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The aim of this article is to analyse the efforts made by the OSCE to contribute to the political settlement of the Transdniestran conflict. As the OSCE is one of the mediators in this conflict, the article begins by considering theories of international mediation and explains the factors that influence the success or failure of mediation efforts. Following this theoretical part, the article continues with an analysis of these factors with respect to the conflict in Transdniestria. It deals with the nature of the Transdniestrian conflict and its causes, describes the parties involved, explains the historical background of the conflict, and analyses its international context, i.e. the role of third parties. The following chapter focuses on the nature of the mediator (i.e. the OSCE) and its mediation activities, and attempts to explain the OSCE's mediation efforts. The article concludes that the absence of a political settlement to the conflict results from a combination of factors that are both embedded in the nature of the conflict and in the nature of the mediator. Adapted from the source document.

The aim of this article is to analyze whether it is appropriate to classify the Norwegian Progress Party as a member of the extreme-right party family. The study first introduces the theoretical approaches to the identification of party families. The origins of parties, ideology, policies & political style are chosen as the most important criteria for the classification of political parties into party families. The article then defines the extreme-right party family on the basis of these criteria. The remainder of the article focuses on the analysis of the Norwegian Progress Party & examines whether the party fulfils the above-defined conditions for being classified as an extreme right-wing party. It concludes that it is appropriate to label the Norwegian Progress Party as a member of the far-right party family even though some of the criteria are not fulfilled or are not fulfilled completely. Thus the party can be considered as either a "diluted" version or a border case of contemporary European radical right. References. Adapted from the source document.