Suchergebnisse

This article summarizes and draws conclusions from a series of articles on the topic of empires. The article emphasizes the need to understand the history of empires to fully understand the complexity of the concept and to utilize the framework of imperial theories to analyze present day international relations. Four elements of empires are emphasized and reviewed. The four elements of empires are applied to the argument of imperial tendencies in America and the European Union. The main conclusion is that various empires throughout history have differed in areas of government, legitimacy, assimilation and integration, and duration, but that they also have certain fundamental similarities that can be applied to the analysis of imperial tendencies in current international relations. References. E. Sundby

In this article we highlight the role of Kaliningrad in Russia, the relationship between Lithuania, Kaliningrad, & Russia in the EU & NATO enlargement processes, & finally, Russian policy towards the EU & NATO enlargement to the Baltic. The article concludes that Kaliningrad today, more than in the previous decade, can be seen as an inclusive region under federal control in the economic area. Militarily, Russia has yet to formulate a clear policy for Kaliningrad. Future Russian policy in general & the policy on Kaliningrad in particular will for the most part depend on the development of the EU (on military cooperation & on enlargement) & on the dialogue between Russia & NATO (on enlargement, on combating terrorism & other issues). Until today the relationship between Lithuania & Russia has mainly been influenced by their common Soviet history, but will in the future to a larger extent be influenced by Lithuania's increasing cooperation with the EU & NATO. 26 References. Adapted from the source document.

Investigations carried out over the course of the last decade have revealed that during much of the Cold War, Sweden espoused a Janus-like policy in which there stood an open non-alignment & neutrality doctrine alongside a secret arrangement to cooperate with Western powers in the event of a Soviet invasion or a European war. This article focuses on what is here suggested to be a series of attempts to rewrite or edit this particular phase of Swedish political history, given the incompatibility of the two stances that Sweden assumed during this period. The author treats some of the highly controversial Swedish policies concerning alignment with the West, in particular with the United States & NATO. References. C. Brunski

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