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1582. The Concept of Normative Power in World Politics
- Author:
- Ian Manners
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The social sciences have many different understandings of 'normative power'. The purpose of this brief is to help clarify the concept of normative power in world politics as developed in European Union (EU) studies over the last ten years. The brief uses a five-point conceptualisation of normative power as being ideational; involving principles, actions, and impact; as well as having broader consequences in world politics. For each point both a general observation about world politics and a specific comment about the EU is made.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Europe
1583. The National Interest and the Law of the Sea
- Author:
- Scott G. Borgerson
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Abstract:
- The 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea—the instrument that created the overarching governance framework for nearly three-quarters of the earth's surface and what lies above and beneath it—has been signed and ratified by 156 countries and the European Community, but not by the United States. The Law of the Sea Convention, with annexes (hereafter in this report referred to as the “convention”), and the 1994 agreement on its implementation have been in force for more than a decade, but while the United States treats most parts of the convention as customary international law, it remains among only a handful of countries—and one of an even smaller number with coastlines, including Syria, North Korea, and Iran—to have signed but not yet acceded to the treaty.
- Topic:
- Economics, Globalization, International Law, International Trade and Finance, International Affairs, and Maritime Commerce
- Political Geography:
- United States, North Korea, and Syria
1584. Shifting Trends in Global Student Mobility: Who is Going Where?
- Author:
- Rajika Bhandari
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Institute of International Education
- Abstract:
- Worldwide, there were over 2.9 million international students in 2006, a3% increase over the previous year. By 2025, almost 8 million students are projected to be studying outside their home country.
- Topic:
- Markets, Migration, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- United States
1585. Universality of International Law from the Perspective of a Practitioner
- Author:
- Bruno Simma
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Abstract:
- The ESIL Conference at which this article was originally presented as the Keynote Speech was devoted to the topic of “ International Law in a Heterogeneous World ” . The article attempts to demonstrate that heterogeneity does not exclude the universality of international law, as long as the law retains – and further develops – its capacity to accommodate an ever larger measure of such heterogeneity. After developing three different conceptions, or levels, of what the term ' universality ' of international law is intended to capture, the article focuses on international rules, (particularly judicial) mechanisms, and international institutions which serve the purpose of reconciling heterogeneous values and expectations by means of international law. The article links a critical evaluation of these ways and means with the different notions of universality by inquiring how they cope with the principal challenges faced by these notions. In so doing, it engages a number of topics which have become immensely popular in contemporary international legal writing, here conceived as challenges to universality: the so-called ' fragmentation ' of international law; in close connection with this first buzzword the challenges posed by what is called the ' proliferation ' of international courts and tribunals; and, finally, certain recent problems faced by individuals who find themselves at the fault lines of emerging multi-level international governance. The article concludes that these challenges have not prevented international law from forming a (by and large coherent) legal system. Most concerns about the dangers of fragmentation appear overstated. As for the ' proliferation ' of international judicial institutions, the debate on fragmentation has made international judges even more aware of the responsibility they bear for a coherent construction of international law. They have managed to develop a set of tools for coping with the undesirable results of both phenomena. Despite some evidence of competition among international courts for ' institutional hegemony ' , such competition has hitherto been marked by a sense of responsibility on the part of all concerned. Thus, from the viewpoint of a practitioner, the universality of international law is alive and well; there is no need to force the law into the Procrustean bed of ' constitutionalization ' .
- Topic:
- International Affairs
1586. Incomplete Internalization and Compliance with Human Rights Law: A Reply to Ryan Goodman and Derek Jinks
- Author:
- Roda Mushkat
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Abstract:
- In a series of influential articles, Ryan Goodman and Derek Jinks, professors at Harvard Law School and University of Texas Law School respectively, have proposed a distinctly sociological approach to analysing compliance with human rights law. The conceptual framework which they have constructed for this purpose is grounded in the notion of acculturation, a well-established social process whose dynamics in the international legal context has been examined by the two authors in a multi-step fashion, featuring a progression from general model-building to elaborate responses to specific issues raised by critics. Their latest contribution on the subject falls predominantly into the latter category. It is entitled ' Incomplete Internationalization and Compliance with Human Rights Law ' and has been recently published in the European Journal of International Law .
- Topic:
- Human Rights and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Texas
1587. International Institutional Veil in Public International Law. International Organisations the Law of Treaties
- Author:
- Kirsten Schmalenbach
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Abstract:
- The monograph at hand is based upon the author's PhD thesis, successfully defended before the University of Amsterdam in 2005. Although it is not indicated by the main title, International Institutional Veil in Public International Law, the book deals mainly with the many different aspects of the law of treaties concluded between, or with, international organizations. The choice of the title is a result of the author presenting the topic with a broad foundation, in the context of which she thoroughly scrutinizes the specific nature of international organizations and their independence in dependence.
- Topic:
- International Organization and International Affairs
1588. Piracy off the Coasts of Somalia
- Author:
- Bjoern Moeller
- Publication Date:
- 01-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The piracy problem off the coasts of Somalia veritably exploded in 2008, due to a mixture of push and pull factors. The general misery in the country pushed Somalis into piracy, and the high earnings from successful pirate attacks pulled businessmen into the pirate business. The international community has sent several patrols to the area, but the decisive factor is what happens on the ground in Somalia.
- Topic:
- Crime, International Law, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
1589. Preparing for Sudden Change in North Korea
- Author:
- Paul B. Stares and Joel S. Wit
- Publication Date:
- 01-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Abstract:
- For most of the 1990s, North Korea was under what can only be called a prolonged deathwatch, so common and confident were predictions of its demise. Despite suffering acute economic stress from the loss of its principal economic patron—the Soviet Union—in 1991, the sudden death of its founding father––Kim Il-Sung––in 1994, and then soon after a devastating famine that may have claimed as many as a million lives, North Korea managed to survive. By decade's end, North Korea's extraordinary resilience, combined with its defiant and at times belligerent attitude to the rest of the world, had convinced most experts that this was not a country about to pass either quickly or quietly into the history books. Since then, the conventional wisdom among most if not all North Korea watchers is that it will muddle through indefinitely even if its long-term future remains doubtful.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Nuclear Weapons, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- United States and North Korea
1590. Ready to Lead? Rethinking America's Role in a Changed World
- Author:
- Robin Niblett
- Publication Date:
- 02-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Chatham House
- Abstract:
- During his inaugural address on 20 January 2009, Barack Obama declared to 'all other peoples and governments, who are watching today, know that we are ready to lead once more'. In the following four weeks to the publication of this report, President Obama has set the United States on a course that is meeting widespread approval around the world. He has ordered the closure as soon as possible of the Guantánamo Bay detention facilities and of other secret facilities outside the United States that had so undermined America's international credibility with its allies and confirmed the anti-US narrative of its opponents. He has appointed special envoys for Middle East Peace and to implement an integrated strategy for both Afghanistan and Pakistan. He has offered to 'seek a new way forward' with the Muslim world as well as to 'extend a hand' to authoritarian governments if they are willing 'to unclench [their] fist'. His Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has said that America will be more effective if it can 'build a world with more partners and fewer adversaries'. Both have recognized the virtues of pragmatism over ideology and the reality of interdependence.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, International Political Economy, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- United States, America, Middle East, Asia, and Latin America