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The author takes a historical look at the issue of migration before turning to a discussion of migration in the age of globalization. The author also explores economic consequences of migration, and how migration has impacted the USA. References. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes EU actor capacity in security policy with special emphasis on crisis management. She places this within the larger context of security policy & the transatlantic debate over the role of NATO, the case of Iraq, & different national interests of key member states. The author concludes that the EU has steadily developed its capacity to undertake the various types of crisis management, but that the role of the EU as a security actor will be determined by the larger systemic decision making in this area. The crisis over Iraq may very well lead to a consolidation of the EU's role. 33 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author seeks to show that when Germany surprised the world by signaling its disagreement with President Bush regarding the attack on Iraq, it could not be explained by Chancellor Schroder's election campaign, nor by the lack of rapport between the two leaders. At issue are differences regarding principles as well as interests in the wake of the revision of American security policy after September 11, 2001. After reunification, Germany felt freer to express its own interests regarding these & other issues such as closer European security cooperation that Washington now seems to see as a challenge to its own interests. The author concludes by suggesting that this development indicates that the disagreement between Berlin & Washington is not of a temporary nature as some would like to think. 17 References. Adapted from the source document.

It is well established in International Relations that the modem state & the state system originated at the Peace of Westphalia (1648). In this article, the author argues that there is little evidence to support such an understanding, neither in the texts of the treaties nor in the political situation before or in the wake of 1648. Rather, the Peace of Westphalia can in many ways be understood to be a step backwards from a modem understanding of sovereignty (cuius regio, eius religio: whose region it is, his religion it is), which to some extent was represented in the Peace of Augsburg (1555). International Relations' understanding of the Peace of Westphalia is based on a mythical understanding of historical processes. Furthermore, the author argues, International Relations should abandon the mythical watershed which 1648 represents. However, instead of searching for another myth to explain the origin of its main object of study, one should instead re-conceptualise the discipline in a new & more dynamic way, taking into account the heterogeneous character of the international system. 60 References. Adapted from the source document.

A reply to Morten Aasland's article, where he criticizes the Norwegian Institute of International Affair's (NUPI) prior article for lifting the Norwegian self image on high pedestal in comparison to the national interest, in the forming the country's foreign policy. The author agrees that NUPI's constructivist method has its limits, but it nonetheless brings new perspectives to the political debate. L. Pitkaniemi

Norwegian foreign policy discourse is mainly based on the premise that Norway is a "small state." This insistence has linked it to another discourse within the IR community, namely small state literature. The author examines this tradition critically, emphasizing its main tenet: the significance of military power. Paradoxically, one might say, because this way of thinking presupposes a "great power" perspective. Small states have usually been regarded as too weak to influence world politics to any significant extent, but this view is only valid within a "Westphalian" political order. The article explores the various attempts of defining the small state, & the general perception of a specific small state behavior. These efforts, however, presuppose a kind of similarity between small states, which is not historically evident. Instead the author highlights the significance of studying small states more historically, taking into consideration the great variations between them. In recent years, the claim that there exists a universal small state behavior has been challenged by developments within the EU. This "post Westphalian" kind of political order demonstrates the way in which small states within the community now develop a new sense of "activism" & a new small state identity -- changes which add up to a radically new small state profile. 120 References. Adapted from the source document.

In this article the author argues that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) & the Olympic Movement have a more important role in international politics after the Cold War than they had during the Cold War. This is due to three factors: 1) the IOC & the Olympic Movement have taken a more active role in international politics-, 2) the IOC & the Olympic Movement have been given greater freedom of action in international politics; & 3) international organizations, such as the United Nations, to a greater degree than before, see the IOC & the Olympic Movement as important collaborators in achieving their own goals of peace & reconciliation. 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

Few books on war & peace have sold more than Norman Angell's The Great Illusion (1910). Few books have been more debated; few have been more misunderstood. This essay reviews the key argument of The Great Illusion, & shows how this book -- & its curious author -- played a formative role in the emergence of JR as a social science around the time of World War I. First, the book offered an incisive criticism of the approach of Realpolitik. Second, it introduced an alternative approach to modern interstate analysis -- an approach that hinged on the concept of interdependence. Third, the book sparked one of the first scholarly debates between Realists & Liberals on the causes of war & the preconditions of peace. These are only some of the reasons why this book deserves to be shortlisted as an influential classic in the field of International Relations. References. Adapted from the source document.

The brutal terrorist attack on defenseless children in Beslan has sent shockwaves throughout the whole civilized world. After the Beslan drama turned into a tragedy, many questions have been raised by both Russian & Western observers. This author seeks to give some answers to these questions. This brief article is based on a comprehensive analysis of the fragmented information provided by various Russian & Western media in the wake of the tragedy. The article attempts to answer the following set of questions: What was the motivation of the attackers? Who were those who decided to commit this cruel act of political violence? What were their agenda & their goals? To what extent was everything possible done in order to avoid the bloodshed? What lessons can be learned from this experience & what conclusions should be drawn by both Russian & Western policymakers who are forced to address the issue of terror & political violence in this vulnerable region? Adapted from the source document.

In this article, the way the Turkish state treats Kurds is put under the spotlight. The Kurds in Turkey have been subjected to extensive oppression since the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The author places oppression of the Kurds in the context of official dogmatic Turkish nationalistic ideology, Kemalism, which is based on the political philosophy of the founder of the Turkish republic, Mustafa Kemal "Ataturk." The military have assumed the position of his foremost spokesmen after Ataturk's death. It was hoped that the process of adaptation to the ED would result in ending the 80-year-long oppression of the Kurds & the other minorities, after Turkey acquired candidate status to the EU in 1999, but the country's powerful military are trying to thwart this process. The article is discussing how the military are using their role in the Kurdish question to hamper the democratization process. In Turkey there is widespread agreement that the unsolved Kurdish question is the main reason for the problems which have arisen in connection with the process of adaptation to the EU. References. Adapted from the source document.