Teaching International Law in Times of Change and Crisis

This article is a contribution to scholarship on the teaching of international law, in general, and in Nordic countries, in particular. The article draws on lessons from international law as situated and embedded in national and regional politics and systems of governance. That is, although international law is international, it is approached and implemented differently depending on situation and location. The article emphasizes that contemporary teaching of international law should engage with how situation and location matters for how international law is approached and it should also reflect contemporary global challenges. The article uses the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan as an example, as well as experiences from teaching international law with the help of a peacemaking role-play focused on the conflict in Afghanistan.

East Asia at the Crossroads of Cooperation and Rivalry at the Regional and International Levels: Editorial Introduction

The rise of new powers throughout the 2000s and the 2010s augurs the end of the unipolar system that has persisted since the end of the Cold War. In no region is this transition more compelling than in East Asia. Economic revitalization of this region and a steady redistribution of power related to it is a dynamic process characterized by intense changes in foreign policy strategies, practices, and orientations of China, Korea, and Japan. The proposed special issue seeks to critically assess the emerging developments of Chinas, Japans, and Koreas core international perceptions and policies. More specifically, the special issue addresses two complex and interrelated questions. Firstly, how do China, Korea, and Japan adapt to the changing international landscape? Secondly, how do China, Korea, and Japan respond to the challenges inherent to the pursuit of the enhanced international status? The contributions to this special issue aim at scrutinizing Chinas cybersovereignty and industrial policy; exploring the strengths and limitations of Koreas public diplomacy; and examining Japans contributions to regionalism. The special issue also discusses Russias relations with East Asia and its role in regional politics.

China–Iran Strategic Partnership: Implications for India

China–Iran strategic deal signed on March 27, 2021 has initiated an interesting debate in the regional political discourse. Many area study experts view it as a game changer that has the potential to revamp the complexion of the regional politics. The US sanctions against Iran forced Tehran to move towards a historic deal with China to mitigate the US influence in the region. Ostensibly, global and regional politics are being divided into two blocks underpinned by the US and China. Iran under Chinese influence is jumping at the opportunity, not only capitalizing on the Chinese US$400 billion to reinvigorate its fragile economy but also availing itself of the window of international opening amid isolation. India, on the other hand, notwithstanding its strategic partnership with the US, does not want growing Chinese influence in Iran as well as in the region since it would damage its strategic interests, halting it from Chabahar Port, connectivity with Central Asia and oil import from Iran. China–Iran deal also has a good omen for Pakistan as both Iran and Pakistan clearly incline towards China for explicit reasons. China will leave no stone unturned to make the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) a success story, even connecting with Iran in the foreseeable future. With this backdrop, this paper attempts to assess the implications of the said deal for India and also shed lights on the emerging geopolitical and geoeconomic changes consequent to the deal.

Regionalism and Regional Politics of African States (on the Example of the Countries of the East African Community)

The subject of the study was the East African Commonwealth, an economic association that currently unites Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and Southern Sudan. Particular attention is paid to the integration processes in Africa in the post-colonial period, the doctrine of federalism in the political discourse of African countries, the causes of the crisis and the dissolution of the EAC in the seventies of the last century, as well as the economic and political reasons for reintegration of YOU. Special attention is paid to the evolution of the EAC from an economic alliance to a political one and the prospect of forming a federative state on the basis of the SAC. The author identifies the factors that led to the economic consolidation of the EAC, as well as those determinants of development of the commonwealth, which make it extremely difficult to form a unified federal state in East Africa. It is concluded that the further regionalization of the African continent and the realization of the federal project in East Africa will be hindered by such factors as the high level of conflict in the EAC member countries, tribalism, cultural, confessional and linguistic heterogeneity, and the ambition of leaders and political elites.

Qatar Soft Power: From Rising to the Crisis

Qatar has recently become a regional power and an influential actor in international politics. Qatar has adopted a foreign policy of soft power, which played a prominent role in the rise of the international scene. On 5 June 2017, a diplomatic boycott crisis has erupted against Qatar. The Arab Quartet imposed a complete blockade on Qatar and stated 13 demands. The study explores Qatar’s soft power tools such as lobbying, international mediation, scholarships, foreign aids, Al Jazeera network, which has created a national brand for Qatar. With the non-coercive foreign policy, Qatar’s stance in regional politics has transformed from neutrality to influence. This study will investigate the underlying political, ideological, and strategical factors of the 2017 crisis that has manifested the power struggles in the Gulf, the role of Qatar's foreign policy of soft power in the context of the crisis. Finally, the study will analyze whether the current situation demonstrates transient appeasement or a permanent resolution.

Iran’s Security Interests and Policies in the South Caucasus

The aim of this essay is to demonstrate that cooperation and competition between Russia, Iran, and Turkey requires ongoing regional political recalibrations regarding oil and gas pipelines and transportation routes. We argue that while much has changed in regional politics, Russian domination of the region remains intact, with Tehran and Ankara finding themselves in constant competition with each other while also balancing their interests versus those of Russia. We first review oil and gas pipelines administered by the Republic of Azerbaijan, the major beneficiary of the U.S. sanctions on Iran and the recent Nagorno-Karabakh war. We then explore a comparative analysis of the security interests and strategies of Iran, Russia, and Turkey toward the South Caucasus. Finally, we examine the way in which the second Nagorno-Karabakh war has posed new challenges to Iran’s interests and policies in the region.

The Horn of Africa as Venue for Regional Competition: Motivations, Instruments and Relationship Patterns

The Horn of Africa has visibly started to play a more distinctive role in international relations in the past years. Comprising Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea and Djibouti, the region is home to competition between countries of the region and influence of external actors. The region is increasingly a part of Middle East regional politics and is home to competition among regional powers such as Turkey, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran. It is critical to articulate how each country formulates an agenda for the region. Therefore, the article seeks to explain how each regional power came to establish policies with each of the Horn of Africa country to set the stage for a strategy that depends on the region. While the study focuses on the motivations and instruments of involvement of these actors in the Horn of Africa politics, it also focuses on the relationship patterns between these external powers and Horn of African countries. The study aims to generate a policy-oriented analysis as well as a framework with regard to the role of external actors in the Horn of Africa politics.

Class voting or economic voting? Electoral support for chavismo (1998–2015)

This article analyses electoral support for chavismo in Venezuela from 1998 to 2015, comprising five presidential elections (1998, 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2013) and the legislative election of 2015. Drawing on a comprehensive historical series, the findings contradict an influential body of literature on Venezuelan politics and show that economic voting prevailed during the analysed period. In relation to class voting, the analysis does not find a monotonic vote, in which the poor supported Hugo Chávez and his allies, whereas the rich rejected them, at each election. The direction of associations between these classes and voting for chavismo varied over the investigated period. The findings have important implications for Latin American politics, showing the relevance of economic factors for the left turn in regional politics and helping explain the recent losses of leftist parties in presidential elections.

Global Geopolitical Dynamics and Prospects for Afghanistan’s Regional Connectivity

This article focuses on postulating Afghanistan in the context of geopolitics and its role as a regional ‘connector’ in the emerging global scenario. With the shift in geopolitics, the indicators of the New Great Game also suggest the emerging role of Afghanistan in the context of regional connectivity. However, the discordant society of Afghanistan, the paradoxical nature of domestic politics, and the deteriorating security situation in the country remain vital challenges in this regard. Nevertheless, this article argues that the ‘resetting’ of the international and regional politics provides a broader scope for Afghanistan, in becoming a regional transit and connectivity hub for South and Central Asia to Europe and Middle East. Through intra-regional trade and transit, this connectivity will not only ensure political and economic stability of Afghanistan but will also contribute to establishing sustainable peace in the country. In doing so, the article examines various regional developmentalprojects to explore the potential role of Afghanistan, following the U.S. withdrawal, towards regional peace and stability. Furthermore, it contributes to signifying the political and economic integration of Afghanistan within the region. It concludes that peace and stability are necessary milestones to be achieved for Afghanistan to serve as a ‘regional connectivity hub’.