A Word on Kosovo’s First Ten Years

Südosteuropa ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 272-281
Author(s):  
Robert C. Austin

Abstract Kosovo celebrated ten years of fraught independence in February. While there were some good reasons to celebrate, Kosovo still hovers between a failed and a functioning state. Its main economic indicators are extremely bad with no signs of improving. Unemployment, particularly among its youth, is feeding an ongoing brain drain. The legacy of the United Nations Mission (UNMIK) and now the European Union Mission (EULEX) is mixed, but neither was successful in creating the conditions for Kosovo to function as a normal state. Agreements between Belgrade and Prishtina to provide more rights to the Serb communities especially in the north have undermined Kosovo’s sovereignty. Now, the buzz in Prishtina speaks of a territorial swap between Serbia and Kosovo that would pave the way for mutual recognition. The domestic elite have proven more interested in short term survival and profit than in making historic progress. A stale consensus prevails that maybe this is the best that can be hoped for.

2016 ◽  
pp. 88-109
Author(s):  
Wiktoria Domagała

The article undertakes the issue of gender equality policies in the context of its indicators. The main purpose of the paper is to identify the areas of gender inequality, its scale and determinants. Firstly, the article presents the legislation of gender equality policies – its main objectives. Next, the paper discusses indicators that were implemented by organisations such as the Organisation of the United Nations and the European Union. These selected indicators are presented, taking into account the situation in Poland. In conclusion, the paper highlights the main obstacles to the pursuit of equal opportunities for women and men in Poland.


Author(s):  
Jacob C Jentzer ◽  
Benedikt Schrage ◽  
David R Holmes ◽  
Salim Dabboura ◽  
Nandan S Anavekar ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims Cardiogenic shock (CS) is associated with poor outcomes in older patients, but it remains unclear if this is due to higher shock severity. We sought to determine the associations between age and shock severity on mortality among patients with CS. Methods and results Patients with a diagnosis of CS from Mayo Clinic (2007–15) and University Clinic Hamburg (2009–17) were subdivided by age. Shock severity was graded using the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Intervention (SCAI) shock stages. Predictors of 30-day survival were determined using Cox proportional-hazards analysis. We included 1749 patients (934 from Mayo Clinic and 815 from University Clinic Hamburg), with a mean age of 67.6 ± 14.6 years, including 33.6% females. Acute coronary syndrome was the cause of CS in 54.0%. The distribution of SCAI shock stages was 24.1%; C, 28.0%; D, 33.2%; and E, 14.8%. Older patients had similar overall shock severity, more co-morbidities, worse kidney function, and decreased use of mechanical circulatory support compared to younger patients. Overall 30-day survival was 53.3% and progressively decreased as age or SCAI shock stage increased, with a clear gradient towards lower 30-day survival as a function of increasing age and SCAI shock stage. Progressively older age groups had incrementally lower adjusted 30-day survival than patients aged <50 years. Conclusion Older patients with CS have lower short-term survival, despite similar shock severity, with a high risk of death in older patients with more severe shock. Further research is needed to determine the optimal treatment strategies for older CS patients.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
José Antonio Peña-Ramos ◽  
Philipp Bagus ◽  
Dmitri Amirov-Belova

The “European Green Deal” has ambitious aims, such as net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. While the European Union aims to make its energies greener, Russia pursues power-goals based on its status as a geo-energy superpower. A successful “European Green Deal” would have the up-to-now underestimated geopolitical advantage of making the European Union less dependent on Russian hydrocarbons. In this article, we illustrate Russian power-politics and its geopolitical implications by analyzing the illustrative case of the North Caucasus, which has been traditionally a strategic region for Russia. The present article describes and analyses the impact of Russian intervention in the North Caucasian secessionist conflict since 1991 and its importance in terms of natural resources, especially hydrocarbons. The geopolitical power secured by Russia in the North Caucasian conflict has important implications for European Union’s energy supply security and could be regarded as a strong argument in favor of the “European Green Deal”.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2631
Author(s):  
Kandeepan Karthigesu ◽  
Robert F. Bertolo ◽  
Robert J. Brown

Neonates with preterm, gastrointestinal dysfunction and very low birth weights are often intolerant to oral feeding. In such infants, the provision of nutrients via parenteral nutrition (PN) becomes necessary for short-term survival, as well as long-term health. However, the elemental nutrients in PN can be a major source of oxidants due to interactions between nutrients, imbalances of anti- and pro-oxidants, and environmental conditions. Moreover, neonates fed PN are at greater risk of oxidative stress, not only from dietary sources, but also because of immature antioxidant defences. Various interventions can lower the oxidant load in PN, including the supplementation of PN with antioxidant vitamins, glutathione, additional arginine and additional cysteine; reduced levels of pro-oxidant nutrients such as iron; protection from light and oxygen; and proper storage temperature. This narrative review of published data provides insight to oxidant molecules generated in PN, nutrient sources of oxidants, and measures to minimize oxidant levels.


Author(s):  
Francesco Giumelli ◽  
Michal Onderco

Abstract While the current practice of the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, and the United States leans towards imposing only targeted sanctions in most of the cases, private actors often complain about inability to process financial transactions, ship goods, or deliver services in countries where sanctions targets are located. The impact of sanctions often ends up being widespread and indiscriminate because sanctions are implemented by for-profit actors. This article investigates how for-profit actors relate to the imposition of sanctions, how they reflect them in their decisions, and how they interact with the public authorities. The findings of our research show that for-profit actors, with the possible exception of the largest multinationals, do not engage with public authorities before the imposition of sanctions. The behaviour of for-profit actors in the implementation phase is in line with the assumption of firms and business as profit-maximisers. Weighting the profits from business against the costs of (non-)compliance and make the decisions that in their view maximise their profit. Indeed, de-risking seems to be the most common approach by the companies due to the uncertainties produced by the multiple and overlapping sanctions regimes imposed by the United Nations, the European Union, and the United States.


2021 ◽  
pp. 175857322098784
Author(s):  
Arno A Macken ◽  
Ante Prkić ◽  
Koen LM Koenraadt ◽  
Iris van Oost ◽  
Anneke Spekenbrink-Spooren ◽  
...  

Background This study aims to use the Dutch Arthroplasty Register data to report an overview of the contemporary indications and implant designs, and report the short-term survival of radial head arthroplasty. Methods From the Dutch Arthroplasty Register, data on patient demographics, surgery and revision were extracted for radial head arthroplasties performed from January 2014 to December 2019. Implant survival was calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results Two hundred fifty-eight arthroplasties were included with a median follow-up of 2.2 years. The most common indication was a fracture of the radial head (178, 69%). One hundred thirty-nine (68%) of the prostheses were of bipolar design, and the most commonly used implant type was the Radial Head System (Tornier; 134, 51%). Of the 258 included radial head arthroplasties, 16 were revised at a median of six months after surgery. Reason for revision was predominantly aseptic loosening (9). The overall implant survival was 95.8% after one year, 90.5% after three years and 89.5% after five years. Discussion For radial head arthroplasties, acute trauma is the most common indication and Radial Head System the most commonly used implant. The implant survival is 89.5% after five years.


Author(s):  
Carlota Rigotti ◽  
Júlia Zomignani Barboza

Abstract The return of foreign fighters and their families to the European Union has mostly been considered a security threat by member States, which consequently adopt repressive measures aimed at providing an immediate, short-term response to this perceived threat. In addition to this strong-arm approach, reintegration strategies have also been used to prevent returnees from falling back into terrorism and to break down barriers of hostility between citizens in the long term. Amidst these different strategies, this paper seeks to identify which methods are most desirable for handling returnees.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document