The article discusses the relationship between the occurrence of international conflicts and the desire of states to implement their own geopolitical interests. The key factor in the emergence of conflicts is the concept of an inter-civilization clash by Samuel Huntington, where the role of states in the formation of the international system is the trigger for decision-making. The author states that in modern conditions Russia defends its interests, which should not be perceived by other actors of international relations as a threat, but as competition.
The presented article is aimed at reflecting usage of mediation as a form of international conflicts settlement and at revealing its factors, at the example of the case of conflict in Abkhazia, Georgia. The article is a hypothesis on to what extend international or regional organizations act as effective mediators during mediation process. Attempt of conflict regulation and work of the mediation platform created after Russian-Georgian war are discussed.The theory discussing main variables for evaluating international mediation represented in mediation literature have been used for evaluating mediation factors. The article shows the level of mediation effectiveness in international conflicts, when it is not clear which are the conflicting sides; it shows that when there is an influential country, considering its capabilities, it has enough power to act as effective mediator, only in case if it does not have direct interest in the conflict.We have concluded that mediation can be effective only when it is clear which the conflicting sides are. It is considered that international organizations cannot be effective in conflict resolution when a conflict is in cold phase. ; The presented article is aimed at reflecting usage of mediation as a form of international conflicts settlement and at revealing its factors, at the example of the case of conflict in Abkhazia, Georgia. The article is a hypothesis on to what extend international or regional organizations act as effective mediators during mediation process. Attempt of conflict regulation and work of the mediation platform created after Russian-Georgian war are discussed.The theory discussing main variables for evaluating international mediation represented in mediation literature have been used for evaluating mediation factors. The article shows the level of mediation effectiveness in international conflicts, when it is not clear which are the conflicting sides; it shows that when there is an influential country, considering its capabilities, it has enough power to act as effective mediator, only in case if it does not have direct interest in the conflict.We have concluded that mediation can be effective only when it is clear which the conflicting sides are. It is considered that international organizations cannot be effective in conflict resolution when a conflict is in cold phase.
The paper discusses the origins and course of the current crisis in Mali. The author outlines the reasons for the structural weakness of Mali, resulting from the shape of the borderline drawn at the time of decolonization, the confrontation between the Tuareg and the central government, the impact of the collapse of Gaddafi's dictatorship in Libya at the onset of a new stage in the confrontation, the role of Islamist groups in northern Mali, and the course of French intervention there. The case of Mali as an almost classic 'fallen state' is treated separately. ; W artykule omówiono genezę i przebieg bieżącego kryzysu politycznego w Mali. Autor nakreślił przyczyny strukturalnej słabości Mali wynikające z dokonanego w czasie dekolonizacji wytyczenia granic, przebieg konfrontacji między Tuaregami a rządem centralnym, wpływ upadku dyktatury Kadafiego w Libii na otwarcie nowej fazy konfrontacji, rolę ugrupowań islamistycznych na północy Mali oraz przebieg francuskiej interwencji w tym państwie. W sposób odrębny potraktowany został przypadek Mali jako klasycznego niemal "państwa upadłego".
The paper deals with internal conflicts, their internationalisation and a hybrid war. In the 1990s many military conflicts could have been regarded as domestic conflicts or internationalised internal conflicts. According to the authors internationalised internal conflicts and a hybrid war have much in common. The purpose of the paper is to compare and confront distinctive characteristics of internationalised internal conflicts with the model of hybrid war. The authors scrutinize definitions of an internal, domestic conflict and a hybrid war, and the possibilities and likelihood of their occurrence. Finally the issue is analysed in terms of international public law. 'Hybrid war' is a term not defined in public international law. However it is commonly used not only by media and politicians, but also by academics in a sci- entific discourse. A question arises to what extent it is justified to use a term in the context of different military conflicts, like for instance the one in the East Ukraine that has been going on since 2015. Therefore it is necessary to explain what the term 'hybrid war' means. In order to do so, it is necessary to try to define the term. Its distinctive characteristics must be indicated. Then, many military conflicts will be analysed to determine whether they satisfy the requirements for qualifying them as a 'hybrid war' or an internationalised internal conflict. The research leads to a conclusion that an internationalised internal conflict gives many opportunities for applying to it methods characteristic of a hybrid war. In the course of an internationalised internal conflict there are many ways in which the aggressor can evade international liability and the authors attempt to answer how to prevent this. ; The paper deals with internal conflicts, their internationalisation and a hybrid war. In the 1990s many military conflicts could have been regarded as domestic conflicts or internationalised internal conflicts. According to the authors internationalised internal conflicts and a hybrid war have much in common. The purpose of the paper is to compare and confront distinctive characteristics of internationalised internal conflicts with the model of hybrid war. The authors scrutinize definitions of an internal, domestic conflict and a hybrid war, and the possibilities and likelihood of their occurrence. Finally the issue is analysed in terms of international public law. 'Hybrid war' is a term not defined in public international law. However it is commonly used not only by media and politicians, but also by academics in a sci- entific discourse. A question arises to what extent it is justified to use a term in the context of different military conflicts, like for instance the one in the East Ukraine that has been going on since 2015. Therefore it is necessary to explain what the term 'hybrid war' means. In order to do so, it is necessary to try to define the term. Its distinctive characteristics must be indicated. Then, many military conflicts will be analysed to determine whether they satisfy the requirements for qualifying them as a 'hybrid war' or an internationalised internal conflict. The research leads to a conclusion that an internationalised internal conflict gives many opportunities for applying to it methods characteristic of a hybrid war. In the course of an internationalised internal conflict there are many ways in which the aggressor can evade international liability and the authors attempt to answer how to prevent this.
Following the outbreak of the conflict in Syria, the United States and Russian Federation became involved in the peace process aimed at stabilizing the internal situation. In the initial phase of this process, Russia introduced political plans to resolve the dispute, while successively blocking UNSC projects calling for the resignation of Bashar al-Assad. As a consequence of the changes that took place in Russia's foreign policy after the annexation of Crimea, it began conducting military activities aimed at ousting opposition forces from Syria and preventing the West from making any possible intervention. Due to the lack of a decisive response from the United States, within a few years the Syrian regime's offensive, militarily supported by Russia, reduced the opposition forces supported by the US to the defense. As a result of Russi's intense involvement in the process of resolving the Syrian conflict, this country has once again started to play a key role in the international arena. The conflict in Syria has highlighted the Russian government's aspirations to rebuild its state as a superpower.
The paper deals with internal conflicts, their internationalisation and a hybrid war. In the 1990s many military conflicts could have been regarded as domestic conflicts or internationalised internal conflicts. According to the authors internationalised internal conflicts and a hybrid war have much in common. The purpose of the paper is to compare and confront distinctive characteristics of internationalised internal conflicts with the model of hybrid war. The authors scrutinize definitions of an internal, domestic conflict and a hybrid war, and the possibilities and likelihood of their occurrence. Finally the issue is analysed in terms of international public law. 'Hybrid war' is a term not defined in public international law. However it is commonly used not only by media and politicians, but also by academics in a sci- entific discourse. A question arises to what extent it is justified to use a term in the context of different military conflicts, like for instance the one in the East Ukraine that has been going on since 2015. Therefore it is necessary to explain what the term 'hybrid war' means. In order to do so, it is necessary to try to define the term. Its distinctive characteristics must be indicated. Then, many military conflicts will be analysed to determine whether they satisfy the requirements for qualifying them as a 'hybrid war' or an internationalised internal conflict. The research leads to a conclusion that an internationalised internal conflict gives many opportunities for applying to it methods characteristic of a hybrid war. In the course of an internationalised internal conflict there are many ways in which the aggressor can evade international liability and the authors attempt to answer how to prevent this.
In recent years, we have seen a wide range of forms of armed conflict, varying in scale, intensity, complexity, and duration, blurring the lines between war and peace. These and other conditions were the reason for undertaking research aimed at identifying scenarios for the development of the international security situation and scenarios for the use of the Polish Armed Forces in relation to threats of a military nature in our country's neighbourhood, in the region, and across the world. With this in mind, while conducting research on the above-mentioned issues, the article focused attention on a research problem which took the form of a question: How does the development of military threats and potential armed conflicts, including the one in Ukraine, affect the shaping of state security? The hypothesis took the form of an assumption that military threats and, consequently, armed conflicts are one of the main determinants of shaping state security. In the face of the threat of an armed conflict, states take actions to ensure their security, in particular, political, organisational, and modernisation activities, and above all, to increase their defence potential in view of war. The research was conducted in military universities, and the general population (N) included research and teaching staff. The research tool was a questionnaire posted on the MS Teams online platform, which is also used to educate students at military universities.
Yersinia pestis (formerly Pasteurella pestis) is a type of bacterium. It is believed to have been responsible for plagues of the early 1300s. More accurately, it is a Gram-negative rod-shaped coccobacillus. It is a facultative anaerobe that can infect humans and other animals. Human Y. pestis infection takes three main forms: pneumonic, septicemic, and bubonic plagues. All three forms are widely believed to have been responsible for a number of high-mortality epidemics throughout human history, including the Justinianic Plague of the sixth century and the Black Death that accounted for the death of at least one-third of the European population between 1347 and 1353. It has now been shown conclusively that these plagues originated in rodent populations in China. More recently, Y. pestis has gained attention as a possible biological warfare agent and the CDC has classified it as a category A pathogen requiring preparation for a possible terrorist attack. Every year, thousands of cases of plague are still reported to the World Health Organization, although, with proper treatment, the prognosis for victims is now much better. A five- to six-fold increase in cases occurred in Asia during the time of the Vietnam war, possibly due to the disruption of ecosystems and closer proximity between people and animals. Plague also has a detrimental effect on non-human mammals. In the United States of America, animals such as the black-tailed prairie dog and the endangered black-footed ferret are under threat from the disease.
Terrorism is defined as use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to indulge fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, social or religious. Bioterrorism is terrorism by intentional release or dissemination of biological agents, mainly bacteria or viruses. Use of biological weapons is attractive from the terrorists' point of view because of low production costs, major range and easiness of transmission. The first mention of the use of primitive biological weapons date back to the 6th century. Use of plague-infested corpses as offensive means in the 14th century caused a spread of bubonic plague through the whole Europe. The biggest development of biological weapons took place in the interwar period and in the cold war era. Biological weapon trails and research were conducted by super powers such as USSR, UK, USA and Japan. At the beginning of the 20th century a new form of bioterrorism occurred, which put humanity in the face of a terrifying threat. Cholera is a deadly disease that has caused a worldwide phenomenon throughout history. Its imperative weapon, the Vibrio cholerae bacterium, has allowed cholera to seize control and wipe out a huge percentage of the human population. V. cholerae's toxins are the primary causes of cholera's lethal symptoms. The bacterium contains toxins that help it accomplish its job of invading the human system and defeating the body's powerful immune system. With its sibling bacterium Escherichia coli, V. cholerae has become one of the most dominant pathogens in the known world. V. cholerae's strategies in causing the infamous deadly diarrhea have been widely studied, from the irritation of the intestinal epithelium to the stimulation of capillary leakage, as well as the internal effects of the disease such as the Peyer's patches on the intestinal walls. Overall, the Vibrio cholera bacterium has made cholera a tough disease to overcome, and because of its deadly virulence factors, cholera has become one of the most frightening diseases a human body could ever encounter. Vibrio cholerae is a Gram-negative, comma-shaped bacterium. Some strains of V. cholerae cause the disease cholera. V. cholerae is facultatively anaerobic and has a flagellum at one cell pole. V. cholerae was first isolated as the cause of cholera by Italian anatomist Filippo Pacini in 1854, but his discovery was not widely known until Robert Koch, working independently 30 years later, publicized the knowledge and the means of fighting the disease. V. cholerae pathogenicity genes code for proteins directly or indirectly involved in the virulence of the bacteria. During infection, V. cholerae secretes cholera toxin, a protein that causes profuse, watery diarrhea. Colonization of the small intestine also requires the toxin coregulated pilus (TCP), a thin, flexible, filamentous appendage on the surface of bacterial cells.
Terrorism is defined as use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to indulge fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, social or religious. Bioterrorism is terrorism by intentional release or dissemination of biological agents, mainly bacteria or viruses. Use of biological weapons is attractive from the terrorists' point of view because of low production costs, major range and easiness of transmission. The first mention of the use of primitive biological weapons date back to the 6th century. Use of plague-infested corpses as offensive means in the 14th century caused a spread of bubonic plague through the whole Europe. The biggest development of biological weapons took place in the interwar period and in the cold war era. Biological weapon trails and research were conducted by super powers such as USSR, UK, USA and Japan. At the beginning of the 20th century a new form of bioterrorism occurred, which put humanity in the face of a terrifying threat.
A few years ago, veteran employment was associated in the United States with the charity. Today both public administration and many private companies are willing to assist former soldiers. Within the next five years, about one million soldiers will have to leave the armed forces because of the planned partial withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Afghanistan and defense cuts. Most of them will find employment, however, a significant percentage, especially the young veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars will remain unemployed. Veterans affairs are crucial both for the President of the United States, the Congress and the whole American society, as they are related to the economic and social aspects of the state functioning. On the other hand, misconception about ex-combatants prevents the use of their potential and skills acquired in the military, and is not reflected in any way on the economy of the state. This situation is frustrating because veterans can be very good workers having many qualities that are desirable among employers, such as leadership skills, cooperation, loyalty and initiative.
Russo-Western relations after the declared end of the Cold War, just as on the eve and in the middle of it, have been fraught with developments pointing towards the persisting distrust and disgust in one another's perceptions cast against the background of officially declared truce. Such a decades-long half-truth-balancing has gradually lost its flexibility and acceptability and culminated in what much of the current academic debate calls, since 2014, a "Russian-Ukrainian conflict", but what, in fact, presents an extension to the latent Russo-Western conflict that embarked upon the end of the Cold War – a "cold peace".This article aims to reveal the origins, form and substance of the current Russian hybrid gambling in Ukraine by addressing the essential notions in international but also domestic politics – trust, truth, lies/deception, distrust, war and peace immensely trapped by politics of incremental hybridity and interpretivism.
