Suchergebnisse

ASEAN has formulated a planned integration among its ten member nations and has challenged its citizens to embrace a regional identity. This article raises and attempts to answer the following questions: How might ASEAN develop strategies to enable citizens in transitioning from nation-state mentalities to regional and possible cultural citizenry? How will the regional and national governing bodies facilitate the necessary empowerment of diverse populations to form an ASEAN identity? What sorts of affiliations will engender the necessary social capital to develop civic-minded people with a sense of belonging together? How might education play a role in this process? These questions are raised on the basis of the argument that the call for ASEAN identity delivers a challenge to construct dynamic institutions and foster sufficient amounts of social capital. The underlying assumption is that the creation of a regional identity is of primary special interest to ASEAN and the intent of the Vision policy document was to re-assert the belief in a regional framework designed as an action plan related to human development and civic empowerment. Accordingly, these assumptions will be the basis for recommendations and strategies in developing a participatory regional identity. (Contemp Southeast Asia/DÜI)

It is argued in this article that the enlargement processes of the two major institutions of the West significantly affect the 'externalities' of the Baltic Sea area, and that this area should therefore be understood as a European subregion rather than as a distinct region. Whereas the extent of institutional adaptations of the European Union and NATO since the end of the East-West conflict is impressive, both enlargements are also creating new problems. In the case of the EU, its homogeneity and the functioning of its institutions promise to be stretched to their very limits, particularly given the tendencies towards 'opting out' of the aquis in several EU member states of the Baltic Sea area. Concerning NATO, the author recognizes the irony that the new members hoped to join the 'old alliance', while in reality this has already undergone transformation from a defence body to an institution dealing primarily with out-of-area problems. For both the enlarged EU and NATO the 'partnership' with Russia is more a modus vivendi than a clear perspective for the future and there is a need for further adapations on both sides.

Comparative essay, constrasting the foreign policies of Fernando Henrique Cardoso's & Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's administrations. Besides the general features of each diplomacy, external policies & practices of each government are compared for a set issues of the international agenda, namely: multilateralism & UN Security Council; WTO, multilateral trade negotiations & South-South cooperation; terrorism; globalization & financial flows; IMF & economic policy requirements; Brazil as a leader; South America; Mercosul; Argentina; Europe; relationship with the United States, & FTAA, with a final section on diplomatic tools preferred by each government. Break lines are much more evident in the style than in the substance of Brazilian diplomacy, which continues to show strong features of continuity. Appendixes. Adapted from the source document.

The situation of Basque nationalists is the direct result of the political & institutional spaces within which they operate. For this reason, historical differences between the two processes of nation building have engendered diverging methods of expression. Indeed, in Spain, Basque nationalism has h ad considerable room for maneuver whilst its counterpart in France has remained enclosed within very localized political configurations. Since the 1980s, the emergence of transnational nationalist parties should not be over-emphasized. National contexts remain a stronger influence over infra-national or even extra-national mobilizations, even if the perspective of the European Union continues to nourish the hopes of many actors. Adapted from the source document.

The Partit occitan is a recent political group (1987) expressing an old demand especially on the cultural field. How to study this political group considering the typologies placed at the political observers' disposal? Do we have to study it as an autonomist party or as a "small party?" Both analytical grids are useful to perceive this group in search of being acknowledged in the local as well as the transnational political system. Considering a more than century-old history, the Poc is the most effective attempt of a political Occitanism. It represents the fighting but marginal demand of an area. Adapted from the source document.

The utility of multi-level governance for comprehending European Union regional policy is considered; specific attention is dedicated to uncovering whether multi-level governance contributed to the establishment of regional partnerships & encouraged nations to expand their additionality requirements for European Union regional funds. Scrutiny of the interaction between domestic policies in the UK since the late 1980s & the UK's adherence to regional policies revealed that the UK tended to accept European Union policies that agreed with existing domestic policy; however, it is stressed that the degree of partnership between UK national & subnational entities & the regional government has improved since 1998. Nevertheless, analysis of the UK government's adherence to the European Union's additionality regulations demonstrated little coherence between domestic & regional economic & monetary policy. Despite the increasingly fragmented & disaggregated nature of the British state, it is concluded that the complete establishment of multi-level governance in the UK & in former communist nations in Central & Eastern Europe is unlikely. J. W. Parker

Analyzes economic development in East Asia and implications for the Chinese and Japanese economies.

The European Union is becoming increasingly important for national governance. It especially challenges federal states as we can see in the case of the Federal Republic of Germany. This article will show that the complexity of the European multilevel system can be described as "nested games." We focus on the role of the German "Lander" as generators of ideas in the European reform process -- covering the period from the International Governmental Conference in 2000 to the European Convention. Based on their own empirical surveys, the authors answer the question of how the German "Lander" have been dealing with the objective & subjective limitations to their scope of action as a consequence of increased Europeanization. We assume that the German "Lander" are following the strategy of maximizing their options: In principle, all channels of the European multilevel system are used to represent their own interests -- both at a multilateral or unilateral level & to signal political resistance. The full picture of the empirical "Lander" activities can only be shown by focusing on the European & transnational channels of regional interest representation. 54 References. Adapted from the source document.

The transformation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from an economic integration scheme to a political security scheme and its implications in Ghana political orientation was born out of the unanticipated changes of the post-1990s sub-regional civil conflicts and especially after the end of the Cold War. This history gave Ghana an opportunity within ECOWAS' transformation from economic integration to politico-security organization. In this connection, Ghana's foreign policy took a new turn affecting the whole West African sub-region that was precipitated partly by the Liberian civil war. (...) In order to apprehend the reason behind the dynamics of Ghana's foreign policy change and adjustment, in particular Ghana's strategies and perception of its interest in the sub-regional level, one has to consider a number of crucial factors such as the political and economic milieu in which ECOWAS is engaged, vis-à-vis Ghana's government actions. (AAS/DÜI)