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A national interest, as an expression, fits poorly in the Norwegian language and the country's political culture. Norwegian politicians rarely mention it and internationally the country is isolationist due to its small size, distant location and historical circumstances. However, in the northern European context, Norway has strong resource and environmental political interests, as well as keeping a stable and peaceful relationship with its neighbor Russia. L. Pitkaniemi

Provides a portrait of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) that turned 50 years in 2009. Even if the institute started from a relatively restricted research perspective on the East-West relations, it has grown to include a large variety of areas from development to security policy. The institute has a legal status, official control, organizational essence and its main task is to enlighten international relation. Despite its institutional status, the research conducted by NUPI is distinguished from both academic basic research and user-oriented consulting solutions. What really distinguishes NUPI, however, is its status as the only research institute that focuses on foreign policy and international relations that are of Norwegian interest and produced in the Norwegian language. L. Pitkaniemi

This article explores the idea of the impact of the "linguistic turn", which is the idea that language constitutes reality. The concept of empire is discussed. The relevance of the historical perspective of the concept of empires in current discussions of empires and imperialism is explored. The article argues that the return of empires and imperialism may not be a political reality, but rather a linguistic development as the empires and imperialism return as a concept of analysis. The article states that the reintroduction and use of the concept of empires marks a rhetorical step with potentially significant rhetorical effects. Andrew Bacevich's (2003) and David Rieff's (1999) contributions to the concept of empires as a linguistic innovation and level of analysis are discussed. This article is one in a series of articles on the topic of empires. References. E. Sundby

The article examines three processes, running parallel in time, that have contributed to the Islamization of the Chechen separatist movement. The first war in Chechnya between 1994 & 1996 resulted in the radicalization of several Chechen warlords & politicians. These individuals came to play an influential role during the interwar period & have increasingly defined the rhetoric & language of the separatists in the second war. This local impetus toward radicalism was reinforced by the attempts on the part of international Islamists to co-opt the Chechen conflict as part of their global struggle. At the same time the Russian policies on Chechnya have become increasingly hard & uncompromising, not least after the advent of the global war on terror. The article argues that these processes have contributed to marginalize the moderate players in the Chechen separatist movement & have rendered the conflict so polarized that there is little hope for peaceful resolution. 42 References. Adapted from the source document.

Established in 1937, the Norwegian journal Internasjonal politikk (IP) came about as an important part of efforts to establish International Relations as a field of study in Norway. Elsewhere, interest in the field was already evident in the aftermath of the First World War. In response to an approach by the Institute of Intellectual Cooperation in Paris towards members of the Norwegian academic community, a committee for the pursuit of the study of International Relations in Norway was formed in 1936, headed by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Christian Lous Lange of Norway. From 1937 on, the publication of a Norwegian-language journal of International Relations became a major focus of the work of the committee. Its profile was established in the first issue: the journal was to be "impartial, objective and written in a popular form". Arne Ording, a historian and leading architect of Norway's Second World War and post-war foreign policy, was to be the first editor of Internasjonal Politikk. In 1960, the journal was transferred to the newly established Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI). Here it became part of the institute's strategy for research on International Relations in general and Norwegian foreign policy in particular, and as an important part of this, research-based public information. Since Internasjonal politikk was not published during the five years of Nazi occupation, it turns 70 in the year of its 65th volume. Adapted from the source document.