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4762. Plan B after Brexit – What Britain can expect negotiating a Swiss-type arrangement with the EU
- Author:
- Jacqueline Breidlid and Cenni Najy
- Publication Date:
- 06-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- For those wishing to see the UK exit from the EU, Switzerland has become a poster child, an example of how a country outside the EU can retain access to the EU’s internal market, thereby flourishing economically, and yet retaining its sovereignty and independence. But can a similar arrangement to that of Switzerland really provide a suitable alternative – a “Plan B” – for the UK’s relationship with the EU? With the referendum providing potential exit for the UK from the EU rapidly approaching, a Swiss-type plan B deserves some serious consideration. This paper examines the central claims made by those who see Switzerland as a model for the UK’s future relationship with the EU and argues that the Swiss model is no Holy Grail for the UK.
- Topic:
- International Affairs and Brexit
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4763. Forgotten lessons for the Eurozone
- Author:
- John Ryan
- Publication Date:
- 05-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- A Monetary Union is one where there is a single fiat currency with a single monetary authority (a central bank). It also has a single interest and exchange rate, and a single legal entity responsible for issuing that currency across a geographic area. This combination of features required for a true monetary union suggests that many previous monetary unions, including the Latin Monetary Union (LMU) and the Scandinavian Monetary Union (SMU) were not proper monetary unions as such, while the Austro-Hungarian Monetary Union (AHMU) was and the Eurozone is.
- Topic:
- International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4764. The rise of single motherhood in the EU: analysis and propositions
- Author:
- Sophie Heine
- Publication Date:
- 05-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
- Abstract:
- This paper will address a rising issue within the EU – the increase of single parent families. Firstly, we will draw a general picture of the disadvantages faced by single parents and outline the possible causes of this phenomenon. Secondly, we will attempt to sketch possible alternative solutions that could inspire policymakers at the national and European levels. Both in our analysis and recommendations, we will put a particular emphasis on the dynamic role played by norms and representations.
- Topic:
- International Affairs and Global Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4765. What To Do With the UK? EU perspectives on Brexit
- Author:
- Charles Wyplosz
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Slovak Foreign Policy Association
- Abstract:
- The negotiating table is almost set for Britain’s exit from the European Union. In recent months, the Brexit debate has been primarily focused on the UK’s future position within Europe. Little has been discussed about how this decision will affect the remaining 27 member states. With a preliminary date of March 2017 chosen to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, now is the time to begin formally discussing the challenges that both the UK and EU will face during negotiations.
- Topic:
- International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4766. Slovakia: (Re)Discovering of the international crisis management
- Author:
- Samuel Goda
- Publication Date:
- 04-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Slovak Foreign Policy Association
- Abstract:
- The security environment in “wider Europe” has changed significantly in recent years. Depending on one’s preferences, a wide range of milestones may be named – the airstrikes in Yugoslavia, the 9/11 attacks, the Madrid attacks, the war in Afghanistan, the invasion of Iraq, etc. In this study, however, the main issue we are addressing is the Ukrainian crisis (or war), Ukraine being our direct neighbor and a country of special interest – and this being the issue, according to a wide range of experts, that has had the most impact on the region’s security in decades.
- Topic:
- International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4767. Swedish Feminist Foreign Policy in the Making: Ethics, Politics, and Gender
- Author:
- Karin Aggestram and Annika Bergman-Rosamond
- Publication Date:
- 09-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Abstract:
- In 2015 the world’s first self-defined feminist government was formed in Sweden. As part of that ambitious declaration, Sweden also became the first state ever to publicly adopt a feminist foreign policy, with a stated ambition to become the "strongest voice for gender equality and full employment of human rights for all women and girls." To be sure, launching a feminist foreign policy is a radical policy change. At the same time, this policy is embedded in the broader global efforts to promote gender equality in the international arena, which we have seen evolving over the past few decades in the aftermath of the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. The resolution "reaffirms the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peace-building, peacekeeping, humanitarian response, and in post-conflict reconstruction and stresses the importance of their equal participation and full involvement in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security."
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Gender Issues, United Nations, Peacekeeping, Humanitarian Intervention, and Feminism
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Sweden
4768. El Cambio Climático en la Estrategia Global de Seguridad de la Unión Europea
- Author:
- Carlos del Río
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
- Institution:
- Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
- Abstract:
- El cambio climático es uno de los mayores desafíos de la actualidad. La UE ha abordado el tema de forma claramente insuficiente desde el punto de vista teórico, con unos planteamientos demasiado inmovilistas y hasta conformistas con su propia acción. Pero, al mismo tiempo, ha sido uno de los primeros y principales actores internacionales en actuar y posicionarse claramente en la lucha contra el cambio climático. La Estrategia Global de Seguridad de la UE no aborda adecuadamente ni el cambio climático como prioridad fundamental ni algunas de sus implicaciones en las políticas de los Estados Miembros de la UE.
- Topic:
- Security, Climate Change, Energy Policy, and European Union
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4769. European Neighbourhood Policy. A Polish Perspective
- Author:
- Paula Marcinkowska
- Publication Date:
- 01-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
- Institution:
- Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
- Abstract:
- Before the bing-bang enlargement of the EU in 2004, the Union needed to define a coherent policy towards its new neighbours. The European Neighbourhood Policy was formulated when Poland became a member of the EU. Due to its close ties with the Eastern European countries, Poland tried to shape the EU foreign policy towards its neighbouring countries and became their advocate in Brussels. In 2009 it succeeded in establishing the Eastern Partnership as one of the dimensions of the European Neighbourhood Policy.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Regional Cooperation, and European Union
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Poland
4770. Poland in the European Union.Ten Years of Membership
- Author:
- Katarzyna Kolodziejczyk
- Publication Date:
- 01-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Revista UNISCI/UNISCI Journal
- Institution:
- Unidad de investigación sobre seguridad y cooperación (UNISCI)
- Abstract:
- Twelve years have passed since the Polish entry into the European Union. For Poland the date of 1 May 2004 is the culmination of a transformation process launched at the end of the Cold War in 1989. One of the priorities of Polish foreign policy, the expansion of the political, economic and cultural relations with Western Europe and the United States has been met. This approach has been described as ‘the return to Europe’. Membership in the European Union changed the Polish economy and the new politics opened up new opportunities for businesses and citizens. The aim of the article is to analyze the balance of the Polish membership in the European Union in the economic, financial, political and social dimensions.
- Topic:
- European Union, Partnerships, Finance, Economy, Exports, and Imports
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Poland
4771. Europe Facing its Migration and Refugee Challenges: EU, Nation States and Civic Society
- Author:
- Vaclav Havel Library
- Publication Date:
- 05-2016
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Vaclav Havel Library
- Abstract:
- The Václav Havel European Dialogues is an internation- al project that aims to initiate and stimulate a discussion about issues determining the direction of contemporary Europe while referring to the European spiritual legacy of Václav Havel. This idea takes its main inspiration from Václav Havel’s essay “Power of the Powerless”. More than other similarly focused projects, the Václav Havel Euro- pean Dialogues aims to offer the “powerless” a platform to express themselves and in so doing to boost their posi- tion within Europe. The Václav Havel European Dialogues is planned as a long-term project and involves cooperation with other organisations in various European cities. Indi- vidual meetings, which take the form of a conference, are targeted primarily at secondary and third-level students, as well as specialists and members of the public interested in European issues.
- Topic:
- Migration, Regional Cooperation, Immigration, Border Control, European Union, and Humanitarian Crisis
- Political Geography:
- Europe
4772. The Caliphate’s Global Workforce: An Inside Look at the Islamic State’s Foreign Fighter Paper Trail
- Author:
- Brian Dodwell, Daniel Milton, and Don Rassler
- Publication Date:
- 04-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
- Abstract:
- This report contains an analysis of over 4,600 unique Islamic State personnel records that were produced by the group primarily between early 2013 and late 2014. The importance of this data for understanding the Islamic State and, in particular, the foreign fighter flow, cannot be overstated. To put it simply, it is the largest cache of primary source documents produced by the Islamic State available in the open-source as of this date. These particular documents were acquired by NBC News from an Islamic State defector and subsequently provided to the CTC (and other entities). This report provides a window into the organization’s global workforce, revealing information about foreign fighters’ countries of origin, citizenship, points of entry into Syria, marital status, skills and previous occupations, education levels, religious knowledge, fighting role preferences in the group, and previous jihadist experience. In addition to analyzing the data at the macro-level, the report also highlights numerous anecdotes of individual fighters. Taken together, the analysis in this report reveals an organization that is attempting to vet new members, manage talent effectively within the organization, and deal with an incredibly diverse pool of recruits.
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Radicalization, Islamic State, Recruitment, and Foreign Fighters
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Europe, South Asia, Central Asia, Middle East, East Asia, Syria, and Southeast Asia
4773. Doku Umarov, Founder of the Caucasus Emirate: From Secularism to Jihadism (Jihadi Bios Project)
- Author:
- Michael Fredholm
- Publication Date:
- 04-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
- Abstract:
- The CTC is pleased to launch the publication of papers as part of a series devoted to the study of jihadist biographies. The purpose of this project is to contribute to the knowledge of the evolution of the jihadist landscape by exploring it through the lens of the worldviews and experiences of actors who have shaped it. While some states and organizations, wittingly or unwittingly, contributed to the growth of the jihadist enterprise, it may be argued that modern jihadism, as it continues to unfold, is also the product of individuals, who made it into the global phenomenon that it is. As we study the biographies of jihadis, we are faced with a world crowded with different and differing worldviews. Beneath the banner of jihad that seemingly unites jihadis worldwide is a world marked not just by cooperation between groups and individuals, but also by competition and divisions. Some of the jihadis who occupy that world are characterized by a commitment to idealistic goals, by acumen, skills, and agility; others are driven by sectarianism, criminal disposition, and opportunism; while others manifest an odd combination of all. That is why the actions emanating from the jihadist landscape are the results of an amalgam of strategy, sophisticated planning and targeting, randomness, and juvenile enthusiasm. It is for these reasons and more that the complexity of the jihadist landscape requires different layers of analyses and a rigorous and patient approach to the subject. In short, the study of jihadism is about both the “forest” and the “trees;” and this series of biographies is a study of the “trees” as they are situated in the broader “forest.”
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Secularism, Jihad, and Biography
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, Turkey, and Middle East
4774. Remotely Piloted Innovation: Terrorism, Drones and Supportive Technology
- Author:
- Don Rassler
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
- Abstract:
- In early October 2016, the group that calls itself the Islamic State killed two Kurdish soldiers with an explosive device hidden inside a drone. While terrorist groups have long had a fascination with drones and experimented with their use, the incident was a first for a terror group, and it potentially represents the leading edge of a wave of similar incidents that could follow in the months, years and decades ahead. Much has been made of the threat of terror use of drones, but little empirical and historical work has been done to support our understanding of this phenomenon and its evolution. This report seeks to address this gap by providing a review of, and framework to situate, cases in which terrorist entities have either shown a substantive interest in drones or have used them. It evaluates both individual use cases and the activity of groups that have used drones frequently enough to constitute their having a “program.” These cases are then complemented by a review of the creative ways that private citizens have used drones, in order to provide decisionmakers with a firmer baseline of both demonstrated terror capability and what lies within the immediate realm of possibility, given what has already been achieved by others. This report also includes an overview of new technologies that are likely to further complicate the scope of this developing threat.
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Al Qaeda, Drones, and Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)
- Political Geography:
- Europe, South Asia, Middle East, Asia, and Colombia
4775. Forced population movements as a current ethical dilemma and the possibilities of collective action
- Author:
- C. Akça Ataç
- Publication Date:
- 07-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- AURUM Journal of Social Sciences
- Institution:
- Altinbas University
- Abstract:
- The spirit of our times has been increasingly determined by refugee crisis and asylum institutions. If one could read the ongoing economic, political, environmental and demographic crises correctly, a refugee crisis would not have been treated as unexpected, unfortunate singular coincidence. A comprehensive, non-proscriptive approach with a collective, multilevel engagement must urgently be generated by the international community to create an all-encompassing legal consciousness. This paper seeks to delve into the question of the current refugee crisis from an historical point of view and recount the progress of the international refugee regime. In doing that it will also discuss the possibility of the launch of a collective action by the international community in the present. Refugee history is not progressive; it has not linearly proceeded towards comprehensive solutions. There are ruptures, retreats, changes of attitude -from positive to negative, from negative to inaction. Despite the growing global governance with the participation of international and non-governmental organizations, states are still the major actors in the refugee regime. The dominant role of the states in managing the refugee crisis creates an ethical dilemma, as is the case in every normative context state is involved. This paper, therefore, will finally assess the ethical dilemma unveiled by the recent EU-Turkey refugee deal.
- Topic:
- Treaties and Agreements, Population, European Union, Refugees, and Asylum
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean
4776. Regional Financial Integration in East Asia Against the Backdrop of Recent European Experiences
- Author:
- Ulrich Volz
- Publication Date:
- 01-2016
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- School of Oriental and African Studies - University of London
- Abstract:
- This paper discusses recent trends in regional financial integration in East Asia and current efforts of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries to foster regional financial integration against the backdrop of three decades of experience with financial integration in Europe. It reviews the two major crisis episodes of the recent European financial history to illustrate the risks associated with comprehensive capital account liberalisation and financial integration without commensurate supervisory structures. The paper highlights the importance of targeted macroprudential policies and the development of an adequate region- wide regulatory and supervisory framework to reduce the risks associated with regional – and hence international – financial integration.
- Topic:
- International Cooperation, Finance, Financial Stability, and Financial Integrity
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Asia
4777. The Process Behind Turkey’s Proposed Extradition of Fethullah Gülen
- Author:
- Michael Werz and Max Hoffman
- Publication Date:
- 09-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Center for American Progress - CAP
- Abstract:
- It is hard to overstate the gravity of what happened in Turkey during the failed July 15 coup attempt. More than 270 people were killed and thousands wounded in clashes related to the attempted overthrow of the elected government. Tanks and armored vehicles rumbled through the streets of Istanbul and Ankara; soldiers fired into civilian crowds; and rogue F-16 jets and military helicopters bombed and strafed targets in Ankara, including the parliament, the intelligence ministry, and the presidential palace. This litany of atrocities is now familiar to those covering Turkey but should provoke no less soul-searching. There has been a troubling tendency in some Western quarters to respond glibly to Turkey’s trauma, but it is worth considering how the United States government and public would react in the wake of such a crisis. The outpouring of anger and emotion from Turks of all political backgrounds is natural. Without question, those behind the coup attempt must be brought to justice and face trial. As the coup attempt unfolded through the night of July 15, Turkish officials quickly pointed to Fethullah Gülen and his followers—generally referred to collectively as Gülenists or the Hizmet movement—as the driving force behind the overthrow plot. Gülen, an Islamic scholar and U.S. permanent resident, has been living in a compound in rural Pennsylvania since his self-imposed exile from Turkey in 1999, granting few interviews and rarely seeing outside visitors. Gülen’s movement has set up schools in hundreds of countries—including the United States—and established cultural exchange programs, business associations, and media outlets. The exact personal relationship of Gülen to many of these bodies and his degree of direct control over them is not clear. Gülen and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan are former political allies, and members of the Gülen movement helped populate the state bureaucracy following the 2002 election victory of the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP. For a decade, the AKP and the Gülenists cooperated and, indeed, the movement was an integral part of the burgeoning AKP political, media, academic, and business establishment. The alliance helped both the AKP and the Gülen movement, allowing them to erode the control of traditional military and secular elites in Turkey; there is strong evidence that Gülenists in the police and judiciary collaborated with the AKP government to purge military officers and secular rivals in two massive—and manufactured—cases against supposed coup plotters in 2008 and 2010. But Gülenist prosecutors turned on the AKP in December 2013, opening major corruption cases against senior party leaders and their families. Gülenists are believed to have leaked—or, Erdoğan supporters say, manufactured—tapes implicating Erdoğan and his family in widespread corruption, possibly in a bid to swing upcoming elections. Erdoğan and the AKP decried the corruption cases as a coup attempt and declared open political war with the Gülen movement, seizing businesses and closing media outlets and schools associated with the movement. The Turkish demand for Gülen’s extradition, then, is not new and is part of a long-running political fight. But Turkish officials and the public are absolutely convinced of Gülen’s personal complicity in the coup attempt, and the request for his extradition is a primary element of Turkey’s response to the crisis. Despite the gravity of the wider issues surrounding the coup attempt for Turkish politics and society, this brief is primarily focused on the narrower question of Gülen’s potential extradition, the process by which such extraditions are pursued under the treaty between Turkey and the United States that governs extradition, and the political ramifications for U.S. policy and relations with Turkey.
- Topic:
- International Cooperation, Authoritarianism, Coup, Judiciary, and Extradition
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Turkey, and Asia
4778. Orbán’s Hungary
- Author:
- William Danvers
- Publication Date:
- 11-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Center for American Progress - CAP
- Abstract:
- The recent U.S. presidential election caught much of the world by surprise and raised a number of questions about how the new administration will govern. Was the rhetoric on the campaign trail a harbinger of things to come, was it a divisive campaign strategy to get elected, or a bit of both? Either way, there is reason for concern and dismay. Taking a closer look at the Trump campaign, there are parallels to the right-wing national populist political movements in Europe. The recent transformation of Hungarian politics—in particular, the metamorphosis of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, leader of the ruling Fidesz Party—offers a cautionary tale of what can happen when a right-wing national populist leader gets elected. Unfortunately, Orbán, who has been invited to Washington by President-elect Donald Trump,1 is only one part of a larger right-wing national populist phenomenon that has taken root in Europe. For example, he is an inspiration for Jarosław Kacszyński, head of the Polish Law and Justice Party, or PiS, which now controls Poland’s government.2 The PiS, taking a page out of Orbán’s playbook, has been trying to consolidate its power by doing such things as attacking Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, its highest court.3 The idea behind this and related moves in Hungary and Poland is to ensure that once the party is in power, it will remain there by rigging the system to make sure its leaders can get specific programs enacted and create a more favorable electoral climate.
- Topic:
- Nationalism, Authoritarianism, Leadership, Populism, and Far Right
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Hungary
4779. Advancing Climate-Compatible Infrastructure Through the G-20
- Author:
- Gwynne Taraska, Peter Ogden, Nancy Alexander, and Howard Marano
- Publication Date:
- 12-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center for American Progress - CAP
- Abstract:
- To date, 17 G-20 countries—which account for 67 percent of global greenhouse gas pollution—have officially joined the Paris Agreement, bringing the pact into effect sooner than anyone expected.1 If they follow through with their commitments to reduce emissions, it will represent unprecedented progress in the global effort to curb climate change. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, meanwhile, has suggested a number of actions, including dismantling the Clean Power Plan and pledging to “cancel” the Paris Agreement, that would drive the United States—and potentially other countries—in the opposite direction.2 In light of this, the G-20 summit in July 2017 provides an important opportunity for committed major powers to resist backsliding by any and all G-20 countries—and even to make some progress in meeting the climate challenge. To its credit, the German government, which officially assumed the G-20 presidency in December 2016, has taken steps that position the summit well for just such an effort. When German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced her three “pillar” objectives for the summit, she explicitly identified climate change as a priority. These pillars include fostering global economic stability; making the global economy viable for the future, including through the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; and establishing the G-20 as a “community of responsibility,” including by promoting a compact with Africa that would address infrastructure investment, among other topics.3
- Topic:
- Climate Change, International Cooperation, Infrastructure, G20, and Green Technology
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Germany, and Global Focus
4780. Moscow on the Potomac
- Author:
- CAP National Security and International Policy
- Publication Date:
- 12-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center for American Progress - CAP
- Abstract:
- On October 16, 2016, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson issued an extraordinary statement, indicating that the “U.S. Intelligence Community is confident that the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of e-mails from U.S. persons and institutions, including from U.S. political organizations.”1 The release of this hacked information was all directed at the Democratic presidential campaign and its affiliates, with no hacked information leaked regarding the campaign of the Republican presidential nominee, and now president-elect, Donald Trump. These senior U.S. intelligence officials pointed out that Russia, under President Vladimir Putin, had used similar tactics across Europe and Eurasia to bolster right-wing nationalist parties and that “[t]hese thefts and disclosures are intended to interfere with the U.S. election process.” Director Michael Rogers, head of the National Security Agency, noted, “There shouldn’t be any doubt in anybody’s minds, this was not something that was done casually, this was not something that was done by chance, this was not a target that was selected purely arbitrarily. This was a conscious effort by a nation-state to attempt to achieve a specific effect.”2
- Topic:
- Security, Corruption, National Security, and Leadership
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, North America, and United States of America