Populist political masculinities, gender equality, and norm contestation in Armenia and Georgia
In: International feminist journal of politics, S. 1-24
ISSN: 1468-4470
In: International feminist journal of politics, S. 1-24
ISSN: 1468-4470
In: Journal of European public policy, S. 1-25
ISSN: 1466-4429
In: International affairs, Band 100, Heft 1, S. 241-260
ISSN: 1468-2346
Abstract
This article argues that China's rhetorical support for prevention at the United Nations obscures its underlying contestation of atrocity prevention in both conception and practice. It introduces a novel conceptual framework, coined as the two-level norm cluster of prevention, which includes three conceptually aligned yet distinct parts: operational conflict prevention, direct atrocity prevention and root-cause prevention. Drawing on interviews and policy documents, this article finds that China conflates direct atrocity prevention with operational conflict prevention, with a preference for the agenda of conflict prevention, as seen in China's divergent commitments to preventing armed conflicts and peacetime atrocities. This conflation represents a deliberate political choice rather than a result of misunderstanding or lack of knowledge regarding their distinctions. China also endorses a strong linkage between direct atrocity prevention and development-focused root cause prevention. Despite China's growing assertiveness in shaping liberal norms and the favourable perception of its development-focused approaches among elite groups in host states, the Chinese government hesitates to officially promote the scholarly concept of developmental peace and present it as an alternative to the existing liberal principles. This reluctance reflects China's intention to avoid explicit confrontation with liberal norms and its concerns about the potential failure of norm entrepreneurship.
In: International affairs
ISSN: 1468-2346
World Affairs Online
In: International relations: the journal of the David Davies Memorial Institute of International Studies
ISSN: 1741-2862
In 2017 US president Trump announced the intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. This was widely perceived as a major challenge to continued cooperation to counter climate change. A feared consequence was further member withdrawal leading to the weakening of the Paris agreement and thus, the climate change action norm. Yet instead, states and non-state actors recommitted to the agreement and further legitimated the norm. How did this contestation of the US withdrawal announcement contribute to the further legitimation of the climate change action norm? I argue that this is due to climate change action being established as a legitimate, institutionalized norm within a diverse community in the global climate regime, especially by the UNFCCC's effort. Contestation and legitimation are connected in a holistic process. Trump's contestation therefore triggered legitimation rather than de-legitimation. Based on 26 interviews with UNFCCC officials, COP negotiators and non-state actors, I show that the announcement can be perceived as catalyst to the norm legitimation. This article contributes to the literature on the legitimation and contestation of norms, especially those facilitated by international organizations in the global climate regime.
"Discover the fascinating world of norm research, a crucial subfield of IR, which reveals how ideas and norms influence the actions of nations and other players. The interpretation-contestation framework is introduced as an innovative means to understand the progression and evolution of norms across both domestic and international levels"--
In: Journal of Strategic Security: JSS, Band 17, Heft 1, S. 100-111
ISSN: 1944-0472
This article delves into the evolution of international norms, focusing on the dynamics within Central Asia as a microcosm of broader global shifts. It begins by elucidating the concept of a "region" in international relations, emphasizing its multifaceted nature, both geographically and culturally, as well as its evolving character in the face of global transformations. The study then delineates the emergence of regionalism, encompassing the historical context of old and new regionalism, with a nuanced understanding of their continuities and distinctions. A pivotal point of analysis is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), whose genesis and transformation underscore the influence of new regional dynamics. The SCO's role as a tool for soft balancing against external hegemony, particularly that of the United States, is examined, highlighting its emphasis on shared norms that diverge from Western ideologies. The SCO's success in shaping normative preferences within Central Asia, particularly in promoting non-interference, state sovereignty, and stability, is contrasted with the efforts of Western institutions like the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which prioritize liberal democratic norms. The study concludes by elucidating the implications of these normative contestations in Central Asia for the broader international order.
In: Business and politics: B&P, S. 1-28
ISSN: 1469-3569
Abstract
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is one of the most important mega-regional trade agreements signed to date. Yet, it failed to include an Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism in its investment chapter. What explains this omission? To unpack this, we examine international negotiations as a two-step process. In the first stage, we theorize that initial preferences towards ISDS are based on countries' orientation toward foreign direct investment (FDI), experience with ISDS, and past treaty practice. Second, we theorize that during protracted negotiations, adverse regime developments and domestic politics can have a profound impact on treaty design. To test our framework, we examine the RCEP negotiations. Our analysis shows that mounting cases as well as the eroding norm of ISDS in other treaties lowered support for ISDS as the negotiations progressed. Then, a change of government in Malaysia shifted that country's position dramatically, which tipped the balance against ISDS in the final round of negotiations. Our findings have important implications for the international investment regime. They highlight the factors that determine countries' initial preferences while also demonstrating the importance of developments during the negotiations, which can lead to the abandonment of the institutional status quo.
In: International studies quarterly: the journal of the International Studies Association, Band 68, Heft 2
ISSN: 1468-2478
Abstract
What are the consequences of prioritizing one obligation over another in a norm conflict on the norm that "loses"? How do these difficult choices affect how we understand the intent behind noncompliance with international law? This article examines South Africa's decision not to arrest the then-President of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, in the face of conflicting pressures from multiple international and domestic actors. South Africa's conundrum over whether to arrest al-Bashir resulted in what we call "collateral noncompliance": noncompliance with one obligation as a product of compliance with another. Understanding noncompliance like this highlights how seemingly bad-faith noncompliance can be a consequence of weighing competing obligations, rather than a deliberate attempt to shirk or undermine the nonchosen norm. It offers an alternative to perspectives that frame African states' noncompliance with the International Criminal Court as inherently problematic, contributing instead to more critical, reflexive understandings of noncompliance and contestation as a natural part of norm development.
In: Politics and governance, Band 12
ISSN: 2183-2463
Collective instruments, such as UN peacekeeping or mediation, are a lens through which we can examine broader normative fault lines in the international order. They hold both practical and symbolic value. In the post-Cold War moment, these instruments started reflecting liberal values. They became concerned with balancing the rights of individuals and state sovereignty. These advances around "human protection" are now in question, with contestation perceived as emerging from non-Western powers. I contribute to the debates on the "pragmatic turn" within collective responses but contend that while the focus in current debates about the normative shift has become global fragmentation, the momentum for the de-prioritization of human protection within collective instruments comes from within the liberal order itself. Human protection is now a broadly shared and firmly entrenched norm, but to shield the norm from abuse, the collective international community progressively restricted any use of force to advance the norm within the instrument of UN peacekeeping. The co-optation of UN peacekeeping into counter-terrorism efforts and the introduction of stabilization mandates undermined the principled nature and moral authority of the instrument of peacekeeping itself. This, in turn, compromised the implementation of human protection. This development is now accelerated and exposed due to global fragmentation, influencing not just peacekeeping but also other adjacent activities, such as mediation.
In: Oxford handbooks online
In: Religion
"This volume tells the story of the interaction between Christianity and law-historically and today, in the traditional heartlands of Christianity and around the globe. Sixty new chapters by leading scholars provide authoritative but accessible accounts of foundational Christian teachings on law and legal thought over the past two millennia; the current interaction and contestation of law and Christianity on all continents; how Christianity shaped and was shaped by core public, private, penal, and procedural laws; various old and new forms of Christian canon law, natural law theory, and religious freedom norms; Christian teachings on fundamental principles of law, politics, and legal order; and Christian contributions to controversial legal issues. Together, the chapters make clear that Christianity and law have had a perennial and permanent influence on each other over time and across cultures, albeit with varying levels of intensity and effectiveness"--
In: Oxford handbooks series
"This volume tells the story of the interaction between Christianity and law-historically and today, in the traditional heartlands of Christianity and around the globe. Sixty new chapters by leading scholars provide authoritative but accessible accounts of foundational Christian teachings on law and legal thought over the past two millennia; the current interaction and contestation of law and Christianity on all continents; how Christianity shaped and was shaped by core public, private, penal, and procedural laws; various old and new forms of Christian canon law, natural law theory, and religious freedom norms; Christian teachings on fundamental principles of law, politics, and legal order; and Christian contributions to controversial legal issues. Together, the chapters make clear that Christianity and law have had a perennial and permanent influence on each other over time and across cultures, albeit with varying levels of intensity and effectiveness"--
In: Global studies quarterly: GSQ, Band 4, Heft 1
ISSN: 2634-3797
Abstract
This special forum focuses on international communities of practice (CoP) as a concept and an object of inquiry in International Relations (IR). The Introduction discusses the concept's origins and how it has entered the field of IR. It addresses why and how CoPs matter to IR scholars by looking at how structure, agency, processes, institutions, and knowledge manifest themselves in communities. This special forum's main contributions are: (1) capturing the political and economic effects of shared knowledge creation and diffusion through practices; (2) identifying the sources of knowledge production and learning, as well as the normative and political contestation within and between CoPs; (3) studying the social processes that originate at the boundaries between CoPs; (4) examining how people and processes generate, transform, and communicate knowledge; and (5) exploring how CoPs cultivate global governance's norms, values, and practices from the bottom up. The Introduction also helps distinguish CoP from other relational concepts in IR such as networks, fields, regimes, and epistemic or security communities. It ends by way of situating the contributions to the special forum and outlining a research agenda on CoPs in world politics.
In: Critique internationale, Band 102, Heft 1, S. 11-26
ISSN: 1777-554X
Dans la lignée des débats interdisciplinaires qui ont affirmé la nature politique des archives, nous examinons l'articulation entre archivage et contestation dans ses dimensions transnationales et internationales. Parce qu'elles brouillent les frontières entre archivistes et activistes, les mobilisations archivistiques transnationales assignent à l'archivage de multiples fonctions : mémorielle, testimoniale, probatoire ou judiciaire. Les dynamiques à l'œuvre concernent aussi bien la construction et la conservation que le déplacement, la numérisation ou le partage des archives. Nous observons la façon dont ces mobilisations se saisissent de ces enjeux, et ce, dans des circulations entre le Moyen-Orient, l'Afrique et l'Europe. Qu'il s'agisse de commémorations d'acteurs socio-politiques oubliés, de conflits interétatiques sur les « vérités » historiques et la propriété des archives, ou encore d'internationalisation des normes de gestion des documents, notre réflexion contribue aux débats sur les archives et les politiques des archives comme objets d'étude pour l'histoire, l'anthropologie, la sociologie et la science politique.
In: Environment and planning. C, Politics and space
ISSN: 2399-6552
Studies of financialization have highlighted how politics, particularly through the state, drives the increasing entanglement of financial actors and rationales in the production of urban space. This article shifts the angle to consider the challenges that uncertain politics pose for such entanglement. Looking beyond techno-calculative practices, it explores how finance works politically to sustain value extraction within fragmented regulatory landscapes. It does so through historical and ethnographic analysis of financial investment in urban water and sanitation provision in Brazil, drawing on fieldwork, interviews, and a new dataset on public-private contracts to interrogate how private water companies navigate politico-regulatory relations under financial investors like private equity. It shows that while these providers were quite engaged in local politics under their original owners (construction groups), under financial investors they sought to "escape" it by curbing ties to public officials, reducing the autonomy of local subsidiaries, and successfully lobbying for national standards on regulatory norms. It argues these centralizing efforts constituted forms of centripetal politics meant to enhance asset monitoring, increase regulatory legibility, and reduce political uncertainty. The findings illuminate how financial investors work across political scales to navigate political risk and sustain financial value, thus problematizing the conventional analytical focus on how finance capitalizes on local forms of entrepreneurial politics. Crucially, they reveal the need to treat institutional environments not simply as filters for financial investment but as objects of political contestation by financial actors. This allows for blurring the boundaries between finance and politics, and for politicizing finance.