“...COMING TO COMMON PEACE TOGETHER WITH OUR ALLIES”: ROMANIA’S FOREIGN POLICY BALANCING DURING WORLD WAR I

The article covers the course of negotiations between the plenipotentiaries of Romania and the leading states of the Entente and the Quadruple Alliance during the First World War. Facing the dilemma of determining its own foreign policy orientation – by joining one of the mentioned military-political blocs, the Romanian government was hesitating for a long time to come to a final decision. At the same time, largely due to this balancing process, official Bucharest managed to preserve its sovereign right to work out and make the most important decisions, while consistently defending Romania's national interests. By taking the side of the Entente and receiving comprehensive military assistance from Russia, Romania at the same time faced enormous military and political problems due to military superiority of the allied Austrian and German forces at the Balkan theater of hostilities. Their occupation of much of Romania forced official Bucharest to seek an alternative, making it sign a separate agreement with the Central Block states. At the same time, its ratification was being delayed in every possible way, which enabled Romania to return to the camp of war winners at the right time. At the same time, official Bucharest made the most of the decline and liquidation of imperial institutions in Russia and Austria-Hungary at the final stage of the First World War, incorporating vast frontier territories into the Kingdom. Taking advantage of the revolutionary events in Russia, the Romanian government succeeded, in particular, in resolving the “Bessarabian problem” in its favor. In addition, Romania included Transylvania, Bukovina and part of Banat. An important foreign policy achievement of Romanian diplomacy was signing of the 1918 Bucharest Peace Treaty, as well as its participation in the Paris Peace Conference.

THE TRADITION OF ALCHEMICAL AND ASTROLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE WITHIN AND AROUND THEOPHAN PROKOPOVYCH’S LIBRARY

The important role of the alchemical and astrological tradition in the formation and trans-formation of science as a social institution in the Early Modern period is researched in detail in Western historiography of science. At the same time, the Ukrainian aspect of this pan-European phenomenon needs further intensive study.The article deals with the alchemical and astrological component of Ukrainian science of the High Baroque era on an example of Theophan Prokopovych (1677 – 1736). The analysis of the ca¬talog of Prokopovych’s library confirmed that the alchemical-astrological and magical-physical knowledge belonged to the sphere of interests of the scholar. His activity, in addi-tion to cosmogonic reasoning and mathematical calculations, also had a practical compo-nent. Books from the library’s holdings included works of late alchemy, which allowed Pro-kopovych to be aware of the latest ideas, trends, and achievements in this and related fields of knowledge. This is reflected in the formation of the worldview and creative work of the scholar.A comparison of the facts of biographies, the essence and direction of creativity, and the relationship of the authors mentioned in Prokopovych’s treatise “Natural Philosophy or Physics”, testified to the existence of the united pan-European scientific and information space, within which the tradition of late alchemy was formed and transformed during the 16th-18th centuries. Theophan Prokopovych also belonged to this tradition, and his works reflected the state and essence of Ukrainian alchemical knowledge of the High Baroque era. Prokopovych’s own views on problems of alchemy and astrology are a topic of special re-search.

THE MAIN TRENDS OF VIETNAM - JAPAN COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF BILATERAL STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

The article examines the process of formation and development of the comprehensive political and trade and economic cooperation between Japan and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam since 1973, when diplomatic relations were established between the two countries, and then received a new impetus after Vietnam started the market reforms in 1986 and commenced the renewal policy (in Vietnamese – “Đổi Mới”). In 2009, Japan and Vietnam decided to raise the bilateral relations to the level of strategic partnership for the common interests of both countries. In 2010, as part of the official visit of the Prime Minister of Japan to Vietnam, a Joint Declaration on strategic cooperation for peace and prosperity in Asia was adopted.The article focuses on cooperation between the two countries in the framework of international and regional organizations, in particular in the framework of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, as well as in the framework of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, in which Japan and ASEAN member states participate. In recent decades Japan has been one of Vietnam’s main foreign economic partners and the second largest investor into Vietnamese economy. At the same time, Japan is the largest sponsor of Vietnam through the Official development assistance program (ODA), actively assisting Vietnam in implementing its national strategy of industrialization and modernization under the framework agreement on cooperation between Vietnam and Japan until 2020 with the prospect of 2030. Besides, the article discusses and analyzes the largest joint projects implemented in Vietnam with the technical and financial assistance from Japan.

EPIDEMICS IN KYIV COVERED IN THE NEWSPAPER PERIODICALS OF THE CITY OF THE LATE 19TH – EARLY 20TH CENTURIES

The article examines the coverage of the sanitary and epidemiological situation in the city in the late 19th – early 20th centuries in the Kyiv newspapers “Kievlyanin”, “Kievskie Vesti”, “Kievskaya Mysl”, “Yuzhnaya Kopeyka”. The processing of newspaper materials made it possible to identify problematic areas of work of the city authorities in the sanitary and communal spheres, namely inadequate control over observance of health standards in urban markets, failure to solve the problem of natural dumps and homeless people, illegal alcohol sales, lack of timely repair of roads, construction of water supply and sewerage. These factors were the main causes of epidemics of typhus, measles, tuberculosis, smallpox, cholera. Analysis of statistics on the pages of periodicals allows tracing the number of people affected by epidemics, identifying typical diseases for each district of the city, caused by their geographical location, population, location of facilities such as prisons, bazaars, cemeteries, hospitals.

PARTICIPATION OF SIDOR HOLUBOVYCH IN SOCIO-POLITICAL PROCESSES IN THE GALICIAN LANDS DURING THE WORLD WAR I

The civic-political activity of Sydor Golubovych during the World War I was analyzed in the article based on the complex study of archive sources, periodicals and scientific literature. His role in the political organizations in Vienna during his emigration period in 1914-1915-s and after his return to L’viv in 1915-1918-s was determined. Namely, the prerequisites of reorganization of the Main Ukrainian Council into the Common Ukrainian Council, problem of political struggle among different party groups within the political circles in Galicia and Bukovina were highlighted. The main aspects of Golubovych’s activity in the Common Ukrainian Council (CUC) were revealed, within the council his main attention was drawn to the issues of the “Military bank” creation, issues related to the Ukrainian refugees, migrant workers, internees from Galicia and Bukovina, who according to the official data were 90 thou in different parts of Austria, Germany and Czech Republic. Moreover, it is mentioned that S. Golubovych was a participant of the political actions for autonomy of Ukrainian schooling, separate Ukrainian university opening in L’viv, transformation of the STC into the Ukrainian academy of science, etc. It was found that after his return to L’viv in August 1915, S. Golubovych as a member of the L’viv’s delegation of the CUC and member of the Regional Credit Union (RCU) was predominantly responsible for the problems of region’s restoration after the military actions. Simultaneously, the main attention was drawn to the busy social activity, namely he was included into the senior council at Stavropigijskyi institute – former Moscow-oriented institution transferred to the Ukrainians by the Austrian governor general Kollard, and was a founder and editor of the newspaper “Ukrayinsʹke slovo” that was the main media source in Galicia. Furthermore, during 1917-1918-s the politician frequently visited Ternopol’s region where he endeavored to keep close contacts with his electorate.A role of S. Golubovych was described before the November events of 1918, where he as a figure of the Ukrainian National Democratic Party (UNDP) and member of the Ukrainian Parliamentary Representation (UPR) participated in meetings and demonstrations’ organization devoted to the independence proclamation of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR), peace treaty agreement in Brest-Lytovsk, was actively involved in implementation of so called “viche week” organized to support the autonomy demands of the Eastern Galicia as a separate Ukrainian territory within the Austrian monarchy, etc.

EVERYDAY FEARS OF THE ORTHODOX POPULATION ON UKRAINIAN LANDS AS A REFLECTION OF DAILY ROUTINE IN EARLY MODERN TIMES

The article highlights a little-studied problem of role of fears in the everyday life of Orthodox believers in the Ukrainian lands of the second half of the 16th – 17th centuries. It is noted that in the early modern period, the society suffered from an outbreak of violence, and this influenced the formation of the atmosphere of fear among the population. The types of fears from which the society suffered the most are analyzed on an example of most typical cases: fear of war and violence, illness, mutilation, premature death, fear of armed people, foreign invaders and representatives of other denominations. In addition to these objective fears, Orthodox society felt irrational ones, the greatest of which was to sin. To a large extent, everyday life of the Orthodox was characterized by fear of the Last Judgment and Hell, Evil Spirits. Fears inherent in a modern man, manifested in everyday life of an orthodox man of the 16th - 17th centuries much stronger due to much more dangerous living conditions. Fear was a characteristic feature of everyday life in the early modern Orthodox society.

The image of the enemy in textbooks on the history of the USSR in the 1930s

The article examines the peculiarities of the formation of the image of the enemy in the textbook of Andrei Shestakov "A Short Course in the History of the USSR." Also, the historiography of the issue is analyzed. It applies to both the Soviet era and the present. Despite the modest attention to this topic by foreign experts, the works that directly affect the issue are highlighted. The main changes in the then system of school education, which led to its unification and formed the requirements for the history lesson in general and the need to develop a textbook in particular, are outlined. The role of Andrei Shestakov, who was one of the first to develop an "ideal" history textbook for the Soviet government, is revealed. His career growth and work with Marxist-Leninist ideology are shown, which in turn helped to achieve this goal.The process of modification of negative connotations concerning those forces against which the Bolsheviks fought is traced. Thus considering the period of ancient history, the author criticized rich people. The negative image deepened when it came to religion in the Middle Ages. Priests and monks, compared to the wealthy, were perceived not as something "foreign" but more negative as something "hostile." Wealthy peasants received a special color, the term "kulaks" was used for them. The closer A. Shestakov approached the twentieth century in his presentation of historical material, the clearer the formation of the image of the enemy, not only internal but also external. Thus, the first was personified by all the forces against which the Bolsheviks fought. To define such "enemies" used the definition - "counter-revolutionary". The second category was represented by the Entente and the Nazis, who came to power primarily in Germany and Italy.

SOCIAL MEDIA, PUBLIC SPHERE AND THE POLITICAL TRAGEDIES OF CONTEMPORARY ETHIOPIA

Ethiopia since 1991 G.C has been adopting democracy and federalism as constitutional frameworks of the state. The core objective to maintain the two political cultures is the presence of multiple cultural identities within the state and the actual need for an intersubjective discussion on the public sphere. And one of the major areas of public sphere is the social media. As per the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia citizens of Ethiopia have the democratic rights of Thoughts, Opinion and Expression (Art. 29), so in social media it is natural to expect that individuals talk on the different affairs of the state ‘freely’. Basically the social media is serving as an instrument in maintaining discursive talk among individuals. However, it has been also producing considerable social turmoil across the world. The same is what is encountering in Ethiopia today; on the one hand, social media as a communication platform allows people to communicate effectively with sharing alternative views, attitudes and forming democratic consensus on the social anomalies and responses, and on the other hand, the media is the sphere of communicative maladjustment where misunderstanding, extremism and miscommunication is producing. In the present Ethiopian context the basic source of communication and miscommunication in the social media is the ‘pluriversal identities’ of the cultural horizon. Taking this as a crucial object, this article will discuss the connection between democracy, federalism and social media in the current Ethiopia. On the top of this, the study aims at exploring the following issues: the social media sphere in Ethiopia, the modern and postmodern challenges of social media in Ethiopia and alternatives for the social media reconstruction.

MONETARY IDENTIFICATION OF A PERSON AS A PRODUCT OF DISSEMINATION OF VALUES OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION

The article is devoted to the problem of monetary identity, which needs a detailed study in the context of the transformation processes of the modern world. The relevance of the study is that the identity of modern man is becoming unsteady. In seeking guidance for constructing one’s own “Self”, a person finds himself at a crossroads. They lose the identity they had from birth as members of traditional society and are forced to build it independently. The article reveals the preconditions for the emergence of an identity crisis in the context of the development of capitalism and the formation of the economic man. The purpose of the article is to determine the peculiarities of the formation of monetary identity, which has become essentially a by-product of the spread of Western values. To achieve this goal, a structural-functional analysis of social interactions of the subjects of identification has been conducted, as well as general scientific methods of synthesis and generalization of materials, analysis, comparison, deductive and inductive methods, etc. have been used. The main features of monetary identity are that a person begins to be guided by one’s own selfish principles, and money becomes the main value for such a person, appearing as a universal value that is equivalent to all other material values. In the modern world, monetary identity appears as a global and unstable one, it is formed artificially and serves the modern market for profit within the consumer society. It is concluded that in the modern world, money not only serves to improve the objective circumstances of life, but also becomes a means of achieving public recognition. The problem of monetary identity is especially relevant for Ukraine as a country that focuses on the Western type of management with its achievements, values and at the same time problems, and therefore requires further research.

THE RELIGIOUS FACTORS OF THE UKRAINIAN MENTALITY FORMATION

In the modern global world, a study on mentality as a main characteristic of the nation which defines the unity of the religious and cultural tradition of the society is conditioned with the need to develop an effective international religious and cultural cooperation. The purpose of the analysis is to determine religious factors in shaping the Ukrainian mentality taking into account its historical background and the challenges of modernity. The study methodology is based on the principles of the non-confessional approach and philosophical pluralism, involving a system of methods, namely: historical, dialectical, comparative methods, synthesis, and generalization. In the conclusions it is emphasized that mentality is one of the forms of the social experience accumulation, the set of historically accepted ideas, viewpoints, stereotypes, forms and behavior which are laid down is the public consciousness by means of education, culture, religion, a language through the years. Every mental formation has its imaginary lines of a friend and foe which were formed by ideologies, beliefs, and religious values. The religious factors in the formation of mentality reflect the role of the Church as the main regulator of the social life. In the social environment of the Ukrainian nation, a temple can be seen as a peculiar archetypical formation, the part of the landmark, symbolic, communicative, and informational religious system which regulates the public consciousness and it is an integral part of the national memory. The mental archetypes of the national identity stem from the phenomenon of the borderlands, and have shaped in the social context the desire for personal freedom, patriotism, social activity; in the spiritual dimension, it is a willing for the inner world to be protected, sacrifice, mercy, non-violence.