Impact of Armed Conflicts on the State of Ecological Security

Contemporary armed conflicts, although not as global in scope as the two world wars in the 20th century, create serious threats in many dimensions. One of the areas of their influence is the natural environment. In fact every armed conflict, also one that takes place in a relatively small territory, causes a number of negative consequences in the natural environment. These, in turn, may have further consequences. Apart from the damage caused by military operations, accompanying phenomena appear on a large scale. In recent years, a series of armed conflicts in Africa and West Asia resulted in huge migrations of millions of people. In addition to the resulting humanitarian crises, large-scale environmental problems are observed. Thus, it clearly shows that even potentially minor military conflicts can lead to serious disturbances of the natural environment. The author shows the various consequences of armed conflicts for the natural environment over the last half century.

Security Issues in the Integrated Management Perspective

Security is a system of interrelated elements that interact with each other and must be effectively managed. At the same time, security is one of the key areas of administrative activity. Nowadays, an integrated approach to the development process in the context of shaping local security policy becomes extremely important. Integrated management is based on a territorial-functional approach and exposes mutually balanced links between the economic, social and environmental systems of which security is a common element.

International Tourism Cooperation Based on “the Belt and Road”: Strategy and Path

Culture is the soul of tourism and tourism is the carrier of culture. With the help of regional cooperation platforms and historical and cultural symbols of the ancient Silk Road, “The Silk Road Economic Belt” and “The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road” will develop economic cooperation among countries along the belt and road, and jointly build a community of Shared interests, destiny and responsibility featuring political mutual trust, economic integration and cultural tolerance. In order to implement the “Belt and Road” initiative, promote international cooperation and meet the development needs of its own industries, it has important practical significance to carry out international tourism cooperation under the strategic background of “Belt and Road”, which enhances the in-depth exchange of cultures of various countries, broadens the service choice of international tourism, and learns from advanced service concepts. Following the “Belt and Road” strategy, as the pilot industry of connectivity tourism led to the development of international tourism cooperation, but is still in its infancy, the overall scale is still small, with a larger space for future development. At this stage, there are four problems and challenges in international tourism cooperation under the Belt and Road Strategy: the foundation of cooperation is not solid enough, cultural resources are not fully utilized, brand awareness is insufficient, and the degree of convenience needs to be improved. Therefore, to achieve a stable and sustainable development of tourism in the countries along the route through four paths:the development of permanent mechanism of international tourism cooperation, the creation of unique Silk Road cultural characteristics of tourism products and routes, the creation of tourism boutique projects and the cultivation of international brands, enhance infrastructure construction and tourist visa facilitation.

The Threat to the Life of the Nation as an Introductory Premise of the Derogation of Obligations in the Domain of Human Rights

The subject of the study is the issue defined in international documents by the term “threat to the life of the nation” as a preliminary condition for departing from obligations in the field of human rights. This premise was adopted both in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as in similar regulations for individual continents, including the European Convention on Human Rights. However, on a practical basis, this issue has raised and continues to raise multiple interpretation doubts. In the presented considerations, various aspects of this problem are presented in the light of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. On the basis of these, it can be assumed that one cannot identify the category of the nation with the categories of the state and//or the population, since each of these categories has its due autonomy; while on the other hand, they accompany, coexist and remain in mutual relations and interaction. Hence, in international norms, both the treaty provisions and the treaty bodies in their rulings consistently confirm “the life of the nation” as the fundamental protected value, which does not prevent them from associating this value with values important for the state as such and for the population/society. The classic model of this approach has already been established by the ECtHR in the Lawless case, where the Court described a derogation situation as “an exceptional crisis or emergency situation that affects the entire population and poses a threat to the organized life of the community that comprises the state

Update of Internal Political Threats to the National Security of Ukraine at the Local Level in the Process of Administrative and Territorial Reform

The article presents theoretical and practical aspects of political and legal instruments aimed at minimizing the risk of intra-Ukrainian political character. The priority in the implementation of administrative and territorial reform in Ukraine should be the implementation of the interests of local communities, and not the administrative, political and economic priorities of local elites. It should be emphasized that the territorial organization of Ukraine as a mandatory, indispensable element of the general organization of the state is considered mainly as part of the formed social structure and as a division of the country’s territory into certain parts. It is necessary to take into account the historical and legal nature of the tasks and functions of the state, as well as the organization of the system of state authorities and local self-governments.

The Fight for Free Navigation. Construction of the Channel by the Vistula Spit as Part of the Political Struggle with the Russian Federation

As a consequence of Stalin’s decision, the Vistula Lagoon was divided between Poland and the Soviet Union. Since the Soviet fleet created a naval base in Bałtisko, from 1945 the possibility of using the waterway through the Bay by Poland was practically excluded. The Soviet side allowed iPoland to use the Gulf outlet only to a small extent. In practice, this meant the destruction of the seaport in Elbląg, but also radically limited the possibilities of economic development of this part of Poland, which for many centuries operated on the basis of the Polish economy. After 1989, the Russian side made it even more impossible for the Polish side to use transport routes through the Bay. Ultimately, Poland decided to build a canal through the Vistula Spit. This channel is to enable the revitalization of the port in Elbląg, but also the northern areas of Poland. The article presents the arguments of the Polish side, including economic ones, justifying the implementation of this undertaking.