Doubling NATO: Functional and Geographical Enlargement of the Alliance

This dissertation studies NATO expansion as institutional adaptation. More specifically, it examines the interaction between NATO\u27s functional and geographical enlargement. This study asserts that there is a close relationship between NATO\u27s new functions and its enlargement. Over time, NATO evolved from a collective defense alliance to a comprehensive security organization. As NATO undertook new functions, its capabilities no longer matched the requirements of the new functions. The geographical enlargement, in fact, constitutes a vehicle for the fulfillment of the capability shortfall. Furthermore, this dissertation asserts that the new security environment will force NATO to focus on the regions at a strategic distance. More specifically, the Black Sea corridor will be the next area for NATO engagement. New functions such as energy security may bring new members from the wider Black Sea region into the club. The case studies offer a detailed analysis of NATO\u27s post Cold War functional and geographical enlargement. The second case study also highlights the fact that there is no an automatic geographical enlargement as a result of new NATO functions. The timing of dissertation coincides with a significant transformation in NATO\u27s structure and core tasks. 2010 will be the year of a NEW NATO with a new peace establishment and strategic concept. NATO will still be a relevant Euro-Atlantic organization with a global area of responsibility in the twenty-first century security environment for as long as it continues to protect the vital interests of its members

Hungarian-Romanian relations: assessing prospects for cooperation and conflict

This thesis investigates to what extent antagonism between Hungary and Romania may affect their future relations. The antagonistic elements in their relations are rooted in each nation's history and strategic culture. However, since strategic culture is only one of a large array of factors determining state behavior, structural realism and other pertinent theories are also considered in this examination of contemporary political interactions. Western options to deal with the problem are also assessed, in order to evaluate the degree to which external powers may be able to constructively influence Hungarian-Romanian relations. This thesis concludes that Hungarian-Romanian relations will probably improve as these states become more deeply integrated into the Western community of nations. This improvement may not mean friendship, but it may entail a better working relationship necessitated by a common need to become integrated with the West. However, the problems between the two countries may be too deeply entrenched to be solved in a generation. Conflict in the form of diplomatic posturing and verbal jousting may continue as before, but the threat of armed combat has subsided with the increase of Western influence in the region.http://archive.org/details/hungarianromanir1094542858U.S. Navy (USN) authorApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Borderlands of nations, nations of borderlands. Minorities in the borderlands and on the fringes of countries

In the past two years, the European continent has become the target of mass migration of various ethnic and religious groups who, for reasons of security or economic hardship, have decided to leave their homelands and go into dangerous exile, mostly by sea. In order to reach the world perceived by them as an oasis of security and prosperity, and above all tolerance for racial, ethnic, cultural and religious differences, the arrivals are deepening the already large diversity of the Old Continent's population, where the various minorities have been living for a long time. Particularly interesting is the question of the functioning of national and religious minorities in the borderlands between countries, as well as the formation of such borderlands by different nations. Therefore, the editors propose that number 13 of Region and Regionalism addresses the issue of Borderlands of nations, nations of borderlands. The proposed subject matter met with the lively response from the authors, so much so that the number of submitted papers prompted the Editorial Board to divide them into two volumes. The first volume, collects the works discussing Minorities in the borderlands and the fringes of countries

COLD WAR II: UKRAINIAN SOVEREIGNTY AND IDENTITY

Ukraine’s 2014 Revolution of Dignity showcases tensions between nationalism and internationalism in a post-Cold War era. Ukraine’s political leaders and ordinary citizens express opposing views about the identity and sovereignty of their nation, as some want closer ties with the European Union, while others seek closer relations with the Russian Federation. The myths and memories of Ukraine’s Cossack past, as well as its time in the former Soviet Union, animate discourses throughout the conflict. These debates result in no clear consensus about Ukrainian identity. The inability of Ukraine to find a unified nationalist identity in the conflict highlights a post-Cold War paradox. Ukraine is unable to articulate a unifying identity because the myths and memories of the Cold War continue to circulate in public discourse. International organizations are largely unable to legitimize either side’s claims of identity in the conflict. This chaos has invited outside intervention, as both the Russia Federation and the United States attempt to influence Ukraine’s decisions about sovereignty and identity in ways benefitting Russian or American interests. These discourses mirror Cold War debates over Soviet satellite countries, as a propaganda battle for the hearts and minds of the Ukrainian people rage on in political speeches, online forums, and in international organizations. Ukraine is thus mired in a cycle of unrest, as corruption and language issues continue to prevent the nation from articulating a unified nationalist identity. Ukraine’s crisis showcases the inherent conflict within notions of sovereignty, as both self-determination and freedom from outside intervention often contradict the expected obligations of nations to protect not only their citizens but also those of other nations whose human rights are threatened. This project challenges the notion that post-Cold War states can easily move beyond the legacies of the Cold War, as their past myths and memories continue to define their sovereignty and identity well after the conflict ends

Construcción discursiva de la imagen de Rusia en la prensa británica y estadounidense en el año 2005. Un estudio contrastivo

Tesis inédita de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Facultad de Filología, leída el 25-02-2022Linguistic expression and communication play a crucial role when it comes to understanding an image of a specific country, as well as the construction and interpretation of such image. The main goal in the present thesis is to carry out a contrastive study through the analysis of Russia’s image construction as a threat in the newspaper articles from the British press The Guardian and the American press The New York Times. This study focuses on the contrastive written discourse for the analysis of the texts which includes Russia, Great Britain and the United States as the main actors in the frame of International Relations in the year 2005.For the development of the aforementioned contrastive study, a general theoretical approach will be introduced to the concept of image applied to Russia, in order to understand how Russia’s complex historical evolution as a nation has configured the Western representations of Russia and its image from a historical, socio-political and ideological points of view. Additionally, there will be a more specific section focused on the historical configuration of the British and American perception of the image of Russia. This will help us understand how the views of these countries towards Russia are reflected in the British and American press articles. All this is closely related to the stereotypes, which constitute a direct consequence of the innumerable differences that Russia has been manifesting throughout its historical evolution with respect to the Western world. As will be seen, this fact highlights even more Russia’s anti-Western character. The next step will be to describe how such representations are reflected in the texts from the British and American digital press from a linguistic perspective...La expresión lingüística y la comunicación desempeñan un papel crucial a la hora de comprender la imagen de un país específico, así como la construcción e interpretación de la misma. El objetivo principal de la presente tesis es realizar un estudio contrastivo a través del análisis de la construcción de la imagen de Rusia como amenaza en los artículos de la prensa británica The Guardian y de la prensa estadounidense The New York Times. Este estudio se centra en el discurso escrito contrastivo para el análisis delos textos, el cual incluye a Rusia, Gran Bretaña y Estados Unidos como los principales actores en el marco de las Relaciones Internacionales en el año 2005.Para el desarrollo del mencionado estudio contrastivo, se introducirá un enfoque teórico general del concepto de imagen aplicado a Rusia, con el fin de comprender cómo la compleja evolución histórica de Rusia como nación ha configurado las representaciones del Occidente sobre Rusia y su imagen desde un punto de vista histórico, sociopolítico e ideológico. Adicionalmente, habrá una sección más específica centrada en la configuración histórica de la percepción británica y estadounidense de la imagen de Rusia. Esto nos ayudará a comprender en qué forma quedan reflejadas las percepciones de estos países sobre Rusia en los artículos de prensa británica y estadounidense. Todo ello está estrechamente relacionado con los estereotipos, que constituyen una consecuencia directa de las innumerables diferencias que Rusia ha venido manifestando a lo largo de su evolución histórica con respecto al mundo occidental. Como se verá, este hecho resalta aún más el carácter antioccidental de Rusia. El siguiente paso será describir cómo estas representaciones se reflejan en los textos de la prensa digital británica y estadounidense desde una perspectiva lingüística...Fac. de FilologíaTRUEunpu