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552. Antarctica: assessing and protecting Australia's national interests
- Author:
- Ellie Fogarty
- Publication Date:
- 08-2011
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Lowy Institute for International Policy
- Abstract:
- International interest in Antarctica is rising. Major powers such as China and Russia have voiced their interest in the continent's resource potential, strongly suggesting the current prohibition of resource exploitation will be revisited after 2048. These developments pose a potential threat to the longevity of the Antarctic Treaty System as well as Australia's dormant claim to 42 per cent of the continent. Australia has limited Antarctic presence and capability, and posits its policy in terms of science and environmental management rather than national security. This raises questions about its ability to preserve its sovereignty claim.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy and Territorial Disputes
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, and Australia
553. Russian Soft Power in the 21st Century: An Examination of Russian Compatriot Policy in Estonia
- Author:
- Theodore P. Gerber and Heather A. Conley
- Publication Date:
- 09-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
- Abstract:
- This study examines the current state of relations among Russia, Estonia, and ethnic Russians living in Estonia. The report pays special attention to the Russian Compatriot Policy, which seeks to codify the relationship of the Russian diaspora to its homeland, and to evaluate its effectiveness as a soft power foreign policy tool in Estonia. Analysis of this policy, as well as an understanding of Estonian domestic policies toward and relationships with the Russian minority within the country, has been conducted based on the results of a comprehensive survey conducted by CSIS in 2009 and 2010. The survey data were generated through interviews with over 3,000 individuals between the ages of 16 and 29, including equal numbers of Russians living in Russia, native Estonians living in Estonia, and ethnic Russians living in Estonia. This research not only helps shed light on the current state of affairs for the Russian minority in Estonia, but also gives clues as to where the situation is heading.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diaspora, and Bilateral Relations
- Political Geography:
- Russia and Estonia
554. September 11 in Retrospect
- Publication Date:
- 09-2011
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Foreign Affairs
- Institution:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Abstract:
- It's tempting to see the 9/11 attacks as having fundamentally changed U.S. foreign policy. It's also wrong. The Bush administration may have gone over the top in responding, but its course was less novel than generally believed. A quest for primacy and military supremacy, a readiness to act proactively and unilaterally, and a focus on democracy and free markets -- all are long-standing features of U.S. policy.
- Topic:
- Security and Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, China, and Middle East
555. Korean Futures: Challenges to U.S. Diplomacy of North Korean Regime Collapse
- Author:
- James J. Przystup and Ferial Ara Saeed
- Publication Date:
- 09-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Abstract:
- There is no shortage of plausible scenarios describing North Korean regime collapse or how the United States and North Korea's neighbors might respond to such a challenge. Yet comparatively little attention has been paid to the strategic considerations that may shape the responses of the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Japan, China, and Russia to a North Korean crisis. These states are most likely to take action of some kind in the event the North Korean regime collapses. For the ROK (South Korea), North Korean regime collapse presents the opportunity for Korean reunification. For the other states, the outcome in North Korea will affect their influence on the peninsula and their relative weight in Asia. This study identifies the interests and objectives of these principal state actors with respect to the Korean Peninsula. Applying their interests and objectives to a generic scenario of North Korean regime collapse, the study considers possible policies that the principal state actors might use to cope with such a crisis.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Communism, Diplomacy, and Regime Change
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Israel, South Korea, and North Korea
556. The Afghanistan Question and the Reset in U.S.-Russian Relations
- Author:
- Richard J. Krickus
- Publication Date:
- 10-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College
- Abstract:
- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has said that the ability of the United States and Russia to cooperate in Afghanistan will be a solid test of their reset in relations. That proposition is the thesis of this monograph. Many analysts in both countries would agree with this assessment, but a significant number of them believe a fruitful reset is implausible.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Foreign Policy, Cold War, Diplomacy, and Bilateral Relations
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, Russia, and United States
557. Low Numbers: A Practical Path to Deep Nuclear Reductions
- Author:
- James M. Acton
- Publication Date:
- 03-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- U.S. policy seeks to create the conditions that would allow for deep reductions in nuclear arsenals. This report offers a practical approach to reducing the U.S. and Russian stockpiles to 500 nuclear warheads each and those of other nuclear armed states to no more than about half that number. This target would require Washington and Moscow to reduce their arsenals by a factor of ten.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, Nuclear Weapons, and Bilateral Relations
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Washington, and Moscow
558. Russia's strategies in Afghanistan and their consequences for NATO
- Author:
- Marlène Laruelle
- Publication Date:
- 11-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- NATO Defense College
- Abstract:
- In July 2011, the first U.S. troops started to leave Afghanistan - a powerful symbol of Western determination to let the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) gradually take over responsibility for national security. This is also an important element in the strategy of Hamid Karzai's government, which seeks to appear not as a pawn of Washington but as an autonomous actor in negotiations with the so-called moderate Taliban. With withdrawal to be completed by 2014, the regionalization of the "Afghan issue" will grow. The regional powers will gain autonomy in their relationship with Kabul, and will implement strategies of both competition and collaboration. In the context of this regionalization, Russia occupies an important position.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Regional Cooperation, and Military Strategy
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, Russia, and United States
559. Re-energising the India-Russia Relationship: Opportunities and Challenges for the 21st Century
- Author:
- Katherine Foshko
- Publication Date:
- 09-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Gateway House: Indian Council on Global Relations
- Abstract:
- This paper assesses the India-Russia relationship in today’s context and explains why it is time for the two countries to re-energise the bilateral. Contemporary scholarly publications on the Indian-Russian relationship almost invariably mention Raj Kapoor‘s films and Indian tea—both wildly popular in the Soviet Union decades ago—and, going further back in time, often recollect hoary anecdotes about Rabindranath Tagore‘s closeness with Leo Tolstoy. These images accurately reflect the historically close bonds between India and Russia, but also say little about what the relationship signifies for the two generations of Indians and Russians that were born or came of age after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Discussions of the India-Russia partnership in policy circles likewise are still too often shrouded in the mists of nostalgia for the close diplomatic, military, commercial, and cultural ties of the Cold War years with little reference to the new realities in both nations. Yet, much of the oratory rooted in the rich history between the Soviet Union and India does not translate into pragmatic prescriptions for re-energising a relationship that, while truly privileged, is showing multiple signs of structural challenges and inertial thinking. These bilateral ties need strengthening which should come from a more active involvement not just from scholars but also political, media, and, critically, corporate figures. The Indo-Russian marriage is long past its youthful bloom and must at this point be based on realistic assessments of mutual strengths and opportunities as opposed to idealized and impracticable mythologizing about the bright future of “Hindustan-Russia Bhai Bhai.” On Dec 20, Ronen Sen, the former Indian Ambassador to Russia, the U.K. Germany and the United States, released Gateway House’s report on re-energising the India-Russia relationship. Addressing the progress in India-Russia relations over the past year – 30 MoU’s were signed, two Russian nuclear reactors were set up in India and visa regimes have been eased considerably- the report suggests measures to lift the relationship from the benign neglect of the past.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, Military Affairs, Gas, Investment, Trade, Soviet Union, Pipeline, and Nuclear Energy
- Political Geography:
- Russia, South Asia, Eurasia, and India
560. Middle East Policy of Russia Under President Medvedev: Strategies, Institutes, Faces
- Author:
- Oleg A. Kolobov and Alexander A. Kornilov
- Publication Date:
- 03-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- BILGESAM (Wise Men Center for Strategic Studies)
- Abstract:
- This article is devoted to President Medvedev and the Russian Middle East Policy. The authors discuss strategic aspects of Russian policy in the area. They pay special attention to the Russian National Security Strategy of 2009 and Foreign Policy Concept of 2008. Analysis of main institutes of Russia contributing to Middle East policy formulation and implementation is made. The article considers the visits of President Medvedev on May 2010 to Syria and Turkey as events with far-reaching consequences and strategic perspectives. Russian policy under President Medvedev is evaluated in the frame of ambitious political aim, namely, a step-by-step Russia’s return to the Middle East.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, and Dmitri Medvedev
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Eurasia, Turkey, and Middle East