Suchergebnisse

This article examines the evolution of Mexican industrial policy since World War II. From the 1950s, Mexico intervened actively in the economy, closed it off from international competition, and achieved high economic growth rates. At the same time, it faced serious imbalances in fiscal and external accounts, which resulted in the debt crisis of the early 1980s. Afterward, Mexico left the productive sphere and allowed the market to rule the economy through a horizontal industrial policy, resulting in slower economic growth rates but less macroeconomic imbalance. This study suggests that Mexico needs to follow a long‐term vertical industrial policy approach, avoiding fiscal and external account deficits and favoring activities or economic sectors associated with higher levels of productivity, innovation, and technological capacities, which contribute to enhance local productive linkages and positive dynamic externalities. By doing so, it will certainly accelerate its long‐term economic growth.

What led to the boom of Chinese development cooperation in Latin America? This article provides a systematic analysis of China's foreign behavior, motives, and policies regarding development cooperation toward the region between 2000 and 2014. I propose a comparative framework that defines Chinese development cooperation as a tool of economic diplomacy. Drawing on empirical evidence from AidData's Global Chinese Official Finance Dataset and Chinese white papers on foreign aid, the findings evidence that China was motivated by multiple and conjunctural factors in providing development cooperation. In the realm of theory, the article contributes to the literature on economic statecraft—filling in gaps in understanding the relationship between economics and politics. Empirically, it provides a set of tools for understanding the important role that development cooperation plays in a nation's statecraft. Regarding Chinese foreign policy studies, it offers insight into the financial dimension of China's international economic relations.

AbstractThis article addresses an important question in the age of rapid spread of new computer technologies: how do institutions influence the computer wage premium? To identify institutional factors that account for differences in computers' impact on wages, the authors estimate computer wage premiums for 20 countries classified into three national 'varieties' of capitalism and distinct forms of industrial relations and education systems. The analyses are based on unique international data from the Survey of Adult Skills, recently conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Results reveal that computer use at work is rewarded considerably higher in Liberal countries than in other countries—Nordic Coordinated countries above all. These results signify the centrality of coordinated markets, grounded in strong unions, centralized wage bargaining and publicly funded education and training, for lower computer wage gaps, hence for lower levels of wage inequality.

This paper attempts to link legal and theoretical perspectives of the use of force in self-defence and, thereafter, formulates a conceptual framework based on these two key concepts: use of force as a legitimate right for self-defence and pre-emptive self-defence as an unlawful security doctrine in existing legal structure (UN Charter). The focus is on identifying: i) the primary factors which, in combination as well separately, present a broader view of legal justification for use of force in self-defence and ii) the factors facilitating an unlawful unilateral military action in self-defence. The primary objective is to link both theoretical and legal aspects to formulate a conceptual model. In fact, this study presents an overall picture capable of explaining the key linkage of the use of force in self-defence and breach of international peace, whereby a state launches a pre-emptive attack against another state.

This article traces the trajectories of Russia's projection of its external power in its neighbourhood through the analysis of its bordering and de-bordering practices. It looks specifically at what happened in Abkhazia between 1993 and 2013, focusing on its role in managing the international border along the Psou River and on its impact on the Georgian-Abkhaz ceasefire line along the Inguri River. It argues that, while the appreciation of borders is often limited to symbols of sovereignty, Russia aptly employed bordering and de-bordering practices as policy tools to expand its clout much further than its national external borders. It also illustrates the importance of the implementation component of border regimes. By looking at macro- and micro- dynamics, as well as underlining the gap between official discourse and practice, this article explicates some of the mechanisms underpinning Russia's cycles of retreat and expansion in the Caucasus.

The author discusses the scale and scope of military cooperation between Russia
and Belarus after 2014. He analyses the changes that have occurred in this area
after the Russian intervention in Ukraine. He presents the legal and treaty basis
of the Russian-Belarusian cooperation, as well as the main points of contention
in bilateral relations.
In recent years, the differences in the international policies of both countries have
widened. Russia expects its closest ally to support it in its conflict with the North
Atlantic Alliance and to unequivocally recognize the legitimacy of the Russian intervention
in Ukraine. Russian efforts to deepen integration with Belarus, including
the military sphere, have been intense, especially in recent months.
The author also draws attention to the cooperation in the field of the armaments
industry of both countries, as well as joint military exercises and the process of training
Belarusian soldiers at Russian military universities.

Emission control and reduction initiatives required to achieve low carbon society necessitate collaboration and capacity building between the public and non-public authorities vertically and horizontally at the international, national and local level. In particular, measures taken at the local level are important on the issue of climate change. To this end, this paper examines local climate protection initiatives of the metropolitan municipalities in the framework of modes of governance including self-governance, provision, enabling and regulation in Turkey. Content analysis with distinct urban policy sectors including mitigation and adaptation for Annual Action Reports and Strategic Plans of the municipalities was applied to determine the level of achievement for local climate protection actions. The study concludes that the local climate change mitigation activities are frequently implemented by provision modes in the sector of urban infrastructure and transportation in the Turkish metropolitan municipalities.

In recent years the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) pursues a policy aimed at improving cooperation among the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) member states in pension area. Creation of a single financial market, to which pension funds are also parties, is expected to be completed in the EEU by 2025. The purpose of this paper is to make recommendations for further reforms of the EEU pension systems and their possible integration. The scope of the study refers to existing arrangements in pension area among the EEU member states and their pension systems. The theoretical framework of research relates to works of national and international organizations and scientists in pension area as well as relevant normative legal acts and agreements between the EEU member states. The results of the study can be used by EEC and member state executive authorities for further cooperation in pension area.

Spaces for civil society participation within intergovernmental negotiations on sustainability have multiplied since the 1992 Earth Summit. Such participatory spaces are often uncritically accepted as a remedy for an assumed democratic deficit of intergovernmental policymaking. I argue, however, that civil society's capacity to democratize global sustainability governance is constrained by the limited influence of these spaces on policymaking. The article explores the relationship between the format of participatory spaces and their influence on the negotiations of the Sustainable Development Goals. It finds that civil society is more likely to influence within informal and exclusive participatory spaces, and when these spaces are provided early in the negotiating process, at international and national level. This reveals a democracy–influence paradox, as the actors with the capacities to engage repeatedly and informally with negotiators are seldom those that are most representative of global civil society.

The study, drawing on the political settlement approach, examines how powers, institutions, networks, and interests influence the pricing of petroleum products in Ghana. Qualitative research approach was for the study, and purposive sampling was used to interview 24 respondents. The findings suggest the existence of power struggles among the key actors in the pricing of fuel. The findings revealed that the National Petroleum Authority, bulk distribution oil companies, oil marketing companies, International Monetary Fund, and energy policy think tanks influence result into policy. Actors influence fuel prices through taxes, policy guidelines, exchange rate, and legal actions. The study recommends that capacity of the key players should be built by the Government of Ghana so as to ensure healthy competition and stability in the pricing of petroleum products in Ghana. Political interference in the pricing of fuel should be limited so that the key players can operate successfully in the petroleum downstream.

Food security strategies are determined by the prevailing realities within households and communities. Therefore, it is not surprising that in South Africa agricultural transformation is an important food security strategy. This article examines the role of human development and food sovereignty in fostering conditions that enable rural households to enhance their food security capabilities. Using an in-depth analysis of literature, national, regional and international instruments, this article takes its departure from the fact that subsistence agriculture is an effective strategy for improving household food needs when implemented within the broader human rights framework of human development. The results reveal that agriculture has the potential to increase household food security if appropriate agricultural technologies and productive resources such as land are made accessible to households. Further, for agriculture to attain optimal efficiency as a food security strategy, policies on agrarian transformation should be implemented within broader social development programmes.

Abstract
Standardization offers consistencies for interoperability between jurisdictions and organizational entities. In some instances, accreditation and certification services are available to assure the reputational transfer of conformance and the compliance with best practice requirements. The impact of these benefits is a more predictable environment in which to deliver sensitive and high-risk services, leading to the reduction in failures and the enhancement of inter-party trust. In this article, the case of international standardization for digital forensic and related services is articulated as an example of structured planning for robust processes and practices that have user trust. Political and economic expediency has always reduced the implementation of standardization to functional attributes and short-term returns. The advocacy is for the long-term investment in standardization and the creation of trusted practices for predictable and robust scientific procedures in the transfer of operational knowledge and the preservation of digital evidences.

This paper considers the problems and dynamics of investment activities of enterprises in the Russian economy. In the current context oil and gas companies have got in to a challenging situation against the background of their competitiveness in the world market. Balance between supply and demand has been changed in the course of shale revolution in the United States, due to Iran's coming back to the world's oil market and "market share retention" policy being pursued by the countries – OPEC members. The paper specially consider Tatneft, since it plays an important part in the national, economic, political, public and social life of the Republic of Tatarstan. The Company's stable operation in strategic raw materials extraction, its budgetary and hard-currency injections warrant progressive and harmonious development of the Republic. The most important factor for the investing activity it the international agreements of cooperation in oil and gas sector.

AbstractThe United Kingdom's membership of the European Union does not have any impact on Scotch whisky itself: Brexit or not, Scotch whisky is Scotch whisky. However, it features more prominently in the Brexit negotiations than, for example, beer. This is because Scotch whisky is a highly export‐oriented product which brings large economic benefits to the UK—particularly Scotland—and its brand is protected by the international regime of intellectual property rights protection, especially, by the geographical indications regime championed by the EU. Moreover, the Brexit negotiations have led to the resurfacing of another political issue which affects Scotch whisky: Scottish independence. As a strong territorial brand, the constitutional status of Scotland is highly relevant to Scotch whisky and the investigation into the impact of the Brexit process on Scotch whisky has highlighted the inter‐connectedness of various political issues.

The Sasanian rock-cut relief of Rag-i Bibi, located in northern Afghanistan, offers a unique opportunity to reconsider issues of audience, memory, and power in rupestral art. Found over 1,000 kilometers east of the nearest attested Sasanian rupestral relief, Rag-i Bibi is geographically and iconographically distinct, displaying elements of local subject matter, artistic style, and political symbolism. Through comparison to reliefs in the Sasanian west and local artistic traditions, the stylistics and location of Rag-i Bibi are mobilized to offer a perspective that characterizes this relief as the product of Sasanian Persia and the local artistic traditions of Bactria, actively designed to appeal to a diverse audience. This perspective builds upon previous readings of Rag-i Bibi as a conventional marker of political power, arguing instead for its role as mediating between local, regional, and international audiences.