From fratricide to security community : re-theorising difference in the constitution of Nordic peace

This article utilises a revisionist account of the emergence of Nordic peace in the 19th century to open up space for rethinking and re-theorising the constitutive dynamics underlying security communities. While the Nordic case is often considered a prime example of a security community the article argues it did not emerge in the way usually claimed. First, security did not figure as a key constitutive argument as assumed by traditional security community theorising; second, togetherness did not emerge because of difference being traded for enhanced similarity. In fact, security was side-lined and difference re-interpreted rather than erased in forging ontologically safe identities

Karelia as a Finnish-Russian issue : re-negotiating the relationship between national identity, territory and sovereignty

As stereotypes would have it Finland is a stable, peaceful Nordic country, located in the calm environment of northern Europe. It is developed, well regarded, has stable borders and is particularly known for its friendly relations with its neighbours and with having developed a positive and mutually beneficial relationship with Russia in particular

Ontological security, self-articulation and the securitization of identity

The concept of ontological security has made increasing headway within International Relations, in particular through its ability to offer alternative explanations of the forces underpinning security dilemmas and conflict in world politics. While welcoming the insights already provided by its application, this article argues that the concept’s use to date has been too much geared to questions of identity-related stability, with change viewed as disturbing and anxiety-inducing. In contrast, the article calls for a more open understanding that: (i) links ontological security to reflexivity and avoids collapsing together the concepts of self, identity and ontological security; (ii) avoids privileging securitization over desecuritization as a means for generating ontological security; and (iii) opens out the concept beyond a narrow concern with questions of conflict and the conduct of violence more towards the theorization of positive change

Mod en ny norsk udenrigspolitik

Intet resum

Geostrategies of the European neighbourhood policy

The debate about the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) has, in essence, been about borders and bordering. Such departures could contribute — and often do so — to a rather fixed geopolitical vision of what the EU is about and how it aims to run and to organize the broader European space. However, this article aims to retain space for viewing the ENP as a developmental and somewhat fluid process. A conceptual framework, based on outlining three geopolitical models and a series of different geopolitical strategies employed by the EU in regard to its borders, is hence employed in order to be able to tell a more dynamic story regarding the developing nature of the ENP and the EU's evolving nature more generally. The complexity traced informs us that various geostrategies may be held at the same time at the external border. Moreover, the dominance of one geostrategy may be replaced by another or a different combination of them with regard to the same neighbourhood. It is, more generally, argued that if anything it is precisely this dynamism that should be championed as a valuable resource, avoiding the tendency to close off options through the reification of particular visions of the nature of the EU and its borders

Stretching the IR theoretical spectrum on Irish neutrality: a critical social constructivist framework

In a 2006 International Political Science Review article, entitled "Choosing to Go It Alone: Irish Neutrality in Theoretical and Comparative Perspective," Neal G. Jesse argues that Irish neutrality is best understood through a neoliberal rather than a neorealist international relations theory framework. This article posits an alternative "critical social constructivist" framework for understanding Irish neutrality. The first part of the article considers the differences between neoliberalism and social constructivism and argues why critical social constructivism's emphasis on beliefs, identity, and the agency of the public in foreign policy are key factors explaining Irish neutrality today. Using public opinion data, the second part of the article tests whether national identity, independence, ethnocentrism, attitudes to Northern Ireland, and efficacy are factors driving public support for Irish neutrality. The results show that public attitudes to Irish neutrality are structured along the dimensions of independence and identity, indicating empirical support for a critical social constructivist framework of understanding of Irish neutrality

The Baltic Sea: A region beyond security?

Sicherheitsfragen nehmen eine neue Position und Bedeutung auf der Agenda der Ostseeregion ein. Um die Stellung der Region innerhalb Europas weiter zu stärken, ist es notwendig und angebracht, über die bisherigen Anfänge hinauszudenken. Das Vorhaben ist nach wie vor durchführbar, da feststeht, dass der Zusammenhalt in der Region wachsen und sie somit stabiler werden wird. Die Zukunft der Beziehungen zwischen der EU und Rußland stellt jedoch den Haken an der Sache dar, und es scheint so, als gliche es einem beispiellosen Kunststück, dieses Problem zu lösen. Um die Möglichkeiten, die sich aus der Situation nach dem Konflikt ergeben haben, wirklich zu nutzen, ist es notwendig, einige der bisher gehegten Prinzipien, hinter sich zu lassen, die die Schaffung des politischen Raumes um die Ostsee herum gelenkt haben