The COVID-19 Pandemic and the Emergence of Vietnam as a Middle Power

Limited capability and political will have caused the great powers to fail to demonstrate their global leadership in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, which has created greater room to manoeuvre for other countries to influence international affairs. Preliminary achievements in the fight against the COVID-19 crisis have buttressed the rising global status of small and medium-sized states, including Vietnam. Although Vietnam has recently been recognised as an emerging middle power, scepticism looms regarding whether this higher international status is beyond its capacity. We argue that the pandemic may act as a catalyst for Vietnam to further elevate its strategic role as a middle power on the international stage in the medium and long term.

China–Turkey Relations from the Perspective of Neoclassical Realism

There is plenty of studies focusing on China’s global outreach through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In tandem with this, the extensive literature on China depicts it as the next hegemon to succeed in the USA. Along this line, flourishing ties with various Asian nations, including the Middle Eastern countries, as a result of China’s recent foreign policy activism has been addressed extensively. While most research has been stressing the rising assertiveness of China in world politics, only a limited number of studies have touched upon the responses from middle or small powers against China’s ascent. Drawing from neoclassical realism, this article contends two levels of analysis for delineating the interaction between Turkey, a middle power, and China, a rising great power. First, the exchange between Turkey and the USA is vital in determining the cordial relations between Turkey and China. Alteration in the American policy vis-à-vis Turkey in the wake of the Arab Spring is relevant to Turkey’s growing relations with China. Second, is the rising anti-Westernism of foreign policy elites as part of the alteration in the strategic culture of Turkish politics, which makes Turkey’s rapprochement with China possible. Nevertheless, it should be noted that these two levels are intertwined and feed each other. Consequently, employing a neoclassical realist approach, the article argues that the middle powers’ stance against a rising hegemon is conditional upon the bilateral relations with the current hegemon and peculiarities of domestic politics.

Thirty years of relations between the Republic of Turkey and the Republic of Serbia: Changing political and international dynamics

Bilateral relations between the Republic of Turkey and the individual successor states of former Yugoslavia differ, after thirty years since its dissolution, in form and in substance. While just after the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Turkey managed to establish and sustain cordial ties with such countries as, for instance, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, relations with Serbia (Serbia and Montenegro) remained tense and the two countries perceived themselves, in the best case, as traditional opponents. The basic aim of this paper is to analyse the bilateral relations of these two states and Turkish foreign policy towards Serbia, a country currently perceived as a ‘neighbour,’ despite the fact that they do not share common border. The paper argues that rapprochement of two countries, so clearly visible in several dimensions after 2002, marks a new phase in Turkey’s general foreign policy. The paper will trace the thirty-year evolution of bilateral contacts while arguing that the current positive relations have their source also in the domestic arena, both of Turkey and Serbia, which is willing to increase influence in the Western Balkans and institutionalise her international position. Thus, the two states for the first time share similar foreign policy goals. The whole analysis is theoretically anchored in the behavioural approach of the ‘middle power‘ paradigm. An author-applied qualitative content analysis is the main research technique. The main sources are official documents, selected monographs, academic articles, and analytical reports.

“Global Britain’s” Foreign Policy: Special Features of “Sovereign” Atlanticism

The article outlines the special features of the UK foreign policy described as an outcome of the request for a new international role after the withdrawal from the EU. Proceeding from the theory of rational choice, the author concludes that the UK uses relations with Washington to adapt the idea of “Global Britain” to the changes in the international environment, taking into account the reduction of its own weight in international politics. It is highlighted that the synchronization of the UK and the US international agendas is taking place against the backdrop of deteriorated UK-EU relations. Atlanticism, along with disengagement from the EU, became the ideological basis of a new British foreign policy aimed at ensuring Western unity, while increasing its fragmentation. The significance of the new Atlantic Charter and the military-political alliance AUKUS for the foreign strategy of the UK is assessed. Despite the global nature of the articulated goals, the United Kingdom operates in the logic of a middle power in the face of intense international competition. It is concluded that the special emphasis on “hard” power and the strengthening of military-political alliances based on liberal values does not solve the strategic dilemmas of Britain, which will still have to balance between the major international actors.

Middle Power Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific: India and Australia at the Forefront

Indo-Pacific has emerged as a region of great movement, conflict and cooperation, contestations and coalition-building. The emergence of minilateral and multilateral cooperation by the middle powers is increasing in the region, with the regional countries enthusiastically mapping the region focussing on their centrality. History proves that the role of middle-power countries became more prominent during the moments of international transition. The two contrasting powers like India and Australia; one with a post-colonial identity in foreign policy-making, subtle emphasis on non-aligned movement (NAM) and emerging as an influential power, and, on the other, a traditional middle power with an alliance structure and regionalism akin to the Western model, have equal stakes in the region and it is inevitable for them to take a leadership position in building what is called a middle power communion in the Indo-Pacific. This article will explore the understanding of middle powers and how India and Australia, as middle powers; are strategically placed and, being great powers within their respective regions; take the responsibility of region-building and maintaining peace with great powers, and how the Indo-Pacific and Quad are emerging as discourses within their foreign policy-making.

Sustainable Development in Middle Powers’ Governance Arrangements

Considering middle powers’ potential to address new demands worldwide and their propensity to contribute to new forms of institution-building in global governance, arrangements between them consist of interesting opportunities to promote sustainable development. However, some have shown to be more effective than others in this regard. When observing two of these partnerships’ outcomes between 2015 and 2018, India, Brazil, and South Africa (IBSA) Trilateral Forum has demonstrated more effectiveness than Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, and Australia (MIKTA) New Innovative Partnership. To understand why, this study analyses specialized literature, with special attention to Koenig-Archibugi’s (2002) framework on global governance arrangements’ effectiveness. Arguing that middle power arrangements that address sustainable development are more effective when benefiting from greater functional specialization and that diversified power access also plays a role, this study raises awareness about middle powers’ relevance in addressing new global demands. The study points out the nascent research on these informal partnerships and the causal relations between these arrangements’ structures and effectiveness.

Diplomasi Middle-Power Indonesia di Masa Pandemi

Middle countries are considered to be more vulnerable in crisis management because of their marginal position in the international politics. In the pandemic, middle power diplomacy is expected to fill the void left by developed countries so that they focus on multilateral efforts. This paper argues that Indonesia exercised middle power diplomacy in 2020. This diplomacy is carried out with a commitment to encourage global cooperation in resolving the pandemic through multilateral efforts. The multilateral initiatives are carried out as part of ‘good international citizenship’, and also serves as the mechanism to voice Indonesian aspirations, aspirations related to humanity, efforts to create global norms, and efforts to reach international treaties. This paper is a qualitative research, which is based on a literature study in the form of an official statement from the Government of Indonesia through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is supported by secondary sources.