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The author deals with the background & the types of human rights in the era of globalization & looks into the proposals of their global institutionalization. His assumption is that the increased legal normatization of global legal regimes on the basis of human rights is in the rational interest of the actors of global law. There are five main ideas: the democratization of all states, the global institutionalization of the direct global civil law, the global federal republic, the international legal solutions &, the global law. The global institutionalization of human rights has been beset by various problems & it requires different approaches which should be seen as mutually corrective. The globally oriented weak publics are a kind of a forum in which individual solutions' relevance must be argued. They affect the globally operating strong publics. The author concludes that the demand for global justice remains a normative measure towards which public education & the public will must be oriented for the sake of the legal formulation of human rights. 45 References. Adapted from the source document.

This paper examines some of the main assumptions on which the IR theory of political realism is based. According to the theory of political realism, national interest and not morality is the main criterion by which the state acts in its foreign affairs. In its first part this article examines three arguments in support of realists' skepticism towards morality in international relations. In the second part the concept of national interest and the possibility of its application as the main criterion in choosing the state action in international relations are examined. The author argues that the only plausible version of morality is universal morality based on respect for fundamental human rights. Realists' view of morality at the international level cannot be defended in a convincing manner. Still, the theory of political realism provides valuable insights about the nature of international morality and the limits of its application. Adapted from the source document.

In every country, the WTO rules should be viewed from two perspectives: (1) They are used to facilitate access to other countries' markets. (2) The mechanisms for the protection of a country's economy (which make up the bulk of the WTO regulations) are used for the justified & unjustified protection of a country's economy. The author analyzes GATT's basic norms & the Uruguay round of multilateral trade negotiations, with focus on the sector-accommodation policy, using financial services as an illustration. The creation of the WTO disposed of some shortcomings noticeable in GATT, eg, the temporary character of the regulations, the stable & predictable set of obstacles at the borders, & the objective procedures for dispute resolution. To implement the Uruguay session, which includes the GATT, all WTO member states are obliged to adopt its multilateral discipline & rules & bring their national regulations in line with the accepted obligations. The author concludes that the outcomes of the Uruguay session enhanced the role of world trade as a dynamizing factor of the growth of the world economy. 1 Table, 11 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes the concept of balance of power in International Relations through critical overview of Realist tradition (both Classical and scientific), and its horizontal understanding of balancing of power as a principle per se. The first part analyzes the pessimistic phase (Classical Realism), with the emphasis on the works of H.J. Morgenthau, who promoted the balance of power as a principle per se in the hands of international power politics. In the second part, the scientific phase (Neorealism) empirically establishes the value-free balance of power concept in International Relations. By examining materialism and empiricism of Realism, in the third part the author indicates the limitations of the horizontal approach as a consequence of permanently ignoring the vertical aspect: ideational approach and norms and rules as the first principle of international system of society of states. Adapted from the source document.

Taking into consideration all the benefits & pitfalls of its political, economic, military, & cultural legacies, the People's Republic of China has adopted a policy of reliance on rapid economic growth & improvement of the standard of living conducive to political & social stability of Chinese society & state. This goal has been accomplished only temporarily & partially, while the final result depends primarily on the ability of the Chinese leadership to find the golden mean between the two opposites: the closed political system & the need to maintain an open economy. In its search for a place in today's world, China is faced with the central choice of equitable participation in the global community: full acceptance of its mechanisms & principles (beginning with the UN) & international trade norms, the protection of human rights, armament control, environmental protection, etc. However, the Chinese see in this a threat of the erosion of Chinese independence & the possibility of choice & political independence of the Chinese state. Adapted from the source document.

NATO's military action in Yugoslavia is a pivotal event that is going to leave an indelible impact on the future direction of international relations. The author first analyzes the underlying causes of the campaign, among which were the international community's resolve to finally punish Milosevic, be instrumental in eliminating his regime, drive out Russian interests from the Balkans, & espouse a positive stance toward Muslim countries, as well as the internal political American reason: the desire to strengthen President Clinton's position. This action has also had a manifold significance for the new world order, since it poses the questions of the world order's content, nature, leadership, & norms in a new light. In the process of establishing the new post-Cold-War relations, various tendencies that will pave the way to the new millennium will clash. On the one hand, there will be the exclusive approach based on force & interests, & on the other, the desire to establish the relations in which human rights will be the fundamental criterion for assessing the suitability of a country for a full membership in the newly unified international community. Adapted from the source document.

Historically & geographically, the transitional countries of Central, Eastern, & Southeastern Europe, created by the collapse of the real-socialist system, have always been oriented toward the West European markets & eager to create close economic & political ties with the EU member countries & to be integrated into the Western economic system. The EU leaders are well aware of the economic hardships these new transitional countries are faced with, & realize that it will take them several years to adjust to the new system of values & behavior. With this in mind, they came up with a proposal to create an integration of these transitional countries under the advisory leadership, & with the active help, of the EU economic agencies. One of the positive goals of the idea of integration by means of CEFTA was to establish a relatively homogeneous economic entity & create the conditions necessary for future successful economic cooperation with the EU. The cooperation of the transitional countries & the EU so far has shown some promise, but also some shortcomings, which ought to be eliminated, or at least have their negative consequences minimized. There are two types of shortcomings -- institutional & the material -- & they depend on the degree of development of a transitional country, its legal norms, & other (political, social, & cultural) noneconomic factors. 2 Tables. Adapted from the source document.

The article opens with an introduction to the key aspects of the globalization debates and their controversies, while it later deals with the crisis of the national model of citizenship. Since the 1990's the debate is between the advocates of two conflicting theses. According to the first camp of authors, citizenship has proven resistant to the globalization changes in the economic, political and cultural sphere, and even capable of revival. On the other side, it has been argued that the identity of a person, as a member of a national community, was gradually separated from its human and civil rights. That led to the establishment of a 'postnational model of membership' -- individual and group rights independent of citizenship. According to the second camp, the nation state was fundamentally transformed and it has become an instrument for implementation of the international conventions and norms of human rights understood as personal instead of citizenship rights. There are also attempts to reconcile the two standpoints. These authors recognize the challenges to the conventional national mode of citizenship, but argue that the processes of citizenship transformation are primarily an internal issue for the liberal democracies. Some authors try to step out of the narrow and exclusive conceptual frameworks of the nation state and postnational membership, attempting to explain the conflicting transformation processes of citizenship rights. There are also proposals for new concepts of citizenship -- a multicultural and a supranational, for example -- as a response to the challenges of globalization and international migration. Finally, postmodern writers talk about postmodern or a cosmopolitan citizenship that is not immediately tied to the nation-state. Adapted from the source document.

The article opens with an introduction to the key aspects of the globalization debates and their controversies, while it later deals with the crisis of the national model of citizenship. Since the 1990's the debate is between the advocates of two conflicting theses. According to the first camp of authors, citizenship has proven resistant to the globalization changes in the economic, political and cultural sphere, and even capable of revival. On the other side, it has been argued that the identity of a person, as a member of a national community, was gradually separated from its human and civil rights. That led to the establishment of a 'postnational model of membership' -- individual and group rights independent of citizenship. According to the second camp, the nation state was fundamentally transformed and it has become an instrument for implementation of the international conventions and norms of human rights understood as personal instead of citizenship rights. There are also attempts to reconcile the two standpoints. These authors recognize the challenges to the conventional national mode of citizenship, but argue that the processes of citizenship transformation are primarily an internal issue for the liberal democracies. Some authors try to step out of the narrow and exclusive conceptual frameworks of the nation state and postnational membership, attempting to explain the conflicting transformation processes of citizenship rights. There are also proposals for new concepts of citizenship -- a multicultural and a supranational, for example -- as a response to the challenges of globalization and international migration. Finally, postmodern writers talk about postmodern or a cosmopolitan citizenship that is not immediately tied to the nation-state. Adapted from the source document.