Article
Geopolitical games in Eurasian regionalism: ideational interactions and regional international organisations
This paper analyses the ideational interaction underlying attempts at regional integration and cooperation in Eurasia. While the ideas and values of the European Union have been relatively well-studied within the theory of Europeanisation, the key concepts, ideas, values and principles driving Eurasian regionalism have remained out of the main focus of Western scholarship. This paper aims to shed more light on this ideational basis of Eurasian regionalism by unveiling the discourse developed in Russian scholarship and available only in Russian. Understanding interactions between institutions will always remain partial as long as the ideational interaction is not addressed. Such concepts as ‘integrative mentality’, as a segment of the wider category ‘foreign policy mentality’, and the theory of neo-Eurasianism have been incorporated into Russian political discourse and therefore affect public opinion through specific interpretation of economic, political and cultural processes in the EU’s near neighbourhood and the EU as an actor. The analysis presented in this paper indicates the development of new ideational competition, in addition to the well-documented geopolitical one. The paper also aspires to contribute to emerging research on public support to governmental strategic choices and self-legitimation of international organisations in Eurasia.
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In this article the author attempts to explain the events occurring in the country taking into account the specificity of the Ukrainian political culture. From the point of view of the author, a key player in the Ukrainian revolution in 2014 was the Ukrainian society itself, and any attempt to comment the situation of modern Ukraine, first of all, should take into account civil conditions of the society itself. Qualitative state of civil society in Ukraine outrun the quality of the ruling elite, which inevitably provokes new confrontations and conflicts.
In July 2014 amendment to the Federal Law #131-FZ dated on October, 3, 2003 “On the general principles of the organization of the local self-government system in the Russian Federation” set out a typology of municipal formations for urban areas. For designing a new model two legal practices were used: the procedure of forming representative body of municipal district without municipal elections and the organization of LSG in federal cities. From 2003 till 2014 only two cities in RF had internal city entities with the status of local authorities – Moscow and Saint-Petersburg. The cities have the status of the subjects of the Russian federation. In comparison to other subjects Moscow and Saint-Petersburg have the additional competence in terms of establishing the financial basis and organizational structure of local authorities by regional acts in accordance with the federal legislation. The reason for this was the necessity to manage the city economy as a whole and to avoid its fragmentation. No other Russian cities (in spite of the territory and even with more than one million populations) had the same structure. The extension of Moscow capital city territory was realized by accession of some municipalities of the Moscow region (Moscovskaya oblast’). In accordance with the federal legislation their competence was broader than those of Moscow local municipalities. The organizational structure, competence and financing are the milestones of any LSG system. Thus, the balance and coherence between “New Moscow” and “Old Moscow” municipalities will be seen through these characteristics.
The article is devoted to the Asia-Pacifi c Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum to be held and presided by the Russian Federation in early September 2012 in Vladivostok. The article gives the background for establishing the APEC, describes its goals and decisions adopted. It defi nes the APEC's place in the global economy as the largest association of States, which accounts for more than half of global GDP and which has set ambitious targets for establishing a free trade zone, liberalizing the investment climate and promoting regional integration. The article examines the major events in the global energy sector that triggered off the structural energy crisis in the early XXI century, causing the need for ensuring a global international energy security. The author suggests that the issue of energy security as a factor in implementing the strategic objectives of the APEC's economic and social development should be put on the agenda of the Forum. In this connection, the article analyzes the Draft Convention on Ensuring International Energy Security proposed by the Russian Federation for discussion and possible adoption. The article also puts forward several proposals for deepening regional integration to promote the development of the Far East and Siberia, and the creation of a new export base and promoting the Eastern vector of the Russian foreign economic cooperation policy.
The article deals with the processes of building the information society and security in the CIS in accordance with modern conditions. The main objective is to review existing mechanisms for the formation of a common information space in the Eurasian region, regarded as one of the essential aspects of international integration. The theoretical significance of the work is to determine the main controls of the regional information infrastructure, improved by the development of communication features in a rapid process.The practical component consists in determining the future policies of the region under consideration in building the information society. The study authors used historical-descriptive approach and factual analysis of events having to do with drawing the contours of today's global information society in the regional refraction.
The main result is the fact that the development of information and communication technologies, and network resources leads to increased threats of destabilization of the socio-political situation in view of the emergence of multiple centers that generate the ideological and psychological background. Keeping focused information policy can not be conceived without the collective participation of States in the first place, members of the group leaders of integration - Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Currently, only produced a comprehensive approach to security in the information field in the Eurasian region, but the events in the world, largely thanks to modern technology, make the search for an exit strategy with a much higher speed. The article contributes to the science of international relations, engaging in interdisciplinary thinking that is associated with a transition period in the development of society. A study of current conditions in their relation to the current socio-political patterns of the authors leads to conclusions about the need for cooperation with the network centers of power in the modern information environment, the formation of alternative models of networking, especially in innovation and scientific and technical areas of information policy, and expanding the integration of the field in this region on the information content.
This special publication for the 2012 New Delhi Summit is a collection of articles by government officials from BRICS countries, representatives of international organizations, businessmen and leading researchers.
The list of Russian contributors includes Sergei Lavrov, Foreign Minister of Russia, Maxim Medvedkov, Director of the Trade Negotiations Department of the Russian Ministry of Economic Development, Vladimir Dmitriev, Vnesheconombank Chairman, Alexander Bedritsky, advisor to the Russian President, VadimLukov, Ambassador-at-large of the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry, and representatives of the academic community.
The publication also features articles by the President of Kazakhstan NursultanNazarbayev and internationally respected economist Jim O’Neil, who coined the term “BRIC”. In his article Jim O’Neil speculates about the future of the BRICS countries and the institution as a whole.
The publication addresses important issues of the global agenda, the priorities of BRICS and the Indian Presidency, the policies and competitive advantages of the participants, as well as BRICS institutionalization, enhancing efficiency and accountability of the forum.