Suchergebnisse

It has been said that Central and Eastern Europe can be seen as an interesting direction for Indian political and economic expansion. Both the data on diplomatic activity and India's trade with the countries of CEE, however, prove that the region is not of key importance for New Delhi's foreign policy. On the other hand, a steadily growing trade turnover allows assuming that the current situation will gradually change. The conclusions may be confirmed by the analysis of New Delhi's diplomacy directions in the region. The Indian leaders (not the most important figures, taking into account symbolism and real significance) visited in the years 2014-2019 the CEE countries with the highest trade turnover with India, namely Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania. They also paid visits to Bulgaria, Croatia and Serbia, that is countries with which India's trade turnover is relatively low, but steadily growing. It may indicate a desire to establish more active diplomatic and economic involvement in this region than previously.

recenzja

The purpose of this paper is to analyze superpower potentials of Saudi Arabia and Iran. The analysis is aimed at finding the answer to the following research question: which of the states involved in the so-called 'New Cold War' in the Middle East – Saudi Arabia or Iran – fulfills to a greater extent the criteria for being qualified as a superpower? The hypothesis constructed on the basis of a research question anticipates that in case of combining Saudi Arabia's and Iran's superpower potentials, Riyadh appears to be a stronger actor, and thus, more capable of playing the role of a regional leader. In order to verify the research hypothesis, the superpower criteria formulated by A. Włodkowska were used, namely population and demographic, territorial (geopolitical), economic and technological, as well as military measures. Transferring the results of the analysis into numerical values has enabled a positive verification of the research hypothesis. Comparing the current superpower potentials of both Riyadh and Tehran as well as taking into account their evolution trends lead to drawing a conclusion that Saudi Arabia outweighs its rival with regard to the potential for playing the role of a regional power. Not only does the Kingdom appear as the largest and most economically developed country in the region, but also an entity characterized by favorable and prospective both demographic and economic indicators, allocating the majority of the Middle Eastern actors to the modernization and expansion of the army.

The purpose of this paper is to verify whether "a failed strategy", a phrase commonly used in the literature, is an adequate description of Barack Obama's legacy in the Middle East and North Africa. Based on the selected political manifestos and actions in the sphere of diplomacy, it has been proven that the Middle East and North Africa was not a priority to the decision-makers in Washington in the years 2009–2012, unlike in the years 2005–2008. However, although President Obama did not manage to implement most of his original plans, he achieved a few significant successes, the most notable of which is the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and the conclusion of the nuclear deal with Iran. Authors seek to contextualize and explain Obama's failures and successes, arguing that using the phrase "a failed strategy" does not reflect the complexity of the problems analyzed.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the origins and evolution of Self-Defence Forces as an institution within the Japanese constitutional system. The analysis also aims to provide answers to the question of the compatibility of Jietai with the Japanese Constitution and its formal status. In order to address the research problem, we have decided to dedicate the first part to issues related to the constitutional principles of pacifism and anti-militarism. It is followed by the description of the process that led to the formation of Japanese Self-Defence Forces. We decided that the turning point of the analysis is the appointment of Liberal Democratic Party's leader, Abe Shinzo, as the 96th Prime Minister of Japan (December 26, 2012). The reforms undertaken by the politician resulted in a rapid change in the character of Self-Defence Forces, putting an end to the hitherto functioning model of Jietai.

A common feature of numerous definitions of "smart city" is the skilfull use of digitalization tools aimed at achieving the goals of urban policy based on the principles of sustainable development. Digitalization is, therefore, the foundation of a smart city, however, there are no uniform standards for digital solutions that city authorities could implement. This article aims to analyze digitalization solutions understood as processes implemented in the cities ranked in the first five positions of the latest Smart City Index report for 2021—Singapore, Zurich, Oslo, Taipei City, and Lausanne. The authors show whether—and to what extent—digitalization of smart cities is a defining condition for their status and to what extent it is optional. The study showed that various digitalization solutions and paths were implemented, however, their scope and goals differ depending on the specificity of each city and the municipal strategy implemented.

Progressive urbanization, economic integration, and development of modern technologies lead to the emergence of a new generation of globally networked cities attracting capital, ideas and people. Size is not the most significant factor influencing the importance of a city. At least equally important are innovation, activity in city networks, the activity of the inhabitants and the quality of life. 15 years ago, Taylor et al. suggested that "it is no longer possible to talk of 'non-global' cities" (Taylor et al., 2007, p. 185). The research problem of this paper corresponds with the statement, addressing the question whether and how small and medium-sized cities show their manifestations of globalization. The hypothesis is that cities, regardless of size, show some signs of it. Such manifestations may be classified as political, economic, socio-cultural, and other. The conclusions confirm that the hypothesis has been positively verified. As a result of the application of probability sampling methods, the cities chosen for examination include the European cities of Aarhus (Denmark), Basel (Switzerland), and Tallinn (Estonia) as they are representative for numerous small and medium-sized cities.

Progressive urbanization, economic integration, and development of modern technologies lead to the emergence of a new generation of globally networked cities attracting capital, ideas and people. Size is not the most significant factor influencing the importance of a city. At least equally important are innovation, activity in city networks, the activity of the inhabitants and the quality of life. The research problem of this paper is the question whether and how small and medium-sized cities show their manifestations of globalisation? The hypothesis is that every city, including small and medium-sized ones, shows some manifestations of globalisation. Such manifestations may be classified as political, economic, socio-cultural, and other. The conclusions confirm that the hypothesis has been positively verified. The cities chosen for examination include the European cities of Arhus (Denmark), Basel (Switzerland), and Tallinn (Estonia) as they are representative for other small and medium-sized cities. The paper is based on qualitative research methods, primarily discourse analysis (e.g. strategies implemented by cities and political manifestos of local officials), multiple case studies, and literature analysis.

Artykuł poświęcony jest metodom i sposobom, w jakie miasta współcześnie wkraczają w rolę państw narodowych i skutecznie współpracują z innymi miastami na płaszczyźnie transnarodowej – nie tylko dwustronnie, ale także wielostronnie. Autorzy zwracają uwagę na wyraźne symptomy kryzysu multilateralizmu i na tym tle skupiają się na roli miast w ratowaniu oraz/lub naprawianiu systemu wielostronnej współpracy i rozwiązywaniu problemów globalnych. Jednym z przykładów takiego działania jest aktywność miast podczas trwającej obecnie pandemii Covid-19. W konkluzjach autorzy podjęli próbę odpowiedzi na wcześniej postawione pytanie badawcze: czy miasta mogą pomóc w naprawie systemu wielostronnego? Czy w sytuacji, kiedy do władzy na szczeblu państwowym dochodzą populiści czy siły przeciwne multilateralnej współpracy, miasta mogą zaoferować jakieś remedium? Wśród zastosowanych metod badawczych znalazły się analiza dyskursu i analiza formalno-prawna. Wyniki przeprowadzonych analiz pozwalają stwierdzić, że odpowiedź na pytanie badawcze jest pozytywna – miasta mogą pomóc naprawić, a nawet uratować system wielostronnej współpracy.

The paper reports the 9th Polish Conference on International Relations: 2017 – a Year of a Change organized by the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń on June 2, 2017. It presents not only the scope and process of this years' conference but also briefly describes the idea of annual meetings of young Polish scholars interested in widely understood international relations. The conference report presents accompanying events of the conference, which gave its ninth edition unique atmosphere. It also points out the way this years' conference contributed to the unification of the community of students and PhD students in Poland who are researching a variety of subjects related to international relations.