Russia, NATO and the Arctic: Rivalry, Security, Possible Scenarios of Geopolitical Competition

The article is devoted to the analysis of key aspects of the geopolitical struggle for the Arctic region. The relevance of the research stems from the fact that due to climate change and the reduction of ice cover in the Northern Hemisphere, the Arctic is of increasing interest to world powers, which are competing for control over new deposits of natural resources and strategic dominance in the region. It is emphasized that the Arctic has become a region where leading states are trying to implement various geopolitical strategies. On the one hand, the four members of the Arctic Five under the auspices of NATO are trying to implement a scenario in which the polar zone is divided into stable zones of influence. On the other hand, there are the interests and position of Russia, which is concerned about the increased military activity of the United States and NATO in the region. The purpose of the article is to study the problems of the Arctic militarization, which will make it possible to identify challenges and threats in this region for Russias national strategy. The research methodology is based on theoretical analysis and dialectical method. In addition, the study used formal logical methods and various approaches to information processing (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction). The forecasting method helped to determine the range of possible military and political trends in the region. The article identifies the potential interests of Russia, the United States and NATO in the context of increased attention to the Arctic region in recent years. The study reflects a comparative analysis of the policies and interests of the member states of the Arctic Five and NATO, namely Denmark, Canada, Norway and the USA, their practical steps in the High North. The author describes possible prospects for interaction and dialogue on countering the main threats to international security within the framework of a comprehensive strategy. Considering the role and rivalry between Russia and NATO in the Arctic, the article highlights the authors forecasts of further military and political presence of NATO in the Arctic and the necessary actions for Russia to defend its northern territories.

Analysis of predictive capabilities of metacognitive strategies in the expression of professional thinking of military personnel

The article examines professional thinking in relation to the conditions of military activity. The goal is to identify a model of cadets’ metacognitive competence, contributing to the successful formation of professional thinking in the conditions of military activity. The construction of two regression models is carried out by means of multiple stepwise regression analysis with inclusion. In the first model, the variable response was the over-situational style of thinking of servicemen, determined by the questionnaire «Determination of the dominant level of problematicity in solving service-professional problem situations.» In the second model of the variable, the response was the type of professional thinking determined on the basis of the case method. Cadets’ metacognitive strategies were used as variable predictors. It was possible to establish that both regression models are statistically significant, the level of error probability is less than 0.01% and explain more than 40% of the variability of the variable responses. All metacognitive strategies (six variable predictors) in the first model have a statistically significant relationship with variable responses (p≤0.05). The predictive influence on the dominance of a certain type of professional thinking among cadets has the character of structural interaction. Metacognitive strategies such as information acquisition, concentration, time management and the level of reflection are facilitators for the formation of a supra-situational level of cadets’ professional thinking. Whereas metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive activity act as inhibitors.

Challenges to Substantive Demilitarisation in the Antarctic Treaty Area

The demilitarisation provisions of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty are limited and contingent. Critically, a functional gap is enabled within the key Article I, which both prohibits ‘measures of a military nature’ and sanctions the use of military personnel and equipment in pursuit of ‘peaceful purposes’. None of the key terms and concepts are defined. With increasing focus on and in the Antarctic Treaty Area on interstate competition around resource access and regime control, and in particular the rapidly increasing geopolitical struggle between ‘the West’ and China both globally and within the Antarctic, and the transformation of what military activity actually entails, the existing demilitarisation principles are now inadequate. The failure to update these in the 60 years since the Antarctic Treaty was adopted, the lack of confidence that the historic Antarctic Treaty model of regional governance can itself manage the struggle, and indications over recent years that some states are even increasing the level of military entanglement with their Antarctic programmes, suggest it is now timely to reassess and respond to the case for substantive demilitarisation in the Antarctic Treaty Area.

New Zealand’s recent experiences with Military Activity Camps under the new youth justice system

<p>This research paper discusses the recent New Zealand experience of Military Activity Camps (MACs) through the implementation of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Youth Courts Jurisdictions and Orders) Amendment Act 2010. The paper will address the fundamental principles of the youth justice system under the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989 and how the Amendment Act 2010 has created new possibilities of dealing with New Zealand’s most persistent group of young offenders. It will furthermore address the historic background of boot camps and aims to analyse how effective the introduction of MACs has been so far. Finally it will look at what alternative measures may exist in order to fight youth offending and recidivism.</p>

New Zealand’s recent experiences with Military Activity Camps under the new youth justice system

<p>This research paper discusses the recent New Zealand experience of Military Activity Camps (MACs) through the implementation of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Youth Courts Jurisdictions and Orders) Amendment Act 2010. The paper will address the fundamental principles of the youth justice system under the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989 and how the Amendment Act 2010 has created new possibilities of dealing with New Zealand’s most persistent group of young offenders. It will furthermore address the historic background of boot camps and aims to analyse how effective the introduction of MACs has been so far. Finally it will look at what alternative measures may exist in order to fight youth offending and recidivism.</p>

Military-Political Situation in the Arctic: Hotspots of Tension and Ways of De-Escalation

The article describes the politico-military situation in the Arctic, including the development of military capabilities of states in the region, the coastal infrastructure, the scales and the manner of military exercises, as well as the dynamics of the military landscape in the Arctic. The authors argue that the mili-tary capabilities in most parts of the Arctic remain moderate, primarily due to harsh climate restraints. However, military activity both of NATO member-states and Russia has increased considerably recently in the Euro-Arctic area adjacent to the North Atlantic, in particular in the waters of the Barents and the Nor-wegian seas. Mutual military deterrence in this area represents a "new old" normal that will shape the security situation in the Arctic in the long term. The article concludes by considering possible options for preventing escalation and minimizing the concerns of the sides by restoring a full, regular and institutionalized military dialogue between Russia and the rest of the Arctic states.

Leksikograficheskii komponent v sovremennom polikul'turnom obrazovanii (elektronnyi mnogoiazychnyi slovar' voennykh terminov)

The work is devoted to the problem of intensification of teaching Russian as a foreign language in the process of formation and development of lexical competence of students. The Electronic multilingual dictionary, created on the basis of ABBYY Lingvo software for teaching Russian to foreign students of military universities, is presented. His vocabulary includes a special lexicon describing various segments of military activity (weapons, equipment, commands, military life, etc.). For each word there are translations into European languages (boi – English batttle, combat; French combat (m); Portuguese combate) and some Asian languages (boi – Laos ຍິງ). The role of the electronic translated multilingual thesaurus in the formation of speech professional competence, which ensures the removal of language barriers in the study of military-technical sciences by foreigners, is determined. The universality of the vocabulary, created taking into account the national mentality of students, providing opportunities for the redistribution of classroom and independent work of students, is characterized. Its effectiveness has been proven as a tool for modern interactive, multilingual and multicultural education.

THE PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL QUALITIES OF MILITARY SERVICES AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE READINESS TO PERFORM SERVICE AND COMBAT TASKS

В настоящее время большую роль в освоении военной специальности играет личность каждого военнослужащего. Рассматривается личность военнослужащего с психологической стороны через сущность основных психических свойств, к которым относятся направленность, темперамент, характер и способности. Изучены немаловажные для военнослужащего волевые и эмоциональные качества личности, позитивные и негативные привычки, военно-профессиональная воспитанность военнослужащего, отражающаяся в его дисциплинированности. Раскрыто понятие профессионализма как уровня освоения профессиональной деятельности, соответствующей имеющимся в мире стандартам и объективным требованиям. Определена зависимость успешности служебно-боевой деятельности военнослужащих от их профессионализма. Описана структура военно-профессиональной компетентности, осознание которой каждым военнослужащим способствует раскрытию их творческого потенциала в пользу военной деятельности, мотивирует на успешное выполнение служебно-боевых задач. Приведены результаты проведенного анализа по изучению уровня готовности к выполнению служебно-боевых задач различными категориями военнослужащих. Полученные данные указывают на высокую степень готовности офицеров, принявших участие в эксперименте, к выполнению служебно-боевых задач. Военнослужащие по контракту и курсанты, принимавшие участие в эксперименте, показали уровень готовности к выполнению служебно-боевых задач, не выходящий за рамки показателя средних значений. Результат эксперимента подтверждает, что его участники обладают необходимыми профессиональными и личностными качествами, способствующими успешному выполнению стоящих служебно-боевых задач. Показатели готовности военнослужащих по контракту и курсантов, принимавших участие в исследовании, подталкивают к поиску путей повышения эффективности выполнения военнослужащими служебно-боевых задач повседневной деятельности. Currently, the personality of each serviceman plays an important role in the development of a military specialty. The article examines the personality of a serviceman from the psychological point of view through the essence of the main mental properties, which include: focus, temperament, character and abilities. The article considers the strong-willed and emotional qualities of the personality, positive and negative habits, the military-professional education of the soldier, which is reflected in his discipline, which are important for a serviceman. The concept of «professionalism» is disclosed as the level of mastering a professional activity that meets the existing standards and objective requirements in the world. The dependence of the success of service and combat activities of servicemen on their professionalism has been determined. The article describes the structure of militaryprofessional competence, the realization of which by each serviceman contributes to the disclosure of their creative potential in favor of military activity, motivates them to successfully perform service-combat tasks. The article presents the results of the analysis to study the level of readiness to perform service and combat missions by various categories of servicemen. The data obtained indicate a high degree of readiness of the officers who took part in the experiment to perform service and combat missions. Contract servicemen and cadets who took part in the experiment showed a level of readiness to perform service and combat missions that did not go beyond the average values. The result of the experiment confirms that its participants have the necessary professional and personal qualities that contribute to the successful fulfillment of the assigned service and combat missions. The readiness indicators of contract servicemen and cadets who took part in the study push us to look for ways to increase the efficiency of servicemen’s performance of service and combat tasks in their daily activities.

Russia’s rising military and communication power: From Chechnya to Crimea

Most scholars working on Russia’s use of strategic narratives recognize the importance of the Russian state. Nevertheless, the authors argue that much of the attention on strategic narratives has given insufficient appreciation for how Russia has developed its military and media policies in a coordinated manner: learning from its mistakes and failures as it went along, and becoming more efficient each time. In making their case, they examine three theatres of Russian military activity and their accompanying media coverage: the wars in Chechnya in 1994–1995 and 1999–2000; war with Georgia in 2008 over the separatist territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia; and Ukraine, especially Crimea, since 2014. The Russian leadership addressed the shortcomings on each occasion, with the news media being increasingly weaponized as time went on. The authors argue that scholars should see Russia’s evolving uses of those military and media power resources as part of a single strategic process. How the Russian state goes about its media policy can accentuate the military intervention for better or for worse as far as its image is concerned.