil War, and Ethnic Conflict
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Asia, Chechnya, and North Caucasus

1332. Chechnya Weekly: Volume 7, Issue 4

Publication Date:
01-2006
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
North Caucasus Weekly (formerly Chechnya Weekly), The Jamestown Foundation
Abstract:
On January 25, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) passed a resolution on the human rights situation in Chechnya. According to PACE's website (assembly.coe.int), the resolution, which passed by a vote of 117 to 24, stated that the Strasbourg-based assembly "is deeply concerned that a fair number of governments, member states and the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe have failed to address the ongoing serious human rights violations in a regular, serious and intensive manner, despite the fact that such violations still occur on a massive scale in the Chechen Republic and, in some cases, neighboring regions in a climate of impunity." The assembly also reiterated its "unambiguous condemnation of all acts of terrorism" and expressed "its understanding of the difficulties the Russian Federation faces in combating terrorism."
Topic:
Security, Ethnic Conflict, Government, Human Rights, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Asia, and Chechnya

1333. A Congo Action Plan

Publication Date:
10-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
More than two years into the transition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the peace process remains at risk. As many as 1,000 people a day still die from war-related causes -- mainly disease and malnutrition, but also continuing violence. While the main belligerent leaders are all in the transitional government, their corruption and mismanagement threaten stability during and after the forthcoming national elections, now postponed from June 2005 to March 2006. The international community needs to maintain pressure on a wide front, making specific security sector reform, transitional justice and good governance measures prerequisites for the elections, not allowing them to be postponed until there is a new government.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Europe and Democratic Republic of the Congo

1334. The European Union Defence Industry and the Appeal of the Chinese Market

Author:
Eugene Kogan
Publication Date:
01-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Austrian National Defence Academy
Abstract:
This report deals exclusively with the European Union and the People's Republic of China (PRC, also known as China) and not with a broader range of issues, such as, for instance, the impact of an embargo lift on the Asia-Pacific balance of power or on the Trans-Atlantic relations. The concerns of countries, such as Australia, Japan, South Korea and, undoubtedly, Taiwan are a very important issue. However, this report sets out to deal exclusively with the EU-China issue. Nevertheless, one can say that, for instance, the delivery of the airborne early-warning and control system (AWACS) to China would considerably change the balance of power in the Asia- Pacific region and exacerbate already strained Trans-Atlantic relations. The US will face the serious dilemma of how to deal with the EU over such deliveries to China, since the EU is their partner and not a subordinate as Israel is, for instance.
Topic:
Security and Markets
Political Geography:
Japan, China, Europe, Asia, South Korea, and Australia

1335. The Political Construction of Collective Insecurity: From Moral Panic to Blame Avoidance and Organized Irresponsibility

Author:
Daniel Béland
Publication Date:
10-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
This theoretical contribution explores the role of political actors in the social construction of collective insecurity. Two parts comprise the article. The first one briefly defines the concept of collective insecurity and the second one bridges existing sociological and political science literatures relevant for the analysis of the politics of insecurity. This theoretical framework articulates five main claims. First, although interesting, the concept of moral panic applies only to a limited range of insecurity episodes. Second, citizens of contemporary societies exhibit acute risk awareness and, when new collective threats emerge, the logic of "organized irresponsibility" often leads citizens and interest groups alike to blame elected officials. Third, political actors mobilize credit claiming and blame avoidance strategies to respond to these threats in a way that enhances their This theoretical contribution explores the role of political actors in the social construction of collective insecurity. Two part s comprise the article. The first one briefly defines the concept of collective insecurity and the second one bridges existing sociological and political science literatures relevant for the analysis of the politics of insecurity. This theoretical framework articulates five main claims. First, although interesting, the concept of moral panic applies only to a limited range of insecurity episodes. Second, citizens of contemporary societies exhibit acute risk awareness and, when new collective threats emerge, the logic of “organized irresponsibility” often leads citizens and interest groups alike to blame elected officials. Third, political actors mobilize credit claiming and blame avoidance strategies to respond to these threats in a way that enhances their position within the political field. Fourth, powerful interests and institutional forces as well as the “threat infrastructure” specific to a policy area create constraints and opportunities for these strategic actors. Finally, their behavior is proactive or reactive, as political actors can either help push a threat onto the agenda early, or, at a later stage, simply attempt to shape the perception of this threat after other forces have transformed it into a major political issue.
Topic:
Security, Civil Society, and Politics
Political Geography:
Europe

1336. Is the European Economy a Patient and the Union its Doctor? On Jobs and Growth in Europe

Author:
Sjef Ederveen, Albert van der Hoorst, and Paul Tang
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
Abstract:
A stronger focus on jobs and growth is part of an effort to renew the Lisbon strategy. Yet the view that economic expansion contributes to maintaining Lisbon's other goals of social cohesion as well as the environment is somewhat optimistic. First, there are structural trade-offs among the central elements of the Lisbon strategy. Escaping these trade-offs temporarily is sometimes possible but requires policy changes. Second, higher productivity (growth) may not provide more structural room for governments to manoeuvre. It leads to higher tax receipts but also to higher public expenditures since public sector wages and social security benefits are linked to productivity. In contrast, more employment (jobs) is associated with a smaller public sector. But to engineer the increase in employment, changes in welfare state arrangements are needed. In other words, focussing solely on the sick child will probably harm the other children.
Topic:
Security, Development, Economics, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
Europe and Lisbon

1337. A European Balkans?

Author:
Daniel Serwer, Jacques Rupnik, and Boris Shmelev
Publication Date:
01-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
Abstract:
The Chairman recalled the reasons for holding this particular session. On the one hand, at the Thessaloniki meeting of the European Council (June 2003), the prospect was laid out of the Balkans being included, over time, within the European Union; hence, the title of the session. How that vision is to be fulfilled is obviously very much open to question, which is indeed one of reasons underlying the work of the new International Commission on the Balkans chaired by former Italian Prime Minister Giuliano Amato. On the other hand, short-term events are going to put the Balkans at the centre of European concerns over the coming months in the run-up to the final status discussions in mid-2005: the Macedonian referendum in early November, the deployment of European Union forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina (operation Altea) in December and the rising expectations of Kosovar Albanians following the October 2004 elections. To introduce the session three papers were presented.
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
Europe, Bosnia, Eastern Europe, Balkans, and Macedonia

1338. The EU's Fight against International Terrorism - Security Problems, Insecure Solutions

Author:
Thierry Balzacq and Sergio Carrera
Publication Date:
07-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
Abstract:
The investigations on the London attacks of 7 July 2005 have yet to clarify the intricate storyline of the bombings. Yet, the European Union has already set about tightening up its fight against international terrorism through policies that, unfortunately, compound the difficulty of addressing the challenge. The problems arise partly because the policies put forward do not match the diagnosis nor do they fully comply with the principles of legitimacy, proportionality and efficiency. In addition, it is unclear how these Community measures will minimise the lack of trust among member states, which has put the brakes on the implementation of instruments adopted after the Madrid attacks. This relates to the vexed question of the extent to which intergovernmental initiatives such as the Prüm Treaty are compatible with a credible EU policy in the area of terrorism.
Topic:
Security, Human Rights, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
Europe and London

1339. The U.S. National Security Strategy and the Global War on Terror “Force Multiplier”

Author:
Charles W. Parker III
Publication Date:
04-2005
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas
Abstract:
In September 2002, President George W. Bush published a new National Security Strategy (NSS) in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 (9/11) terrorist attacks in the United States homeland. The publication of the new NSS represented a codification of a series of policy ideas that had been brewing since the end of the first Bush Administration and throughout the Clinton Administration, which were sharpened as a result of the newly perceived threats to the United States' security posture. Some prominent academics have argued that the NSS and Bush's actions represent a “neoimperialist” or “unilateralist” approach to the conduct of U.S. foreign relations, and are a radical and fundamental shift in the trajectory of U.S. power projection and assertiveness. They also lament a rift in relations with European allies in part due to this new policy trajectory, to the point of declaring that the Europe and the United States will be future rivals on the world stage.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, and Government
Political Geography:
United States and Europe

1340. The Expansion and the Subcontracting of EU's Logic of Confinement : the Case of Morocco

Author:
Abdelkrim Belguendouz
Publication Date:
03-2005
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
The political evolution of Europe, the anti-migration policies of European States, and those called "justice, liberty, security" (JLS) weight more and more on the Maghreb countries. Through cooperation and dominated partnerships, Europe imposes its neighbours to subcontract the tracking down, dissuasion and moving away of migrants. Having a financial interest in such collaboration Morocco becomes, as its neighbour countries, an advanced experimentation terrain for the logics of repression and locking of those who exile towards Europe. The euro Mediterranean relations are therefore increasingly oriented by this fight against immigration.
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
Europe and Morocco