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3521. EU and ASEAN: Issues of regional security

Author:
Nicholas Rees
Publication Date:
05-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Politics
Institution:
Palgrave Macmillan
Abstract:
The article critically explores how, and in what ways, the EU and ASEAN have addressed contemporary security issues, including non-traditional security threats. The comparison of the EU and ASEAN responses to these threats highlights the different forms and functions that regional integration has taken in Europe and Southeast Asia, and the implications of these differences for intra- and extra-regional security cooperation. The article considers how the EU and ASEAN might work more cooperatively together, noting some existing examples in which experiences and good practice are already shared, as well as other areas in which cooperation might be possible. The article concludes that while security cooperation in the EU and ASEAN, as well as between the two regional entities, is problematic, reflecting differing regional and national interests and organisational capabilities, there are concrete areas in which cooperation is possible.
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
Europe and Southeast Asia

3522. Intellectual legacies, ethical policies and normative territories: Situating the human rights issue in EU–Asia relations

Author:
Georg Wiessala
Publication Date:
05-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Politics
Institution:
Palgrave Macmillan
Abstract:
This article investigates EU foreign policies regarding Human Rights with Asia. The perspective adopted here argues for a consideration of selected, social-constructivist, perspectives. The article emphasizes ideas, identities, values, educational exchange and human rights in EU policy towards Asia. Through a number of case studies, the article demonstrates that there is both an 'enabling' and an 'inhibitory' human rights dynamism in EU–Asia dialogue. The article suggests some ways of translating this into policies. It proposes a more inclusive, 'holistic', understanding of human rights discourse in East–West relations.
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Human Rights
Political Geography:
Europe and Asia

3523. The "Afghan Drugs" Problem – A Challenge to Iran and International Security

Author:
Nasser Saghafi-Ameri
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Iranian Review of Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Center for Strategic Research (CSR)
Abstract:
This article looks in to the issue of the Afghan drugs problems from the international security perspective. The definition of international security has evolved since the end of the cold war. In the past, there were, and there are presently, some people who perceive that only military capabilities of their rivals can pose a threat to their security. That is, while the new definition of international security has expanded to include many issues that are not necessarily in the domain of military or armed forces. In that context, drug habits that caters to the trade of illicit narcotics, and with connections to the organized crimes has become a nascent threat to international security. In recent years, the drug problem in Afghanistan has grown to a staggering proportion and its outflow threatens the security of many countries. The sheer scale of the problem and its devastating impact on regional and international security calls for a concerted effort by all in the international community, especially those who are mostly affected. However, when it comes to major anti-drug projects in Afghanistan and its adjacent regions, the stances of certain Western countries seem to be ambivalent at best. In this context, one can point to the tendencies in some of these governments making an effective cooperation with Iran in the critical fight against drugs impinging on an agreement on its nuclear dossier. That approach indeed overlooks the urgency of the problem and the scale of the threat that Afghan drugs imposes on all sides especially the Europeans. The author concludes that to find a lasting solution for this problem, it is imperative that cooperation would be based on an inclusive approach, and participation of all states, with the essential coordinating role of the United Nations.
Topic:
United Nations
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and Europe

3524. The Legal and Political Context of UNESCO's 2005 Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions – Will It Be Good for Iran?

Author:
Janet E. Blake
Publication Date:
09-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Iranian Review of Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Center for Strategic Research (CSR)
Abstract:
The Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions was adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in October 2005 and, by July 2010, 112 States plus the European Community had become Parties to this Convention. This is a relatively healthy number but, at approximately half of the Member States of the Organisation, reflects that there remains a degree of uncertainty among States as to the potential national and international policy and legal impact on Parties. Thus far, Iran has chosen not to ratify this Convention and there continues to be a national debate on this question with a wide range of views expressed. One important aim of this article, then, is to consider and address these concerns through examining both the international (Cultural) policy context of the Convention's negotiation and the rights it grants to and the duties it places on Parties. The 2005 Convention shares an ancestry with the 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in that both of them reflect different aspects of the 2001 Declaration on Cultural Diversity. Understanding this fact can provide some guidance as to the orientation and purpose of this treaty in that it addresses the rights of States and their international duty to preserve the aspect of cultural diversity that relates to the cultural marketplace. At the same time, it is by no means a 'pure' human rights text in its character or its intention as this article will show. After having examined the history of the text's development and adoption and the wider legal and political contexts within which this took place, the article will then consider the direct implications for Iran of ratification of this important international Convention.
Political Geography:
Europe

3525. Russian Dilemmas in a Multipolar World

Author:
Fyodor Lukyanov
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Abstract:
When Vladimir Putin described the breakup of the Soviet Union several years ago as “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe” of the 20th century, his words triggered a strong reaction in the West and among Russia's neighbors. They sensed that the Russian president's words held not only nostalgia for the now-vanished great power but also hidden imperial ambitions. Indeed, Russia's political class of the late 20th and early 21st century is overcoming its post-imperial syndrome with difficulty. This phenomenon is not unique—many European empires faced the same problem in the 20th century. In Russia's case, the situation is compounded by the fact that the country's disintegration meant the loss of territories that had never been viewed as colonies but had been seen as a natural part of the country's historical and cultural core. For the first time in history, the Russian people have become a divided nation. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist, 25 million ethnic Russians found themselves living outside the Russian Federation, which could not but have an impact on the policies of Moscow and the other newly independent states. At the same time, Putin's words also carried a deeper meaning that few people noticed.
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Moscow

3526. Russia, Ukraine, and Central Europe: The Return of Geopolitics

Author:
F. Stephen Larrabee
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Abstract:
Nine November 2009, marked the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, effectively marking the end of the Cold War. It opened the way to the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, the reunification of Germany, the disintegration of the Soviet Union, and the emergence of a new security order in Europe.
Topic:
Security and Cold War
Political Geography:
Europe

3527. Ukraine's Defense Engagement with the United States

Author:
Gary D. Espinas
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Abstract:
Ukraine faces a number of challenges, including a deep economic crisis and a tumultuous political system. These problems, however, only underscore the importance of continued U.S. engagement with Ukraine. The causes of European stability and prosperity are best served by a Ukraine that is democratic, secure in its borders, and integrated into European and Euro-Atlantic institutions. This has been the U.S. position since Ukraine's independence in 1991. In addition to its internal challenges, Ukraine faces an external challenge: Russia. Recent Russian actions suggest that Moscow still considers Ukraine to be within its sphere of influence. Furthermore, Russia's conflict with Georgia in August 2008 demonstrates that Moscow is willing to use a wide variety of tools, including military force, to establish and enforce its sphere of influence. Such attitudes threaten to return Europe to the destructive balance of power politics of its past, rather than promote a peace in the region based on the right of sovereign nations to determine their own future. Ukraine has made a choice to be a part of Europe by undertaking a number of reforms in order to become a truly independent and democratic country. In the interest of greater European stability and prosperity, and in recognition of Ukraine's positive engagement, the United States must continue its efforts to assist Ukraine on the path to democracy.
Topic:
Economics
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Europe, Ukraine, and Moscow

3528. Russia and Europe's Mutual Energy Dependence

Author:
Christophe-Alexandre Paillard
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Affairs
Institution:
School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Abstract:
In the field of energy, Europe will be confronted with various risks in the next twenty years. Most notably, there is no clear alternative to fossil energy on a large scale with the possible exception of nuclear energy; yet few countries are able to pay for the large investment required by a nuclear industry. The need to ensure greater energy security and better regulation of energy supplies will turn energy policy into a much more politicized issue. Energy, already an important security concern, will continue to shape future military and political relations, especially if there is no other option other than oil and gas to satiate growing demand.
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
Russia and Europe

3529. The European rescue, recommodification, and/or reterritorialisation of the (becoming-capitalist) state? Marx, Deleuze, Guattari, and the European Union

Author:
David J Bailey
Publication Date:
12-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:
Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:
Years ago at a workshop one of our colleagues, whose name we shall keep anonymous, claimed — to the amusement of the participants — that International Relations (IR) is where theory goes to die. Given the vicissitudes of intellectual fads that sweep through IR, one could, perhaps, be forgiven for condemning what appears to be the superficiality of the theoretical engagements within the field. From another perspective, though, this judgement could be considered unfair, and that the convergence of so many disparate theoretical interventions in IR is actually a testament to its growing vitality. Though many scholars now label themselves constructivists, this is quite a polyglot category that seems to indicate a movement beyond the contrived inter-school debates rather than the rise of a new intellectual hegemon.
Political Geography:
Europe

3530. Conceptualising neighbourhood: Russia vs its 'others'

Author:
Andrey S Makarychev
Publication Date:
06-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:
Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:
Russia's longing to be a part of Europe is usually manifested in the Kremlin's inclination to politically deal with (and get recognition from) the core European Union (EU) powers. Moscow, which regularly goes through a process of self-assertion as a great power, agrees to communicate only with those who are considered to possess a comparable international status.
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Moscow