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Far-right parties are gaining support across Europe. Their level of participation in national governments is increasing, and they are expected to make further gains in the European Parliament elections in June 2024. As their influence over European Union (EU) policy rises, it is imperative to assess how they are positioning themselves on crucial dimensions of EU foreign and security policy. A closer look shows that geo­strategic issues remain a cleavage point that is contributing to the fragmentation of the far-right spectrum. Their positions fluctuate between a transatlantic orientation and clear support for Ukraine among the national-conservative European Conserva­tives and Reformists (ECR), to fundamental opposition with an anti-Western stance among parts of the right-wing populist to extremist parties in the Identity and Democ­racy (ID) Group. Due to the intergovernmental nature of EU foreign and security policy, the biggest challenges will come with national elections and coalition-making. (author's abstract)

Dieses Discussion Paper ist ein Plädoyer für eine dringend notwendige Perspektivverschiebung: Von der Konzentration der sozialwissenschaftlichen Forschung auf die im Alltagsleben allgegenwärtigen Plattformen des konsum- und kommunikationsbasierten Internets hin zur Untersuchung der weit weniger im Fokus der Aufmerksamkeit stehenden plattformorientierten Reorganisation industrieller Distributions-, Produktions- und Innovationsprozesse. Im Zentrum dieses explorativen Textes stehen zwei Fragen. Erstens: Was unterscheidet Industrieplattformen von den Plattformen, die das konsum- und kommunikationsorientierte Internet prägen? Lassen sich typische Eigenheiten und übergreifende Charakteristika plattformbasierter Arbeits- und Organisationsformen in der Industrie herausarbeiten? Und zweitens: Schält sich mit Plattformen eine eigenständige Organisations- und Koordinationsform industrieller Markt-, Produktions- und Innovationsprozesse heraus, die sich insbesondere von organisierten Netzwerken substanziell absetzt? Der Text unternimmt eine empirische Kartierung und Einordnung des noch wenig erschlossenen Feldes und erörtert in theoretisch-konzeptioneller Perspektive, warum Plattformen als eine Organisationsform sui generis begriffen werden sollten, deren dominierender Koordinationsmodus als regelbasierte Kuratierung bezeichnet werden kann.

Rechtsaußenparteien gewinnen europaweit an Zustimmung. In immer mehr Staaten der Europäischen Union (EU) sind sie an natio­nalen Regierungen beteiligt, und für die Wahlen zum Europäischen Parlament (EP) im Juni 2024 wird erwartet, dass sie weitere Zuwächse erreichen. Angesichts der zunehmenden Mitentscheidungs­rolle dieser Par­teien ist es für die außen- und sicherheitspolitisch herausgeforderte EU wich­tig, wie sie sich in diesem Politikfeld positionieren. Ein genauerer Blick zeigt, dass die geo­strategische Positionierung sehr unterschiedlich ausfällt und zur Frag­men­tierung des Rechts­außenspektrums beiträgt. Die Positionen reichen von trans­atlanti­scher Orien­tierung und deutlicher Unterstützung für die angegriffene Ukraine, wie sie die Euro­pä­ischen Konservativen und Reformer (EKR) vertreten, bis hin zu fundamentaler Op­position mit antiwest­licher Ausrichtung unter Teilen der rechts­populistisch bis rechts­extremen Par­teien der Fraktion Identität und Demokratie (ID). Bedeutend für die Hand­lungsfähigkeit und Kohärenz der EU-Außen- und ‑Sicher­heits­politik werden die natio­nalen Wahlen und Koalitionsentscheidungen sein. (Autorenreferat)

This discussion paper is a plea for an urgently needed shift in perspective: from the concentration of social science research on the ubiquitous platforms of the consumption- and communication-based internet to the investigation of the platform-oriented reorganization of industrial distribution, production and innovation processes, which has so far received far less attention. The paper focuses on two questions. Firstly, what distinguishes industrial platforms from the platforms that characterize the consumption- and- communication-based internet? Can typical peculiarities and overarching characteristics of platform-based forms of work and organization in industry be identified? And secondly, do platforms represent an independent form of organization and coordination of industrial market, production and innovation processes that is substantially different from organized networks? The paper undertakes an empirical mapping and classification of the little explored field of industrial platforms and discusses from a theoretical-conceptual perspective why platforms should be conceived of as a sui generis form of organization whose dominant mode of coordination can be described as rule-based curation.

On 6 February 2023, Turkey was hit by one of the worst earthquakes in its history. Buildings were destroyed and damaged across the southern and eastern provinces. The official death toll is already over 50,000, and it is conceivable that the real num­bers will be much higher. The earthquake also exposed the scale of political and institutional deterioration in Turkey. During Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's two decades in power, Turkey has experienced an enormous construction boom, evolved into an impor­tant player in humanitarian aid, and become an increasingly important region­al military actor. However, the earthquake revealed that the highly centralised and personalised system of power had weakened state institutions and undermined their capacity to deliver. Turkey needs to reform its disaster management and gov­ern­ance. The European Union should assist the recovery and reconstruction efforts by target­ing aid and using the momentum to mitigate anti-Westernism. (author's abstract)

In response to Russia's attack on Ukraine, the United States and 37 countries formed a coalition in February 2022 to implement a barrage of export controls outside of any formal arrangement. By contrast, US controls on China are often unilateral, such as its October 2022 measures on semiconductors that went ahead without explicit con­sent, let alone a commitment by its allies to join. But to deny China access to "dual-use" technology, unilateral export controls will not be effective. As European Com­mission President Ursula von der Leyen announced during her visit to the White House, the European Union (EU) wants to renew its export controls on dual-use prod­ucts and new technologies and to coordinate them more closely with US measures. That means that member states will need to develop a common position on the scope of their export controls - including the extent of their alignment with the United States - as well as ways forward with multilateral controls of dual-use goods, given the freeze of the Wassenaar Arrangement due to Russia's actions. (author's abstract)

Wie EU-Kommissionspräsidentin von der Leyen bei ihrem Besuch im Weißen Haus ankündigte, will die EU ihre Exportkontrollen für Dual-Use-Produkte und neue Technologien erneuern und enger mit US-Maßnahmen abstimmen. Da die EU-Staaten China zunehmend als sicherheitspolitische Bedrohung wahrnehmen, wäre die An­wendung von Exportkontrollen gegenüber Peking folgerichtig. Die von der Biden-Regierung im Oktober 2022 gegenüber China erlassenen Executive Orders für den Handel mit leistungsstarken Halbleiterchips, deren Produktionsmaschinen sowie mit hochleistungsfähigen Computern wirken sich bereits auf die EU aus. Um Rechts­sicher­heit für europäische Unternehmen zu schaffen, sollten die EU-Mitgliedstaaten schnell entscheiden, wie umfassend sie eigene Ausfuhrkontrollen modernisieren und ausweiten wollen. Dazu gehört auch eine Strategie, um gemeinsam mit anderen Staa­ten das multilaterale Wassenaar-Arrangement zumindest zeitweise zu ersetzen. (Autorenreferat)

Populism in modern Western democracies is on the rise. The existing literature concentrates on explanations based on the growing socio-economic and socio-cultural polarisation of modern societies driven by globalisation and individualisation on the one hand and the unresponsiveness of unrepresentative governments and non-majoritarian bodies on the other hand. Although such explanations certainly contribute partly to our understanding of the phenomenon called 'populism' - particularly the (right or left-wing) extremist dimension of it -, it does not sufficiently explain the seemingly non-ideological 'populism of the middle class' which, at least in Germany, accounts for the bigger, yet less visible part of populism. The objective of the paper is to focus on systematic weaknesses of collective decision-making in liberal-representative democracies in explaining populism (particularly of the middle class) as a growing critique of the institutions of liberal democracy.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony in June after being sworn in for the third time as the president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan promised the nation that his policies in the coming five years would "crown the second century of the republic with the Century of Türkiye". Turkey has undergone a massive transformation in the last two decades since the Justice and Development Party (AKP) rose to power in 2002. Undoubtedly, the reconfiguration of civil-military relations has been one of the most critical markers of such change. The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) has, under AKP rule, become an executor of foreign policy in an empowered security ecosystem consisting of the Ministry of Interior (MoI), the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), and the defence industry. These shifts in the security environment as such have been shaped by the dynamics of regime change in Turkey and post-Cold War security imperatives. (author's abstract)

In den Debatten um Digitalisierung, Künstliche Intelligenz und das Verhältnis zwischen Mensch und Maschine nehmen Vertreter:innen des Transhumanismus immer wieder radikale Positionierungen ein und sind somit wichtige und nicht selten provokante Akteure innerhalb des technikfuturistischen Diskurses. Während es in der For- schung zahlreiche ideologietheoretische Analysen zu den transhumanistischen Welt- anschauungen gibt, wissen wir bislang nur wenig über den organisierten Transhumanismus, also über die Vernetzung von ökonomischen Akteuren wie Tech-Firmen und Investor:innen, zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen wie Think-Tanks, Parteien und Vereinigungen sowie akademischen Akteuren wie Forschungsinstituten oder (Fach-)zeitschriften. Angesichts des immer stärker auftretenden Diskurses über soge- nannte "emerging technologies" verlangt es nach einer theoretischen und empirischen Analyse, um den Phänomenbereich ganzheitlich zu erschließen. Aufbauend auf Andreas Hepps Konzept der Pioniergemeinschaft, widmet sich diese Arbeit einer historisch-soziologischen Rekonstruktion der organisationalen Genese des Transhumanismus und zeichnet die Entwicklung einer Pioniergemeinschaft nach.

Almost two years after the publication of the "Integrated Review", the British government has updated its security strategy. This "refresh" is primarily intended to adapt to the rapidly advancing development towards a contested and fragmented global order. Without indicating a radical shift, the strategy specifies the British response to China and Russia and places a special focus on the role of partners as well as on national resilience. Following the leadership change in the British government to Rishi Sunak, the paper sets out a more pragmatic approach for future cooperation with the European Union (EU). In order to advance the implementation of the Integrated Review and strengthen Euro-Atlantic relations, Germany and the EU should seize the momentum and deepen their cooperation with London. (author's abstract)

It can hardly be denied that perhaps the most serious challenge to mankind has not yet been addressed properly by post-Keynesianism: the over-stretching of our planetary boundaries. Most of the resources which we need to sustain our lives are non-renewable and, therefore, limited. And most of our production processes produce some kind of joint product (externality) like air, ground or water pollution which hold no value to the producer and instead harm the environment upon disposal. Consequently, the existence of mankind on this planet may be threatened when indispensable resources such as energy are running out and the environmental damage changes our living conditions in a way that mankind cannot survive.