The LDP at 50: The Rise, Power Resources, and Perspectives of Japan’s Dominant Party

Japan’s ruling party is a prime example of a dominant party. While dominant parties in other democracies around the world have lost their grip on power or have even disappeared altogether, the LDP is still going strong. What explains the success of the party? How did the LDP acquire its dominant position and how did it manage to cling to it? In an attempt to answer these questions, this paper discusses the rise, the power (re-)sources and the perspectives of Japan’s dominant party.Liberal Democratic Party, Japan, dominant party, party competition, electoral system

Factionalism in Political Parties: An Analytical Framework for Comparative Studies

Factionalism can affect the stability and institutionalization of parties and party systems and it can impact on the efficiency and legitimacy of political parties and political systems as a whole. Nevertheless, factionalism has only received scant attention in the comparative literature on political parties. As this paper shows, there is no dearth of conceptual approaches and hypotheses which can readily be used to advance the systematic analysis of factionalism. We survey the relevant literature and offer a comprehensive analytical framework to stimulate comparatively oriented and nuanced studies of the causes, characteristics and consequences of intra-party groups.political parties, factionalism, party organization, electoral systems, party finance

Australia and New Zealand Face Up to China in the South Pacific

China's ties with the South Pacific - development assistance, trade, investment, involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative, and more - have grown substantially since the early years of the new century. Australia and New Zealand (NZ), the traditional dominant powers in this region, have recently upped their game in order to balance Chinese activities. The South Pacific, a huge but sparsely populated world region, is no stranger to geopolitical competition. China and Taiwan, jostling for diplomatic recognition, used to be the key protagonists. Australia's and NZ's regional dominance has been challenged by China's growing presence. China offers alternative options in terms of funding and policy to Pacific Island countries (PICs). PICs, seeking to increase their agency by diversifying political and economic relationships, generally welcome China's more intensive engagement. In the face of China's growing regional engagement, Australia and NZ have reenergised their relations with PICs, increasing aid and diplomatic efforts. Australia's in particular are driven by a strong security imperative. The unwillingness of Australia's conservative federal government to move away from coal remains a strong irritant for PICs, while NZ under Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has made climate policy a defi ning strand of regional policy. Australia's and NZ's planned COVID-safe travel zone could potentially be extended to PICs. Such a move would help PICs cushion the effects of the pandemic on their economies and become an exemplar of regional lea dership. The South Pacific is facing greater geopolitical competition. Yet the region is not really on the radar of European foreign policy establishments, despite the European Union being an important cooperation partner. Increased exchanges with governmental and non-governmental actors in Australia and NZ can help foster greater understanding of the complex dynamics in the South Pacific. Such activities are, however, no substitute for deep, sustained engagement with PICs themselves

Walking a tightrope: New Zealand revises its China Policy

A number of countries have recently revised their approaches to dealing with a more assertive China. How to recalibrate relations with China is also a main - if not the central - foreign policy challenge for New Zealand, where a centre-left government took office in 2017. The government's more sober approach to dealing with China has, among other things, been reflected in defence policy, a push to strengthen ties with the South Pacific, foreign direct investment regulations, and an initial ban on Huawei rolling out 5G broadband technology in New Zealand. New Zealand's ties with China had blossomed in the past 15 years. A free trade agreement, burgeoning bilateral exchanges, and a comprehensive strategic partnership were testament to warm relations. China's assertiveness in the South China Sea, its increasing presence in the South Pacific, and concerns about its inference in other countries' domestic politics have, however, put a damper on the relationship. In 2018 the government in Wellington announced a number of steps which, collectively, could be understood as a major reset of relations with China - not unlike the prior reset of Australia's own China policy. However, concerns that the bilateral relationship was spiralling out of control have led in 2019 to fence-mending activities. China-New Zealand relations are unlikely to regain their earlier shine. China itself has begun to differentiate more between Australia and New Zealand, also reflecting an apparent attempt to drive a wedge between the two. Despite their limited resources and vulnerability, small powers like New Zealand do not lack agency. The government in Wellington should work with partners in Asia on the same wavelength to help advance regional agendas, including but certainly not limited to trade issues, and to ward off attempts at divide and rule. It should also work intensively with like-minded and willing partners in the European Union and elsewhere to address pressing global issues, including climate change adaptation and reforming multilateralism

„Informelle Politik“ und „informelle Institutionen“ : konzeptionelle Grundlagen, analytische Zugänge und Herausforderungen für das Studium autoritärer und anderer politischer Herrschaftssysteme

Syftet med examensarbetet var att med en miljösystemanalytisk metod jämföra och bedömamiljöbelastningen från vägkonstruktioner som består av olika lättfyllnadsmaterial. Materialensom analyseras är Leca, ®HASOPOR och gummiklipp. Leca är bränd expanderad lera ochgummiklipp är uttjänta bildäck som klippts sönder. ®HASOPOR, kallas också för skummatglas, består av glasavfall som malts till ett fint pulver och sedan upphettats tillsammans medett jäsmedel som får materialet att expandera. I studien bedöms två olika frågeställningar. Den första syftar till att få svar på vilket materialsom är bäst att använda ur miljösynpunkt, utan att ta hänsyn till alternativ användning av glasochgummiavfall. Här bedöms framställning av materialen, transporter, anläggning av vägenoch utlakning av ämnen. Den andra frågeställningen har ett bredare perspektiv som tar upphur samhället bör hantera restmaterial som uppstår, vilket i det här fallet är bildäck ochglasavfall. Här inkluderas även restprodukternas alternativa behandling, om de inte skulleanvändas som lättfyllnadsmaterial. Metoden som används i rapporten är Livscykelanalys och materialen bedöms genomkarakterisering och värdering. Karakteriseringsbedömningen har gjorts utifrån påverkan påväxthuseffekt, försurning, eutrofiering, fotokemiskt ozon, humantoxicitet och ekologisktoxicitet. I analysen används två värderingsmetoder. Den ena, EPS baseras på betalningsviljaoch den andra, Erlandssons miljöbedömningsmetod, baseras på de svenskamiljökvalitetsmålen. Resultatet visar att de aktiviteter som påverkar resultatet mest är produktionen av materialenoch emissioner från dessa när de ligger i vägkonstruktionen. Data för utlakning frånmaterialen anses dock vara osäkra. Enligt analysen och de antaganden som råder skulle ®HASOPOR vara det material som är attföredra ur miljösynpunkt följt av gummiklipp och sist Leca. Detta material får också bästresultat när ett bredare perspektiv vägs med i analysen. Det bör dock påpekas att restmaterial endast i viss omfattning kan ersätta konventionellalättfyllnadsmaterial, främst beroende på de mängder som finns att tillgå. Slutsatsen är att det ur miljösynpunkt är lämpligt att använda ®HASOPOR och gummiklipp iapplikationer som tekniskt passar dessa material.The aim of this master thesis was to compare and estimate the environmental load fromdifferent lightweight materials in road constructions, with an environmental system analyticmethod. The analysed materials are Leca, ®HASOPOR and shredded tires. Leca is heatedexpanded clay and shredded tires are recycled car tires cut into small pieces. ®HASOPOR,also called foamed glass, is recycled glass which have been grinded to powder and thenheated together with a blowing agent which makes the material expand. Two questions are analysed in the assessment. The first one aims at getting the answer forwhich material, from an environmental point of view, is the best to use without consideringalternative utilisation of waste from glass and car tires. Here the production of the materials,transportations, road constructions and leach outs estimates. The second one has a widerperspective which includes how waste material should be taken care of in the society. In thiscase the waste materials are used glass and car tiers. Alternative utilisation of rest products arealso included. The method used in the report is Life cycle assessment and the materials are estimatedthrough characterisation and valuation. The characterisation has been done for globalwarming potential, acidification, eutrophication, photo oxidation formation, humantoxicological impacts and eco toxicological impact. In the analyse there is two valuationmethods used. The first one, EPS, is based on payment willingness and the second one,Erlandssons environmental assessment method, is based on the Swedish environmentalquality goal. The results show that, production of the materials and emissions from the materials when theyare used in the constructions are the activities which have the highest affect on the results.Data for leach outs from the materials is considered to be uncertain. According to the analyse and the assumptions which have been made, ®HASOPOR is thematerial which is preferable in an environmental point of view, followed by shredded tiresand last Leca. ®HASOPOR also get the best result when a wider perspective is considered inthe analyse. It should been noted that alternative light weighted materials can replace conventionalmaterials to a minor degree, mostly because of the quantities obtainable. A conclusion from the study is that there is a great environmental potential for using restproducts as light weight materials in applications that suits these products.www.ima.kth.s

The LDP at 50 : The Rise, Power Resources, and Perspectives of Japan\u27s Dominant Party

Japan’s ruling party is a prime example of a dominant party. While dominant parties in other democracies around the world have lost their grip on power or have even disappeared altogether, the LDP is still going strong. What explains the success of the party? How did the LDP acquire its dominant position and how did it manage to cling to it? In an attempt to answer these questions, this paper discusses the rise, the power (re-)sources and the perspectives of Japan’s dominant party.Die japanische LDP kann als Paradigmenfall einer dominanten Partei gelten. Während dominante Parteien in anderen Demokratien nicht länger an der Macht sind oder sich sogar aufgelöst haben, sitzen die japanischen Liberaldemokraten weiterhin an den politischen Schalthebeln. Wie kann der Erfolg der LDP erklärt werden? Wie erlangte die LDP ihre dominante Stellung und wie schaffte sie es, diese aufrecht zu erhalten? In diesem Papier wird diesen Fragen im Rahmen einer Diskussion der Hintergründe des Aufstiegs, der Erfolgsquellen und der Machterhaltungsstrategien der Liberaldemokratischen Parteien Japans nachgegangen. Abschließend werden die Perspektiven der LDP thematisiert

Towards a comprehensive partnership between the EU and New Zealand

A history of substantial flows of people, goods, capital, ideas, and institutions binds the European Union (EU) and New Zealand. In October 2016, the comprehensive character of bilateral relations was reaffirmed with the signing of a Partnership Agreement on Relations and Cooperation (PARC). This treaty-level agreement will serve as a framework for future joint endeavours in a number of areas and may also pave the way for a free-trade agreement (FTA)

Think tanks: their development, global diversity and roles in international affairs

The London-based Royal United Services Institute, one of the oldest continuously existing think tanks in the world, is celebrating the 180th anniversary of its founding this year. Other British and American think tanks with a focus on international affairs have been popping up for the past hundred years or so and have strong global reputations. Think tanks have not remained a British or American phenomenon. Rather, thousands of think tanks have been founded in many other parts of the world. Still, the term "think tank" has remained ambiguous, reflecting the substantial diversity of think tanks' functions and forms. While many definitions of think tanks emphasize the public policy focus of such organizations, the particular roles that think tanks actually play – either individually or as a group within a given context – need to be determined empirically. The same holds true for the supposedly positive role think tanks play in civil society. The substantial diversity of think tanks around the globe reflects external parameters such as the general character and dynamics of the political regimes as well as the institutional specifics of the political systems under which think tanks operate, the particular "demand" for their services in different contexts, the availability of funding, the importance of other "suppliers" of policy-relevant knowledge, as well as the initiative and leadership of individual think tank-based policy entrepreneurs. Think tanks can play a multitude of roles in international affairs – for example, they can provide opportunities for interactions and discussions among professionals within and across national borders; raise awareness and help set relevant agendas; inform and defend the foreign policies of individual states; engage in informal diplomacy; and nurture next-generation scholars and practitioners of international affairs

The Denuclearisation of North Korea: From Maximum Demands to Arms Control

During its 2019/2020 term as a member of the UN Security Council, Germany aims to generate impetus for disarmament and arms control. A particular challenge in this regard is presented by North Korea's development of its nuclear and missile arsenals. In 2017, Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump escalated the conflict surrounding this issue. Then in 2018, summit meetings between Washington and Pyongyang and between the two Koreas opened up the possibility of future cooperation. However, the US and North Korean positions on denuclearisation remain far apart. The summits in 2018 led to a decrease in tensions. Diplomacy, rather than the threatening gestures of 2017, was the focus. This was a significant step forward. North Korea halted its nuclear and missile tests, and the USA suspended its military exercises with South Korea. However, North Korea does not want to comply with the demand for rapid and complete denuclearisation. Without substantial advances regarding the nuclear question, the sanctions on North Korea will remain in place. The opportunities for inter-Korean cooperation will also remain limited. The summit agreement between Kim and Trump from June 2018 and the second summit planned for the end of February 2019 offer a chance to achieve normal bilateral relations, a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, and the curbing of the nuclear threat in the medium term. It would now make sense to agree on clear interim steps related to stopping the production of nuclear fissile material and its use in weapons technology, and the dismantling of the North Korean missile arsenal. In return, suitable corresponding steps should be offered. The complete dismantling of North Korea's nuclear arsenal should remain the goal, but is unrealistic in the short term. The German government should use its seat on the UN Security Council to push for pragmatic interim steps, as these offer the best chance of increasing security in Korea and the region. In line with German priorities, the focus should now be on effective disarmament and arms-control measures