The author is accentuating the importance of improving effectiveness of the OSCE' crisis management in the conditions of erosion of strategic stability on the European continent in the result of unprecedented worsening of relations between Russia and the West. Special attention is devoted to the modernization of the OSCE's crises management potential and maintaining dialogue between the West and Russia, including by creation of consultative platform in the framework of the OSCE to discuss emergencies. The author proposed adoption of several confidence-building measures aimed at restoration of dialogue and finding the way to settle the crises situations. In this context important role could be given to establishing complex peacekeeping missions under the auspices of the OSCE.
The author examines the peacekeeping practice in terms of new instruments of crisis response (special political and stabilization missions and operations) used by the UN, the EU and OAU. The study focuses on the problems connected with the extended use of the UN and EU's stabilization operations aimed at combating terrorism, assuring security in the crisis regions, as well as with the provision of assistance to the host countries. It is revealed that political and stabilization missions could become prospective instruments of crisis response due to their maximum adaptation to modern challenges of global and regional security and stability. High level of coordination among UN, EU and other regional organizations in planning and implementation of these operations is a necessary precondition for effectiveness of these missions and operations. Creation of a global platform for joint operative response to extraordinary and complex crisis situations comprising the UN, EU, OSCE G20 and other regional organizations could be a major step in this respect. The platform could be also used for the development of confidence-building measures providing a high degree of transparency in military activities of different states and regional organizations; for prevention of conflicts and reaching a diplomatic solution. Establishing regional platforms for regulation of local conflicts in the regions with a high probability of crisis situations like the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, Africa, Afghanistan and the Central Asia, the Far East could also contribute to global security and stability.
The article examines the EU's crisis strategy in Sudan and South Sudan in conditions of acute armed confrontation between the Sudanese army and forces of rapid reaction. The reasons for increased attention of the EU to these states with intensive internal armed conflicts have been analyzed. The author has noted that towards these states the EU's crisis strategy has been oriented in the direction of extended application of instruments of «soft power». The motives for refusal of the EU to utilize in the given region the traditional hard-core missions with military and civil components have been examined. In the context of utilization of «soft power» priority attention is devoted to consideration of a new model of the EU's indirect mediation in Sudan and South Sudan based on providing by the EU assistance to mediation of the «third party». The author underlines that indirect mediation of the EU is built in the EU's crisis strategy by means of controlling the allocation of financial and other resources provided to its local mediation partners. The conclusion is made that the EU's indirect mediation could be a prospective and effective instrument of «soft power» concerning complex crisis situations with practical retainment by the EU control over the mediation process
The article examines the results of December EU-Western Balkans Summit and the EU strategy concerning EU – Western Balkans integration. It notes that the summit became a new step in realization of the EU integration strategy in relation to the Western Balkans states. At this stage the strategy is focused on strengthening its political and economic influence in the region and on alignment of the Western Balkans states with the priorities of the EU common security and defense policy, including on the questions of the Ukrainian conflict and related sanctions. At the same time the EU integration strategy creates incentives aimed at realization of necessary reforms in the region with the purpose of strengthening internal stability in the region and prevention of potential conflicts inside of the Western Balkans states as well as among them and first of all between Serbia and Kosovo. The author analyzes the main conflicts in the region which negatively affect stability and security in the Western Balkans and the integration process in general. Special attention is devoted to the escalation of conflict between Serbia and Kosovo which could create serious threat to stability in the region and jeopardize the integration process itself as well as the EU mediation efforts aimed at normalization of relationships between Serbia and Kosovo. The author considers that further EU strategy would be developed on two parallel tracks – acceleration of integration process with the Western Balkans states and increasing effectiveness of the EU mediation mission aimed at achieving comprehensive agreement on normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo.
The article examines new aspects of the EU's strategy towards Afghanistan – Central Asia aimed at stabilizing the region as a whole. New elements of the EU's strategy towards Central Asia are connected with the EU desire to modernize it with the aim to assure synchronous stabilization of Afghanistan and the states of Central Asia in the context of negative repercussions of the Afghan crisis. The article underlines the view of some experts that Central Asia and Afghanistan have common interests in maintaining security and stability in the region as well as in developing mutually advantageous cooperation covering both Central Asia and Afghanistan. Based on these premises the EU tries to integrate Afghanistan into political dialogue between EU and Central Asia as well as into EU's regional projects. In this context the EU considers as a matter of priority a transition to a trilateral model of political and economic cooperation in the format EU – Central Asia – Afghanistan on the basis of regional connectivity. According to the author, stabilization of Afghanistan and Central Asia will be heavily dependent on the ability of the EU as the largest western donor to Afghanistan to revive the Afghan economy in a speedy manner and to provide effective development assistance for post conflict reconstruction of the country. Special attention was devoted to research on EU's policy on humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in the context of reducing challenges to the EU' security stemming from potential largescale irregular migration, terrorism and narcotraffic. The article envisages that the EU further development assistance to Afghanistan would be more related to the concept of the EU's strategic autonomy.
The article analyses the key aspects of the EU policy towards Armenian-Azerbaijan armed conflict. The author explores basic parameters of the EU presence in the region and a degree of its influence on political processes and peaceful settlement. The article shows basic directions of possible collective actions of the parties to the conflict and international mediators (Russia, USA, leading states of the EU) concerning peaceful settlement of this crisis situation in the framework of Minsk Group of the OSCE. In this context, the author devotes attention to the questions of status of Nagorno-Karabakh and models of possible international peacekeeping missions to the area.
The article analyses the fundamental research "Multilateralism in Transition: Challenges and Opportunities for the OSCE", prepared by a team of Swiss experts under the leadership of the renowned Swiss diplomat Thomas Greminger (the Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the OSCE, the UN and the International Organizations in Vienna). The fact that T. Greminger served as Secretary General of the OSCE from 2017 to 2020 gives added value to the research. This created a unique opportunity to combine in the research his vast experience, personal impressions from the observance of the "internal kitchen" of the Organization and his analyses of the main directions of the work of the OSCE. The research focuses on the central problems of the OSCE's activities- preservation of the European security, prevention and regulation of conflicts, new challenges to the European security, strategic partnership of the OSCE with major international organizations, introduction of modern technologies to the operational activities of the Organization, reformation and modernization of the OSCE' s management system and operational functions. Special attention is payed to the revitalization of the OSCE Structured Dialogue ‒ the main platform for discussions of the most important politico-military problems and confidence-building measures, exchange of information on current perceptions of threat, military capacity, de-escalation measures, best practices for the prevention and improved management of military incidents. The book contains a positive assessment of the concept of cooperative actions aimed at a collective response to the new challenges to the European security: climate change and environment destruction, impact of technology on the societies, illegal migration, pandemics, cross- border organised crime, cyber threats, nuclear security. The authors of the book consider that the collective security initiative could stimulate trust, convergence of interests of participating states and finally would improve European security through cooperation. They also bring to attention the problems of the longstanding reform of the OSCE through presentation of the ten-point reform agenda, including management reform of the OSCE Secretariat, reform of the budget cycle, information security and automating work processes. leveraging partnerships with international and regional organizations.
The article contains analyses of the formation of a new strategy of EU towards Afghanistan taking into account recent dramatic changes of strategic environment in connection with the withdrawal of the US and NATO forces from the country. The author devotes attention in this context to the reasoning for adaptation of the previous EU strategy on Afghanistan which was based on the prioritization of a «soft power» concept. The article enumerates possible elements of a perspective EU strategy – support to international efforts aimed at a comprehensive peaceful regulation of the Afghan crises, suppression of international terrorism, strengthening security of the country and providing large-scale economic assistance for sustaining development of Afghanistan as a guarantee of its stability in the future. The article underlines that the concept of interconnectivity between Central Asia – Afghanistan – South Asia and strategic partnership with India are actively used by EU for integration of Afghanistan into the regional cooperation and strengthening its sustainable development and security. The author sheds light on the convergence of the approaches of the EU and Russia on peaceful settlement of the Afghan crises including possibility of joint actions through different international formats aimed at peaceful and sustainable post-conflict development of Afghanistan.
The author explores the key aspects of EU"s crisis response strategy evolution. Special attention is paid to the EU"s policy countering hybrid threats and promoting cyber security, informationcommunication technology, mediation. The article shows that the EU"s strategy aimed at creation of modern information-communication infrastructure and digital platforms in different regions of the world significantly broaden the technical capacity of the EU to monitor crisis situations, to take measures for an early prevention of conflicts and to timely forecast potential armed conflicts and optimal parameters of the EU"s technical assistance for the purpose of development and post-conflict reconstruction of conflict-affected states. The author underlines that the modernization of the EU"s crisis prevention strategy is driven by the new challenges to global and European security as well as by a profound transformation of modern international relations. Cooperation of the EU and the UN in the sphere of peacekeeping and the EU"s military operation in the framework of the crisis management strategy has also been analyzed. Specific details of the EU"s concept of "complex approach" to the crisis prevention strategy have been equally presented in the paper.
The article is devoted to the problems connected with the EU enlargement to the Western Balkans. The author pays special attention to the factors explaining recent increased attention of the EU to finding solution to the enlargement .The article contains analyses of «the frozen conflicts» in the region which continue to influence the regional stability and make the task of accelerating the EU's enlargement to the Western Balkans as a priority one in the context of the EU's strategic autonomy. New EU's initiatives aimed at arranging strategic debates on EU enlargement to the Western Balkans have been described. The article contains analyses of the so-called frozen conflicts in the Western Balkans which continue to exert influence on regional stability and on the process of association of the Western Balkans with the EU. The important role of the EUthe Western Balkans' summits in elaboration of common approaches of the EU's member-states to the problem of enlargement has been noted. The article defines a possible perspective of the EU's enlargement towards the Western Balkans. The author considers that the EU's enlargement towards the Western Balkans is becoming an important task for the EU in the context of realization of its strategic autonomy and projection of its influence on the given region.
The author analyses evolution of the EU's concept of strategic autonomy on the background of the new administration of the USA president D. Biden coming to power and efforts of Paris to enlarge the strategic autonomy by inclusion in it its own nuclear deterrence. Proposals and initiative of France in these regards and the discussion in the EU's expert circles on the relationship between strategic autonomy and perspectives of transatlantic partnerships in the context of cooperation with NATO and the USA have been also analyzed. Special attention was devoted to the question of a possible transformation of strategic autonomy into the concept of «European sovereignty».
The article is devoted to the question of reforms in the OSCE in the context of the recent statement of the RF Foreign Minister on this problem. The previous initiatives, as well as proposals on the subject and basic reasons for lack of consensus on the reforms in the OSCE, have been described in the paper. The author pays special attention to the perspective directions of the reforming process in the sphere of crisis prevention and regulation on the basis of the new technological achievements, peacekeeping missions, peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction, mediation. The article contains certain recommendations on this topic. The author proposes to elaborate a new strategy of development of the OSCE till 2030 which will define concrete options for the OSCE future reforms.
The article explores the evolution of the EU Strategic Autonomy concept in the context of COVID-19 and the search by the EU for its global role in the modern system of changing international relations. The author underlines that the coronavirus pandemic accelerated transformation of Strategic Autonomy into a complex and flexible instrument, which covers practically all the EU foreign and internal policy priorities, starting from overcoming negative socio-economic impact of COVID-19 and securing the EU "health sovereignty", achieving autonomy in development of a new generation of IT technologies and artificial intelligence to effective defence, resolution of ecological and migration issues, modern crisis management in global and regional aspects. It is argued that the Strategic Autonomy is used by the EU as a powerful driver for strengthening political unity and solidarity of the EU, increasing effectiveness of political decision-making process and harmonization of coordination management inside the EU. Special attention is paid to the priorities and goals of the EU foreign policy's agenda for short-term and long-term perspectives. Some for cast is given concerning the strategic relations of the EU with China, Russia, USA and the UN system. Key aspects of the EU strategy on crisis regulation and international security are also described. The author envisages that in the long-term perspectives the EU continues to deepen strategic partnership with the UN in order to increase its influence on the UN system's institutional reforms in the spheres of international security, prevention of conflicts, economic resilience, development of democracy and human rights, protection of environment. The article also outlines the issue of the EU's international partner selection in light of the Strategic Autonomy and the volatile conditions of the modern system of international relations and rising competition for global influence among key world powers.
