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A detailed look at the history of piracy from the 2nd century BCE to year 2009, including localization and methods of modern piracy. While centuries before the common era the Aegean Sea was known for its piracy, the modern image of pirates come from the 15th and 16th century Caribbean Sea. In the 18th century piracy all but disappeared only to appear again in the 1990's. Since then the focus has been on Somalia where pirates demand ransoms by capturing goods, ships and crew. Yet, surprisingly, since the late 20th century most piracies by far have been conducted in the South China Sea. L. Pitkaniemi

A long time researcher of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) discusses the rich history of the institute including changes in its tasks, working methods, publications and leadership. While the model for NUPI has been around since the establishment of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) in 1920, it took almost four decades before the Norwegian equivalent was finally founded in 1959. In the early years NUPI focused on studying East-West relations, security policy and the UN, but towards the late 20th century this focus shifted towards the research of European policy, developmental policy and international economics. L. Pitkaniemi

While a number of answers have been given by election research and electoral sociology why Norway is not a part of the European Union there is still room for alternative perspectives. An important but overlooked reason might be how the Norwegian population sees itself in the European context. Norwegians view themselves as open, small and healthy group, whereas they view Europe as a closed, large and sick entity. This view has not developed overnight, but is an outgrowth of largely historical reasons that date as far back as year 1660 and were strengthened by the events that took place in both the 19th and 20th century. L. Pitkaniemi

Ten experts representing universities, newspapers and institutions provide their short comments on the Norwegian Parliament's address (2008-2009) regarding current and future foreign policy developments. Some of the given comments are general in nature whereas others target a particular part of the document such as immigration and Nordic co-operation. The general comments describe the address as predictable, status conforming and stable, but criticisms are given for downplaying the importance of the European Union. However, a commentator points out that this document still remains the most important source for understanding Norwegian foreign policy since it explains Norway's security policy, foreign policy goals and role in international organizations. L. Pitkaniemi

Since small countries like Norway can seldom affect the policies of superpowers, an important question to ask is whether Norway could influence the human right situation in China through dialogue and co-operation? In the West, China has been known for human rights violations exemplified by the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. During the first decade of the 21st century the tone has changed, however. While the human right situation is still bad in China, the country has signed and ratified many UN conventions, engaged in human rights dialogues with Norway, Canada and Australia, and slowly increased the civil liberties of its citizens. The Norwegian dialogue with China has taken place on three levels: political consultation, roundtable discussions, and diplomat meetings. L. Pitkaniemi