Can External Threats Foster a European Union Identity? Evidence from Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine

Can external threats strengthen group identity? A growing body of research in economics emphasises the importance of cultural attributes such as identity for trust and cooperation. However, where these attributes come from is not well understood. This paper examines reactions to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014, looking at European Union member states. Comparing low-threat to high-threat states in a difference-in-differences design, I find a sizeable and persistent positive effect on EU identity. It is associated with higher trust in EU institutions and support for common policies. Lower-level identities remain unaffected, and proximity to Russia and Russian minority size are driving high-threat status.

Characteristics of frequently attending children in hospital emergency departments: a systematic review

ObjectiveTo summarise the literature on frequent attendances to hospital emergency departments (EDs) and describe sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of children who attend EDs frequently.SettingHospital EDs.ParticipantsChildren <21 years, attending hospital EDs frequently.Primary outcome measuresOutcomes measures were defined separately in each study, and were predominantly the number of ED attendances per year.ResultsWe included 21 studies representing 6 513 627 children. Between 0.3% and 75% of all paediatric ED users were frequent users. Most studies defined four or more visits per year as a ‘frequent ED’ usage. Children who were frequent ED users were more likely to be less than 5 years old. In the USA, patients with public insurance were more likely to be frequent attenders. Frequent ED users more likely to be frequent users of primary care and have long-term conditions; the most common diagnoses were infections and gastroenteritis.ConclusionsThe review included a wide range of information across various health systems, however, children who were frequent ED users have some universal characteristics in common. Policies to reduce frequent attendance might usefully focus on preschool children and supporting primary care in responding to primary care oriented conditions.

INCIDENCE OF ARTICLE 151: ITS PROPENSITY RATE IN TIMES OF PANDEMIC

This study was conducted to determine the propensity rate of Article 151 in times of pandemic, the common policies violated and the difficulties met by the police in the implementation of Community Quarantine policies. The researcher used a descriptive design of methodology by using a questionnaire-checklist. The respondents of the study were the Police Officers assigned at the Cabanatuan City Police Station. As can be deduced from the study, the common crimes committed was Resisting Authorities (Violations of Art. 151). As the government modified social interactions, the police implemented new safety measures. The changes brought some remarkable resistance to some individuals. Resistance to change is usual as we ask people to walk out from their comfort zones. The changes carried out some remarkable resistance to some people. With regard to the common community quarantine policies violated; the violations of city- wide night curfew is the most dominant. For the difficulties met by the Law Enforcers; vulnerable to physical and personal hazard such as the risk of getting infected as well as their families is the most significant. Police Officers are on the frontlines . Therefore, they are expected to earnestly implement the safety protocols. As such, a high-risk of exposure and contamination from the virus is very possible for the Law Enforcers. KEYWORDS: `incidence, Article 151, Pandemic, Resisting Authorities

Confronting the Foreigner: Common Policies of Rashid al-Din and Liu Bingzhong on Mongol Rule in Iran and China

This article discusses the career of three historical figures who had a position of authority in the courts of the Ilkhans and the Great Khans of the Mongol Empire in China: Rashid al-Din Tabib (d. 1318), the Persian statesman and historian; Liu Bingzhong (d. 1274), Qubilai Khan's (r. 1260-94) Chinese counsellor; and Bolad Aqa (d. 1313), the famed Mongol tribesman. This study raises the question of whether Rashid al-Din's policies, when he was in office as the vizier of Ghazan Khan (r. 1295-1304), were modelled in some respects on the approach of the Chinese nobles—Liu in particular—to the Mongols during the early stages of the Mongol rule over China. In addition, taking into account Bolad's noticeable presence in the courts of the Mongols in Ilkhanid Iran and Yuan China, it seeks to shed light on his role as an intermediary and a possible conduit for Chinese political thoughts to reach Rashid al-Din.

The impact of EU’s financial support on the agriculture’s development: a panel data analysis

The Common Policies represent one of the fundamental values of European Integration process. Started from coal, steel and energy, the EU common policies were significantly extended overtime. The aim of this study is to analyze the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) from the perspective of the financing instruments for the members. The paper studies the evolution of these funds overtime, highlighting the major changes and shifts in the priorities and goals of them, their direct impact on the main sectors (including rural area) and the implication of EU enlargement on this important policy. The paper includes a cross-sector panel analysis at the level of European Union and Euro Area on the impact of the net subsidies granted to agriculture and the production volume of this sector overtime. The empirical findings confirmed a positive impact of these net subsidies on the production volume of agro-sectors and the long-run relationship between the tested variables. However, the use of 3 years lags revealed a negative and statistically significant relationship between the dynamic of net subsidies and the production volume for EU and Euro area aggregated production volume dynamic. The analysis gives us the possibility to capture the main tendencies and trends and to draw important conclusions for the further developments of the EU agriculture as the subject of this common policy.

State Terrorism

State terrorism is a contentious topic in the field of terrorism studies. Some scholars argue that the concept of terrorism should only be applied to the behavior of nonstate actors. Others argue that certain government behaviors may be understood as terrorism if the intent of state violence and threats is to stoke fear and influence the behavior of a wider audience. Three possible conceptualizations of state terrorism are worth exploring: government sponsorship of nonstate actors’ terrorism, terrorism perpetrated by government agents outside a legal framework, and “inherent” state terrorism—acts perpetrated by the state in the everyday enforcement of law and order that, if perpetrated by nonstate actors, would clearly qualify as terrorism. Each of these conceptualizations yields insight about state behavior, highlighting particular uses of violence and threats as instruments of state policy. Depending on one’s conceptualization of state terrorism, common policies and functions of government possess an underlying terroristic logic. Analytical tools developed in the field of terrorism studies may be useful in helping us understand state behavior, when violence and threats appear to have a broader communicative function in influencing an audience beyond the immediate target.

To them that hath: economic complexity and local industrial strategy in the UK

Divergent economic performance in many countries has led to renewed interest in place-based policies, such as the UK’s local industrial strategies at the level of Combined Authorities or Local Economic Partnerships. However, an analysis of employment data using methods from the economic complexity literature demonstrates great heterogeneity in industrial strengths and future growth opportunities within those jurisdictions, raising challenges in designing common policies suited to all sub-geographies. Moreover, the ‘related’ industries into which low-complexity, low-wage local authorities could potentially diversify are also low-wage. Incremental policies building on existing local capacities are therefore likely to amplify divergence between prospering and left-behind areas.

The Role of European Funds in the Economic Development

European Union was created for enhancing the cooperation and economic development of country members. This very complex initiative is a long-term process that contributes to reduction of inequalities due to the expansion of trade relations, increased mobility of factors of production and dissemination of technology and gradually added more freedoms between countries and common policies in this respect. Among the main objectives of EU are economic and social cohesion, which must be achieved mainly by promoting the conditions for economic growth and reducing disparities between the levels of development of EU regions, ensuring a high level of employment and a balanced and sustainable economical growth. The European Funds are the financial instruments of the common policies, being significantly diversified and improved in the last decades. The EU enlargement implied new challenges and higher efforts to support such common policies from a very limited common budget. For new members from Eastern Europe that joined EU, these European Funds were seen as a very important and reliable support for boosting their economic development. This paper will discuss, from both theoretical and empirical perspectives, the possible impact of these funds on the economic development, with a specific focus on the Eastern European Countries (EEC).