Articles

The author examines the political-philosophical and sociological aspects of the formatting of violence in international relations (IR). The study reactualizes concepts aimed at the advancement of the world community toward social justice and the absence of war based on the optimization of political and legal regulation of IR. The analysis connects the teleology of “social justice” with the functional and systemic approaches to the hierarchy of regulators of violence, which theoretically substantiates the prospects of international “pacifi cation.” The activation of the problem of progress towards social justice was stimulated in international-political theory both by the memory of the world wars and the Cold War and by modern changes in social reality — the turbulence of world politics. Such a hierarchy is an indispensable condition for overcoming the imbalances that arise in the anarchistic variety of regulators; it orders the subordination of regulatory complexes (formats) that determine the regulation of international relations.

This article addresses the issue of defi ning the determinants of electoral diff erentiation over the territory of a large city, with he city of Donetsk and the elections held in it from 1991 to 2012 used as the example. The characteristics of the electoral geography of a large city are described in detail, and the issues of their “causes” as well as markers of detected determinants are discussed. The following methods of mathematical statistics were used: the study of voting results and their comparison with socio-demographic indicators (especially with population census results) using the Pearson correlation coeffi cient; the determination coeffi cient; variance analysis ; and multiple regression analysis. The study maintains that there were two main determinants of the electoral geography of Donetsk: 1) a more signifi cant “Center — Periphery”; and 2) a less signifi cant “East — West.” In authentic elections these determinants have explained up to 99% of the variations in the main electoral indicators in the districts of the city. The demographic markers of these two determinants were the proportion of people with higher education and the ethnic composition of the population. Falsifi cation of election results causes a signifi cant decrease in the statistical reliability of the identifi ed links.

This article presents an analysis of the main contradictions in U.S. — European Union relations in the area of defense policy during the presidency of Donald Trump. The author examines the principal steps taken by the EU towards the formation of “strategic autonomy” in the military sphere and indicates the directions of the further development of an independent EU defense potential. The most important defense projects implemented by the EU independent of NATO are also considered. Particular attention is paid to existing disagreements between the parties on NATO funding. Questions related to the ongoing intra-EU discussions about the possible creation of its own army are likewise analyzed. This study allows us to identify, problematize and characterize the key features of the current stage of relations between the United States and the European Union in defense policy. The author concludes that despite attempts to create its own defense potential, the EU today is not able to off er a full-fl edged alternative to the existing system led by NATO. However, the actions and rhetoric of the American administration could push the Europeans to more decisive action.

This article examines aspects of the interaction between transnational elites and civil society in the modern world. The author focuses in the main on the infl uence 20 of transnational elites on organizations of the “third sector,” political parties and their leadership, and on the media. The articles sets out the principal content borne by the concepts “transnational elites” and “civil society.” The analysis shows that transnational elites tend to turn a well-developed “third sector” into an eff ective counterbalance to the national state. Thus they actively fi nance and support its activities, since the opposition of the “third sector” and the national state weakens them as the main competitors of transnational elites on the world stage. According to the author, political practice of the second half of the 20th century and the fi rst decades of the 21st shows that transnational elites have managed to bring their proteges to political leadership in a number of countries, thus increasing their infl uence on the adoption of many political decisions. In order to achieve their own goals, these elites use and indeed monopolize the media in various countries of the world community as a powerful means of infl uencing public opinion, in the process violating one of the fundamental principles of democracy: equal access to the media for all citizens.

The article presents an analysis of the deliberative approach applied to the long-term resolution of ethnic confl icts. Starting from an examination of the works by I.M. Young, T. Walzer and I. O’Flynn on the deliberative approach, the article demonstrates that the basic features of this paradigm are able to combine the main characteristics of more traditional methods in confl ict resolution, the consociational and integrative. By conceptualizing active political participation as a property belonging to individuals and not only to representatives of certain groups, the theory of deliberative democracy emphasizes the role of “publicity” and “tolerance,” instead of “inclusion” of representatives of ethnic groups suggested by the consociational approach, and “reciprocity” instead of “moderation” advocated by the integrative model. Finally, the article provides an analysis of the main deliberative strategies to reduce tension between ethnic groups in the process of confl ict resolution, concluding that specifi c deliberative practices can be successfully applied.

The article examines the Free Syrian Army, one of the largest Syrian insurgent group that takes part in armed confl ict against Bashar al-Assad’s government. The article reveals how the nature and characteristics of this insurgent group aff ected its development during the Syria Civil War. The fi rst part of the article provides a general background of the group and its principles. The following part sketches out the theoretical framework providing the necessary anchor for the main hypothesis explored in the article, namely that the nature and character of the insurgent group determine its subsequent evolution. Starting from the assumption that there are three diff erent types of insurgent groups: political, religious and ethnic, the article focuses on the diff erences between the creation of ethnic and non-ethnic groups and defi nes how the nature of the group aff ects the development of the Free Syrian Army. Furthermore, the article provides an analysis of how, between 2012 and 2018, this insurgent group was able to manage and control its territory, develop its military potential and infl uence the numbers of its members. Finally, the Free Syrian Army is compared with another insurgent group, the 19th of April Movement (M- 19), active in Colombia during 1970s–1990s. Through this lens, the article argues that by looking at the nature of an insurgent group, it can be possible to predict its capacity and chances of success.

Great powers can play a central role in the process of regional integration, as a driving force of the integration, a provider of international public goods, a rule-maker, an initiator of regional mechanisms and as the founder of specifi c regional organizations. Russia and China are playing such a central role in the integration process in Eurasia through a selective use of opportunities provided by the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and the Belt and Road Initiative. Where the EAEU contributes to an increase in trade volume between its members, the SCO ensures a safe and stable external environment, and the Belt and Road Initiative is primarily focused on infrastructure development. Russia remains the driving force of post-Soviet integration, especially in the security sphere. The trans-regional nature of Russia allows it to borrow and process the experience and economic resources of both Europe and Asia, bringing together these two continents. At the same time, Russia is the initiator of integration projects and the rule-maker. China seeks to strengthen its role as an initiator and rule-maker of regional integration. Cooperating with partners and free-riders, it is ready to take on the role of a provider of global public goods.

The article attempts to make a conceptual interpretation of the hybrid war phenomenon integrating it in the broader fi eld of political science. The authors consistently separate scientifi c and non-scientifi c interpretations of the phenomenon, define various disciplinary frameworks for its interpretation and analyze contemporary literature on the topic. Based on the historical and comparative analysis of diff erent cases of hybrid war through the lens of discourse analysis, the article provides a defi nition of the notion putting it in relationship with concepts of conventional war, smart power, “legal” and “political war.” As a result, hybrid war is defi ned as a combination of concrete military action and other tools able to infl uence political institutions, regimes and processes. Thus, hybrid war as a political phenomenon is part of the (geo)political strategy of an actor and consequently a conscious and goal-oriented action. Furthermore, the article notes that taking into consideration that communication is a system forming process in modern politics, the interpretation of hybrid warfare must look at the role of information and communication as key components of the concept. In fact, it is exactly the domination over the realm of information which determines the specifi cs of the modern confl ict as it appears more and more important not the victory as such, but rather how it is communicated and presented in the information fi eld. In turn, the infl uence on information processes is carried out through political technologies and refl ection management.

The article presents an analysis of the role played by the Conference on Interaction and Confi dence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), an international forum aimed at strengthening cooperation in ensuring peace, security and stability in contemporary international relations. The author provides a detailed analysis of the background, the history of this dialogue platform, its main achievements and problems of development at the present stage. The author concludes that, although the CICA is a unique regional forum in the fi eld of security in Asia, the results of its activity are rather modest. The forum indeed is not a full-fl edged regional supranational organization and its decisions are not binding on member states. Participation in the CICA dialogue is voluntary, and decisions are made on the basis of consensus. In many ways, the slow pace in the development of the Conference is due to the presence of a large number of contradictions between its participants. However, despite all the limitations, CICA has become part of the modern system of regional and global multilateral institutions, a real factor in international relations. The organization developed a consolidated vision of the member states on key security issues in the region and in the world, hand in hand with some practical steps. The Conference adopted specifi c action plans and concepts in order to introduce confi dence-building measures in diff erent spheres of action, such as the military-political, economic, environmental and humanitarian, hand in hand with the broader realm of new challenges and threats.