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[Introduction] South Africa is unlikely to feature at the top of the agenda at any international dialogue on food security. The country is a net exporter of agricultural commodities and has a high per capita income, even for an emerging economy. There are no tight foreign-exchange constraints, and the country is not landlocked. The innovative constitution entrenches the right to adequate nutrition, and this is the basis of the national Integrated Food Security Strategy (IFSS). Taking these features into account, one could easily conclude that food ought to be available and accessible in South Africa at all times. But is this conclusion correct? The confusing reality is that despite all the favourable indicators and South Africa's national 'food-secure' status, about 14 per cent of the population is estimated to be vulnerable to food insecurity, and 25 per cent of children under the age of six are reckoned to have had their development stunted by malnutrition (HSRC, 2004). Against this backdrop of contradictions between positive macro trends and indicators and the challenging reality on the ground, the IFSS should be explored further in order to deepen our understanding of policy directions and priorities on food security. The analysis in this report leads to an overall conclusion that the IFSS is an excellent strategy on paper and a relevant framework for different stakeholders, but in reality it lacks implementing power and is therefore not used to its full potential. (.)

Since the late 1970s reform era, China has been transforming itself into an emerging superpower with global interests and responsibilities, thereby becoming a "concerned stakeholder" and a major contributor to an anarchical international arena. Reflecting international and domestic conditions, Chinese foreign policy has become more active, not to say proactive, pragmatic, and flexible and may be understood in many different ways within the theories of International Relations. China`s foreign policy is a manifestation of how the state operates in the international anarchy and gains power that eventually determines its self-preservation in an uncertain world. That is why a better understanding of China`s motivation is the matter of prime concern for scholars. Thus, in the last two decades or so, the field of international relations has been flooded with countless volumes of Chinese foreign and security policy studies. In order to understand the main drivers, the fons et origo of Chinese foreign and security policy, one should consider how and why discussions of China need to be carried forward, and how the application of "general" theories is unproductive if not actually dangerous. In response to these lacunae, the article provides valid points in the claim of which theory can best explain Chinese foreign and security policy and simultaneously demonstrates why other theories do not. The article provides important empirical findings and shows that Chinese internal dynamics and developments supplement structural explanations thereby providing an important context for foreign and security policy decision making. It could be concluded that neoclassical realism is a more coherent approach to the analysis of Chinese foreign and security policy than traditional system-level or unit-level theories which are appreciated by international relation academics. The author believes that neoclassical realism will continue to develop as the main approach to study foreign policy.

This study aims to determine the progress and progress of policies and strategies implemented in terms of food security in Indonesia in the last ten years. For this reason, a literature review is carried out related to the progress and achievements of policies and programs implemented by the state and its institutions to meet food security objectives. This is proven by the government's extraordinary efforts to ensure the availability, access, and consumption of food for the population. However, there are pending issues in the specification of guidelines and directives that allow for concrete and systematic action; In addition, the incorporation of development actors and agents in the preparation and implementation of programs and projects must be coordinated more broadly to realize and ensure results, sustainability, and improvement of the quality of life of the Indonesian population.

Since the revolution in 1979, Iran has become a key player not only in Persian Gulf politics but also in Central Asia and the Middle East at large. The Islamic Republic of Iran is currently at the centre of a global push-and-pull due to its geostrategic position and its interaction with local and global players. The main aim of the current leadership in Teheran is to preserve Iran's privileged situation within a changing balance of power. This paper assesses and analyses Iran's regional policy since the Iranian Revolution of February 1979, focusing on the last 10 years. It presents a brief historical background of Iran's strategy under the Shah and then looks at current Iranian foreign policy as determined by the ideological map drawn by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the current Supreme Leader of Iran. It also examines current Iranian policies towards Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). My study is based on Middle Eastern sources mostly Iranian, Arab, and Lebanese. Given the paucity of studies based on these sources I will present what Iranian and other experts in the region have written on the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. I believe that this will be of great value to researchers and observers in the West who are not conversant with Arabic and Persian sources

The positions of political parties in various foreign policy questions and how such ideological stances matter in foreign and security policy decision-making remain largely unexplored beyond the specific case of the United States. Reviewing the 'state of the art' in foreign policy analysis and comparative politics, this introductory article discusses the changing nature of both international politics and party systems and cleavages in Europe and beyond. It puts forward reasons why we should see different patterns of coalitions and party behaviour in security policy, on the one hand, and in international trade and foreign aid, on the other. The articles in this Special Issue have been deliberately chosen to capture different elements of 'partyness', from analysing party positions to actual behaviour by legislatures and governments to transnational party networks. Our main argument is that there are genuine ideological differences between political parties and that the impact of these competing ideologies is also discernible in foreign policy decisionmaking.

- ; There are two very different stories that can be told about EU security policy during 2003. On the one hand, some argue that the deep division among important EU countries in relation to the Iraq war is a final confirmation of the absence of an EU security policy. On the other hand, some argue that the last year has been a year of considerable intensity in relation to EU security policy – despite the fact that EU cannot yet be characterised as a unitary actor. One of the reasons for these very different stories is that they are based on fundamentally different ideas and theories about the basic mechanisms in international relations. In this paper Pernille Rieker will contrast how two different approaches, namely Rationalistism and Social constructivism would analyse EU security policy. The paper starts with a short presentation of the meta-theoretical foundation of these approaches. The second part discusses how each of them views the conditions for multilateral cooperation and security. In the third part these perspectives on EU security policy will be discussed and some empirical data that support each of them will be presented. Finally, the paper ends on a discussion concerning whether these approaches must be seen as being alternative or complementary approaches.

The security issue has taken another dimension in Africa. Setting apart the input of different conflicts and civil wars to its downfall, terrorism and extremists' activities in the continent have made its security issue out of control of its political elites .The evolution of the international security paradigm generated by the 9/11 terrorist attacks has led to the involvement of new international actors in the continent, in particular the Sahel region. France, one of these actors, has contributed greatly in saving, rebuilding and reshaping the security in the continent. What is its security policy in the G5 Sahel region? The present paper analyses, through the qualitative research methods, the France security policy in G5 Sahel. The work points out that, despite, the good intention behind this policy, it does not guarantee full security autonomy to the African regional armed forces and recommend few alternative ways African can employ to regain the total security control in the region.

This chapter looks at Russia's modernization in the field of foreign policy and external relations. We distinguish between four different approaches to Russia's foreign policy modernization: military, economic, soft power, and ecological. Each approach opens up a different perspective on what is meant by modernization, and what this means in terms of Russia's foreign policy. Russia's overall modernization has not followed a single paradigm, and the end result has therefore not been in line with any particular theoretical projection – since Russia has enough leeway to resist global trends. But neither has it been an outcome of Russia's own ideas of modernization, since the global environment has been resistant to Russia's own approaches. Russian foreign policy remains multi-dimensional, and contains within itself several tensions. Placing Russian foreign policy modernization in this context, we suggest a new vocabulary conceptualizing the tensions with two major antinomies; global processes versus nationalistic closing, and great powerness versus economic interdependency. Russia cannot avoid these tensions, nor is it an impotent agent; it must find ways to mediate them. ; Peer reviewed

The West must find new ways to cooperate with Russia now that Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev have used its energy revenues to transform the country into a resurgent power and developed an assertive policy towards the West. The Russian Federation has come back to the international arena as a resurgent superpower thanks to its oil and gas revenues and the leadership of Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev. An assertive Russian superpower has adopted a tough anti-Western stance in its external security policy against both NATO's expansion towards the East and against the deployment of the US missile shield programme in Europe. The Kremlim has used energy as an instrument of power in the Ukraine and has employed military power in Georgia, and new documents, such as the 2003 Defence White Paper, the 2007 Overview of Foreign Policy, the 2008 Foreign Policy Concept and the 2009 National Security Strategy express a consistent line of thought in Putin and Medvedev's foreign and security policy. This ARI reviews the developments in Russia's foreign security policy,the continuity in the ideas and action of both Russian leaders, the challenges and opportunities of Russian-Western cooperation in Afghanistan and the energy security and military-operational issues that can be addressed through a bottom-up approach.

Change is in the air in Japan under the leadership of Shinzo Abe, who in 2012 became Prime Minister again after a first term of office in 2006/2007. In his second term, Abe not only wants to halt Japan's economic decline; he also intends to forestall any further deterioration in the country's geopolitical significance and return Japan to its former strength. With these goals in mind, Abe has initiated a series of security policy reforms, including the first increase in the defense budget in years (in fiscal year 2013); the introduction of a National Security Council and a Security Strategy (December 2013); the relaxation of former arms export restrictions (April 2014); and a reinterpretation of the 'peace clause' of the Constitution (July 2014). In the view of many observers, these developments amount to a radical change in Japan's security policy. A detailed analysis, however, shows that internationally too much importance has been attached to the changes ushered in by Abe. Those who claim to discern seminal changes or even a shift in direction fail to take into account the process of transformation and adjustment that Tokyo has been undergoing since as early as the end of the Cold War. Abe's reforms are the logical consequence and result of the gradual realignment of Japan's security policy, a process long underway. Faced with a complex security environment, the Abe administration is attempting to better protect the country from security risks and influence regional developments to Japan's advantage. The alliance with the US remains the linchpin of Japan's foreign and security policy. In addition, Tokyo has been strengthening its cooperation with other partners, particularly Australia, India and several Southeast Asian countries. (SWP Research Paper)

There is broad academic consensus on the fact that the fragmentation of regions presents a significant challenge for the EU. Fragmentation undermines the authority of central states, the EU's most natural counterparts, and distributes it amongst a great number of actors – including non-state armed groups. To address fragmentation, the EU should increase coordination between actors (EU institutions and member states), integrate actions across different policy areas (security and non-security, external and internal) and engage with external players (multilateral organisations, global powers, regional and local actors).

The positions of political parties in various foreign policy questions and how such ideological stances matter in foreign and security policy decision-making remain largely unexplored beyond the specific case of the United States. Reviewing the "state of the art" in foreign policy analysis and comparative politics, this introductory article discusses the changing nature of both international politics and party systems and cleavages in Europe and beyond. It puts forward reasons why we should see different patterns of coalitions and party behavior in security policy, on the one hand, and in international trade and foreign aid, on the other hand. The articles in this Special Issue have been deliberately chosen to capture different elements of "partyness," from analyzing party positions to actual behavior by legislatures and governments to transnational party networks. Our main argument is that there are genuine ideological differences between political parties and that the impact of these competing ideologies is also discernible in foreign policy decision-making. ; publishedVersion ; Peer reviewed

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to assess the local security efficiency across the districts of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian province in northern Poland. The authors are looking for an answer to the following questions: does the local security policy live up to its expectations, i.e., do citizens feel safe at their place of their residence, and how do they assess the individual components of the local security system? How do residents perceive local security depending on their place of residence across the Kuyavian-Pomeranian province? Design/Methodology/Approach: In order to achieve the goal of the research, the authors conducted a survey employing a sample of 4500 residents of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian province. Based on the survey findings and using linear ordering methods, a ranking of districts of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian province was compiled. Findings: There are significant discrepancies between the subjective assessment of local security efficiency by the residents and its objective evaluation conducted with indicators. Generally, the residents of the districts of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian province are much more content with the local security system than implied by traditional indicators. Practical Implications: The findings of the research are of great significance to local authorities as they allow them to design the systems of local development management more effectively by taking account of the residents' opinions on the individual components of the security system. Originality/Value: The research was conducted on a relatively extensive group of respondents. The presented findings proved the usefulness of the multidimensional analysis and linear ordering methods in the assessment of local security policy efficiency. ; peer-reviewed

The European Union (EU) has recently re-launched its ambitions for a Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), which might even lead to a European Security and Defense Identity (ESDI). This paper explains the functioning of these mechanisms for outsiders and assesses the EU's potential for success in these domains by placing them in their proper historical context, which extends back to the creation of "European Political Cooperation" in 1970. It argues that despite a number of obstacles there are still strong reasons to believe that the EU will be able to develop more effective cooperation in these areas, based on 1) the EU's common foreign/security policy interests; 2) recent changes in the decision-making mechanisms of the CFSP/ESDI; 3) the common European resources that are now devoted to this area; and 4) the EU's performance record in foreign/security policy cooperation, which is not limited to its problems in the Balkans. While generally optimistic, the paper concludes on a note of caution about these developments, noting the challenges involved in developing this new capacity while also managing other crucial problems of integration, such as the single European currency and enlargement to the East.

Stephen Cambone is the director of research at the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University. A former senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Cambone is obviously well qualified to undertake work that focuses on a pro- posed reorganization of the National Se- curity Council (NSC). Cambone approaches his work with vigor and an insider's knowledge of the workings of the U.S. government's highest national- security entity. He also extensively uses the knowledge and expertise of two col- leagues, Patrick J. Garrity of the Los Alamos National Laboratory and Alistair J. K. Shepard of the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.