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This paper addresses the relationship between theory and practice in international relations by examining the recent environmental security literature and its ability to guide in the formation of policy. At the end of the Cold War, international relations scholars began to challenge the traditional understanding of national security. This work argued against the narrow focus on military weapons as threats to national security by pointing to the threats induced by natural resource shortages and global warming. These authors argued that resource scarcity and global warming produced negative economic and political pressures leading to regional instability. Since its introduction, the environmental security literature has gone through three generation of scholarship, each improving our understanding of the relationship between the environment and national security. Despite this, all three generations have not remedied important shortcomings within this literature that weakens our ability to draw policy prescriptions from its conclusions. First, environmental security scholars have focused on an economic understanding of the relationship between the environment and security. In other words, they argue that given a shortage of critical resources -whether it is water, air, soil, or oil- nations will face a national security threat. But, as this paper will argue, the physical environment a nation finds itself in will present a national security threat regardless of the abundance of a resource. To appreciate the ecological interdependence a nation finds itself in, the paper considers the example of international rivers. The second critique of this literature is its focus on environmental security as a source of conflict. In reality the physical environment can be a source of cooperation or conflict. The national security threat induced from ecological interdependence can be so costly, that even enemies are induced to cooperate. Consider for example the stable cooperation between India and Pakistan over the Indus River system. This cooperation has survived through several wars, numerous border clashes, and even nuclear rivalry. And finally, this paper will demonstrate that the ecological interdependence created among nations can become a weapon used to signal discontent to a neighboring nation. To demonstrate this, the paper will draw on the use of rivers as weapons by riparian nations. In the process of analyzing and critiquing the environmental security literature, the paper will draw on the experience of the nations sharing the Indus, Ganges, Jordan, and Euphrates Rivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the progress of democratic consolidation in Central Europe from the perspective of national security. The paper analyzes the depth of democratic reforms that have already taken place in the various national security institutions of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland and highlights the gains that have been made as well as areas in need of deeper reforms in order to ensure the success of the overall democratic consolidation effort in each case. Special emphasis is placed on examining the interface between the various government agencies that participate in the national security policy making process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last ten years or so, ‘global governance’ has emerged as a (neo-)liberal research agenda in international relations theory. This theorizing is closely related to emerging neo-liberal practices, where market mechanisms and civil society have assumed an important role in the governance of society. Following the lead of James Rosenau and others, this literature seeks to theorize about the content and dynamics of governance without government . Or, in the words of Ernst-Otto Czempiel, governance is defined as the capacity to get things done without the legal competence to command that they be done (1992: 250). It is precisely in its lack of a formal-juridical backing that governance is rendered a useful analytical intake, it is argued, to the study of international politics. There is also a dialogue between theory and practice: International commissions and inter-governmental processes have identified both global governance and good governance as central themes and objectives, while journals such as Global Governance have served as sites for the conceptual clarification and empirical substantiation of what governance is. Concurrently, the more theoretically oriented literature in IR theory has done much to identify how governance operates through a host of formal and informal, state and non-state, national and transnational practices. A central theme has been the role of so-called civil society organizations, particularly through the norms-based advocacy that these perform and thus influence state behavior (see Risse, Ropp and Sikking (1999), FInnemore and SIkkink (1998). The first part of the paper presents this literature and deducts from it certain hypotheses about state-society relations and the functioning of power that is embedded in this literature. The second part proceeds to introduce a different theoretical reading of these same practices with inspiration from the literature on governmentality that was first introduced by Michel Foucault, and has later been developed by Nikolas Rose, Peter Miller and Barry Hindess. Within this theoretical framework, various (neo-)liberal practices of rule are conceptualized in a different way with respect, first, to state-society relations, and, second, to the functioning of power. The third part of the paper proceeds to test two sets of hypotheses derived from this theoretical perspective about state-society relations and about the functioning of power against two case studies that goes to the heart of what global governance is said to be, namely international conferences resulting in plans for action and legislation adopted by states. One case study concerns the role of civil society organizations in the formulation of international population policy (1984-1994), and the other the role of civil society organizations in the campaign to ban landmines (1989-1999). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Last year the US sent genetically modified (GM) food aid to Southern Africa in response to the looming famine in the drought stricken region. Zambia and Zimbabwe refused to accept the GM food aid, on the grounds that the food aid could contaminate their own crops, thus hurting their potential exports to Europe in the future. The US when on the defensive in response, and blamed Europe’s moratorium on imports of GM foods and seed for contributing to hunger in Southern Africa. In this paper I examine the way this debate over GM food aid has unfolded, and argue that it illustrates more broadly the way that the debate over GM food has been framed by the powerful backers of this technology. The argument that there is a clear choice between accepting biotechnology on the one hand, or facing starvation on the other, has been a constant theme pushed by the US government and agricultural TNCs in the debate over GM foods. I argue that this framing of the debate sets up a false dichotomy, stifling meaningful debate over the environmental and social issues linked to agricultural biotechnology. Paper can be obtained by emailing the author at: jclapp@trentu.ca [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to explore foreign and defense policy-making in the Baltic Sea regional context. Exploring the utility of prevailing international relations theories, I take an empirical, policy-making perspective to analyse the interactions among four issue areas and their implications for policy-making. The goal of the paper is to explain how Sweden, Finland and the three Baltic States have coped with strategic (in a regional context) uncertainty, made decisions to exercise control over their security environment, and incorporated domestic and external feedback into decision-making processes. The four issue areas serving as organizational guide to policymaking include (1) membership in the European Union and Nato; (2) building sustainable domestic coalitions and constituencies; (3) managing/resolving external and domestic obstacles; (4) independent versus regional bilateral/multilateral policy focus. This analytical framework provides the context for a theoretical evaluation of the evolution, stability, and sustainability of security policies within the region. Specifically, it offers a unique perspective on the interaction and reconciliation of region-external and region-internal policy constraints/opportunities at the policymaking levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is argued that the US and the EU are conducting their foreign policies in very different ways, indeed Robert Kagan has suggested that they could be shaping two different world orders. This paper is interested in examining how far these apparently divergent conceptual approaches translate into clearly dissimilar policy practices. Beyond the much discussed US-EU positions on Iraq, does the EU have something qualitatively and quantitatively different to offer to the concept and practice of transnational governance? This paper analyses these issues through an investigation of the different elements of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership programme, to explore how far the EU is offering a new approach to transnational governance and how far it might be considered to be re-branding old approaches to north-south cooperation. The Euro-Mediterranean partnership offers a good practical example of what EU countries are doing at the regional level. Essentially, the Euro-Mediterranean partnership is an ambitious regional cooperation programme covering all aspects of the social, economic and political relations between the EU and the states of the southern shores of the Mediterranean. But what does the partnership imply in practice? Can the various programmes that the EU proposes to implement ensure economic development, manage social tensions and strengthen political and security institutions in a way that is beneficial for both parties, and for citizens as well as for states? Conceptually, there are obvious tensions between the strategic aims of EU engagement with Mediterranean partners. On the one hand the EU is attempting to strengthen existing illiberal state institutions in North African and Middle Eastern countries, in order to gain more effective cooperation with the EU on emigration control and anti-terrorist policies. On the other hand it is keen to promote power-sharing and good governance in countries which are essentially run on a non-democratic basis. In practice it is not at all certain that even if these conceptual difficulties can be solved, the various national and sub- or supra-national institutions involved in this programme can address the momentous technical challenges of multi-layered transnational governance that are intrinsic to this type of endeavour. Hence, this paper investigates how far this alleged partnership embodies new and effectives means of trans-national governance, and how far it merely repackages old realist principles and tools of north-south cooption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper employs the concept of 'regional governance' to analyze both the processes and outcomes of the emerging regional institutional arrangements in East Asia. It argues that ASEAN has played a significant role in creating and sustaining the processes of wider East Asian regional governance efforts. However, the level of achievement in translating these processes into tangible outcomes remains severely constrained by great power rivalry, especially between Japan and China. By focusing on the areas of trade and finance, this paper argues that the varying levels of outcomes between these two issue areas can be explained primarily by the degree of convergence between Japanese and Chinese interests. In particular, while Japan and China have a shared interest in contributing to the promotion of regional financial stability, they strongly disagree over the appropriate form and contours of a trade governance system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks to assess the factors that contribute to preventing a recurrence of civil war once it has been resolved, in order to provide the international community with a more solid basis for its policy decisions. Previous studies have tended to present contrasting findings on the effectiveness of certain variables as they relate to the duration of peace or civil war recurrence. Posing a theoretical approach and through in-depth analysis of the civil wars in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, this paper shows, through both qualitative and quantitative analysis, the complex interchange of variables and the role they play in determining the decision-making process for government and rebel groups on whether to return to war or work towards maintaining a peaceful post-civil war society. State capacity, international/regional effects and thirdparty interventions play a significant role in determining the likelihood of civil war recurrence. As a result, international actors must take careful consideration of these complex factors when attempting to advance conditions for enduring peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the economic impact of the federal public policies, which have incorporated the gender perspective in their design and implementation at both, national, and Jalisco's level. The paper looks at different indicators to illustrate the situation of women regarding poverty, economy, education, participation and citizenship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A decade after it was established the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has evolved into a well-known figure in international development cooperation, especially in global health. Similar to the Rockefeller Foundation which was actively involved in shaping health as an international policy field in the first half of the 20th century, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is looked upon as an "influential" actor in global health today. The examples of the Rockefeller and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation invite to look into how the two philanthropic foundations could become political actors and "agents of change". Therefore the paper concentrates on the question of what makes an actor "influential". The answer to that question usually starts with power. Power as empirical phenomenon always rests on a range of resources, both material and immaterial. But "power over" is not equivalent to "power to". Consequently, the paper focuses on how to conceptualize the translation of power into influence, i.e. into an (observable) outcome or impact. The historical comparison of two instances of institutional innovation in international/global health governance, which are attributed to the influence of the Rockefeller and Gates Foundation, allows us to determine various factors which may contribute to creating influential policy actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent scholarship has found that domestic politics affects foreign aid provision and that the US uses foreign aid to attract coalition partners in its uses of force abroad. The goal of this paper is to synthesize these two research agendas. It argues that under certain conditions the US pays' for multilateralism by rewarding states for being coalition partners. These conditions are rooted in American domestic politics. When different parties control the executive and legislative branches of the US government, the US president is under greater pressure to demonstrate that actions taken abroad do not serve narrow interests. This is because divided government can hinder the viability of the mission by posing added constraints on the use of force. One mechanism for making use of force more credible is to gain international support. To generate that international support, the US political leadership makes coalition participation an attractive option for states by such positive inducements as foreign aid. Though any provision of foreign assistance is ultimately subject to the approval of Congress, the President still is able to overcome these concerns in using these instruments. This is especially true for the provision of military grants because Congress members do not have electoral incentives to vote against legislation that produces very uncertain distribution outcomes. This paper thus shows that American domestic politics matters for the level of aid weaker states are able to gain as coalition members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Privatisation of military functions continues to raise serious questions about accountability, legitimacy of force and lately, over the epistemic power wielded by Private Military and Security Companies (PMSC) in the formation and characterisation of foreign policy. Privatisation of 'kinetic' military functions has received much of the focus in this regard, largely as a result of media coverage of Blackwater-esque scandals. The privatisation of intelligence has grown and developed in parallel to the PMSC industry, and has attracted attention and concern for the same reasons - the problems of accountability and legitimacy, exacerbated by the covert nature of the intelligence world and punctuated by outcries over rendition and private actor involvement in surveillance and interrogation. This paper suggests that privatisation of intelligence should be regarded with particular concern, perhaps more so for the dangers posed by the epistemic power wielded by private intelligence actors in the formation of international policy: that it is the privatisation of the analysis of intelligence, and the actions that follow, rather than the collection of that information, that poses the greatest risk to authority. This tentative suggestion is made with acknowledgement that intelligence communities are susceptible to compromised independence by other means, such as the political influences on the United States' intelligence services in Vietnam and prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Nevertheless, this paper maintains that privatisation of intelligence, particularly in light of epistemic power, represents a particularly dangerous aspect of disaggregated authority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the least decade, international organizations (IOs) have become an integral part of global and regional counterterrorism cooperation. At the same time, there are still important functional and political impediments to a more advanced role of IOs in this sensitive environment. The paper sheds light on IOs' specific role as formal bureaucratic organizations in counterterrorism cooperation and investigates how and when they exercise agency under tight political and functional constraints based on comparative empirical evidence for EU and UN post-9/11 counterterrorism efforts. It distinguishes three mechanisms of IO agency: IOs as channels and entrepreneurs, IOs as coordinators and managers, and IOs as think-tanks and authorities. While states continue to be in the driving seat of the fight against terrorism, the paper argues that shifts towards more comprehensive counterterrorism cooperation have created new opportunities for IO agency based on outreach and expertise in a less politicized atmosphere. At the same time, the encroachment into particularly political areas has also opened up new avenues for contestation. The analysis suggests that the emerging role of IOs in this context is best explained by mechanisms pointing to IOs as coordinators/managers and as think-tanks/authorities. The practical challenge will be to reconcile IOs' bureaucratic outreach and expertise with political direction and accountability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European sub-national levels of government are gaining political authority from the nation-state to be active on a European scale in policy shaping and execution. This timely development has been fueled by both European integration and European regional and local governments. This paper provides theoretical explanations for the increasing interest and engagement of EU regions' governments in European politics. Furthermore, this paper offers insights from regional political elites and civil servants into the objectives, strategies, outcomes and best practice of increasing regional authority to engage in European politics. These findings present four European regions: France's Nord-Pas de Calais; the South West of England; Germany's Brandenburg; and Belgium's Wallonia. Each case study displays a different regional make-up, which influences their capacity to seek subnational political authority. With an ever growing EU and questions on its governance, it is essential to understand the increasing regional political authority, the reasons and aims behind it, as well as its effect. This paper provides a rigorous analysis of the partial shift of European national political authority to regional authority and thereby contributes to Global Governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores whether, how and to what extent the foreign policy choices of EU member states are affected by their progressive integration into the supranational organization. Policy-makers and analysts alike have deplored the proclivity of EU member states to prioritise the pursuit of 'special' bilateral relations with powerful non- EU states such as Russia, the US and China, at the expense of a joint pursuit of relations at the European level. To date, scholars have focused predominantly on exploring the development of common foreign policies towards powerful non-EU states, in terms of both process and substance, while scant attention has been paid to the question of how, why and to what extent national governments pursue their foreign relations with these states at the European or the bilateral level. In particular, we know little about what motivates national governments' choice against cooperation although the fact that member governments frequently opt for a bilateral engagement with important non-EU states is well documented. This paper seeks to explain national foreign policy choices by using the example of member states' relations with the Russian Federation. It explores their choices on energy supply policy and trade disputes during the 2000s. The findings indicate that whereas much emphasis is placed on the need for governments to make 'appropriate' foreign policy choices in the official rhetoric, in practice national governments tend to place great emphasis on the utility of their choice, and not on whether it is 'appropriate'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing literature tends to only explain partial snapshots of the roles played by developing countries in the G20; generally focussing on either the G20's 'thick' problem solving dynamics, the G20's 'thin' bargaining dynamics, the relative equality underpinning G20 deliberations or the G20's inherently exclusive nature. While existing literature is useful for explaining specific aspects of the G20 processes at specific times, there is a dearth of literature which captures or explains the G20's flexibility as a series of multilateral processes and the shifting dynamics of G20 interactions. Rather than approaching the study of international institutions encumbered by pre-determined ontologies, this paper, through a focus on the level specific dynamics of Indian and South African participation in the G20, illustrates the utility of embarking on a more fine grained analysis of real world multilateralism. This paper forwards the concept of "Variegated Transgovernmentalism" as an alternative to catch all approaches. Part one forwards a redefinition of the G20 as a cluster of intergovernmental and transgovernmental networks and introduces the level specific dynamics of G20 interactions. Part two illustrates the significance of the G20's level specific dynamics though a focus on the Indian and South African cases. The framework adopted in this part of the paper facilitates an exploration of the G20's variegated transgovernmentalism and endeavours to explain when rather than if Indian and South African G20 participants are likely to embark upon transgovernmental policy coordination and transgovernmental coalition building through G20 interactions. The paper concludes by pointing to areas for further exploration suggested by the premise of 'variegated transgovernmentalism' in the G20. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The history of US nuclear strategy offers an interesting case study of idea influence: while the dominant historical narrative is filled with accounts of the enormous effect civilian strategists and their ideas had on US policies, critics note that actual correlation between expert ideas and expert ideas is sporadic at best. The present paper analyzes the influence of expert ideas on Cold War US nuclear strategy during the debate on counterforce in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It answers the question why the highly rational language of civilian strategist came to dominate the deterrence policy discourse for the better part of the Cold War. Contrary to existing theoretical accounts of idea influence, the paper conceptualizes influence as discursive: ideas are influential when they monopolize the language of the policy discourse, thereby acting as constraints on the beliefs and perceptions of key actors. In order to avoid the pitfalls of previous rational and reflectivist approaches, the selection of ideas for policy use is explained through the concept of persuasiveness. Persuasive ideas are not merely intellectually compelling, but also fit with existing policy problems, ideas, and the general policy environment. Thus, persuasiveness is able to explain strategic use, as well as discursive dominance and subsequent institutionalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the problem of EU energy governance under its commitment of climate leadership since 1990. With the problem of climate change and gradual depletion of fossil fuels, energy governance is getting more challenging. The reluctance of EU member states to transfer their authority of policymaking to the EU forces them to secure energy supply externally, which undermines their pursuit of reducing energy dependence. This paper applies the insights from international relations (IR) theories to explain the predicament of EU energy governance by investigating the case of EU renewable energy policy. This paper proceeds in four parts. After brief introduction, definition, and coding, the second section introduces the main arguments of three mainstream IR theories that focus on the power, interest and idea variables respectively. The third section examines the explanatory validity of the three IR theories by analyzing the policymaking process of the two EU renewable energy directives. This paper concludes that the reducing energy dependence is necessary. However, it is difficult to achieve that goal if EU member states are still unwilling to transfer their authority of promoting renewable energy to the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European Union policy to counter terrorism is marked by uncertainty about causes and consequences. It is driven by high demand for policy, influenced by major attacks as well as US policies and domestic interests in EU member states. The paper addresses the role of the assessment of the effectiveness and efficiency of policies in such policy environment using the case of measures against terrorism financing. It is found that assessments of effectiveness have shaped such policies, but in a biased way. Assessments of the comprehensiveness of a regulatory framework and its implementation have been frequent while evaluations of the impact of activities on terrorist activities are largely lacking. As a result, there is much pressure to expand activities in the field without much knowledge about their impact. Furthermore, because impacts are hardly known, but assumed to be great, also cost considerations have had no major role in policy decision-making. The paper's results confirm the proposition that policies in high risk fields tend to be expansive. Assessment of effectiveness and efficiency play an important role in shaping such expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Civil-military relations have become increasingly institutionalized in the context of UN peacekeeping operations. Nevertheless, attempts to strengthen the interface between military and humanitarian communities have been permeated by many conceptual and operational dilemmas. Analysts have raised a series of issues not only about the operational viability of promoting coherent civil-military relations, but also regarding the very proposition to forge any kind of identity between the two communities. Critics argue that the extensive militarization of humanitarian affairs and the integration of military and humanitarians are corrupting humanitarian principles and subordinating humanitarians to military logic/structures. The main argument is that civil-military relations reinforce hegemonic statecentric approaches over more solidarist, emancipatory and non-statist ones. This paper does not follow this position neither aims to retake the pluralism-solidarist debate. Instead, it proposes to articulate the engagement of peacekeepers in civilian protection from a normative and institutional perspective which gives room to problematize the state-centric logic guiding UN soldiers in peace missions. By framing peacekeepers as polis-keepers, the paper tries to understand civil-military relations in less clashing terms so as to respond to growing demands for a more open dialogue between military and humanitarians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On February 8, 2009, the decommissioned French carrier Clemenceau was towed into port in Hartlepool, UK, for dismantling. This marked what French officials hoped would be the end to a nearly decade-long controversy surrounding the disposal of a ship labeled "toxic" by environmentalists concerned about the tons of asbestos and other dangerous chemicals it contained. Plans to process the Clemenceau at India's Alang shipbreaking yards in 2006 became the focus of an international debate over the practice of shipbreaking, one made more pointed as shipbreaking activities have shifted from developed to developing countries like India and Bangladesh where environmental and safety regulations are either non-existent or poorly enforced. This paper explores the legal and policy issues posed by the dispute over the Clemenceau. Intersecting several environmental regimes, shipbreaking has attracted the attention of the Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste, the International Maritime Organization, the International Labor Organization, and other international and nongovernmental organizations. Reconciling their different perspectives on how to manage this lucrative and important, but highly risky industry represents a serious challenge for international environmental governance. This paper examines that challenge and the steps taken thus far to meet it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at providing an overview of recent events in hazardous chemicals regulation. It will take as its departure point the February 2010 UN meeting in Bali: the Extraordinary Conference of the Parties (ExCOP) of the three Geneva-based chemicals conventions (Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions). Certain common measures were agreed upon to improve synergies among the three conventions, e.g. establishment of a joint head. Thus this paper will, supported by interviews, assess the three conventions' reaction to the decisions of the ExCOP which concern their functioning very directly. I also propose to look at the role of other relevant UN bodies, namely the 'Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM),' the Inter-Organization Program for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC), and UNEP Chemicals (the latter two have so far attracted practically no scientific investigation). Thanks to the very successful conclusion of this ExCOP, an important signal for a closer cooperation and coordination among the three conventions has been expressed forcefully by their parties, orchestrated by UNEP. Will the chemicals conventions now be able to act upon this authoritative call for a more streamlined organizational structure? And most importantly, what will be the impact on the governance of the relationship between trade and environment? I am calling for the treatment of trade-related MEAs as a distinct category with powerful political dimensions and economic stakes that set them clearly apart from the other MEAs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the social and political construction of US counter-terrorism policy since the onset of the war on terrorism. The first part of the paper focuses on the period of the Bush administration. It explores the cultural grammar expressed in the language of the war on terror, as well as administration attempts to 'sell' the policy to the American public. In addition, it explores the ways in which the cultural construction of the war on terror has been institutionalised in counterterrorism practices and institutions, and how it has been normalised and embedded in American popular culture and linked by the national identity narratives surrounding '9/11' and the negative ideograph of 'terrorism', to American identity. The second section of the paper explores the discourse and practice of the war on terrorism in the first months of the Obama administration. It questions the extent to which counterterrorism policy can be re-written, given the degree to which it accords with the deep cultural grammar of American identity and is now a well-established ideograph, the extent to which it has been institutionalised in American political practice and embedded in American culture, and the ways in which it is rooted in the political-economic interests of the American polity and empire. Finally, the paper briefly reflects on questions of change and identity in the construction of US foreign policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many U.S. interventions in external conflicts, which are or threaten to be highly violent, are undertaken to help bring about peace. They very often, however, fail in many regards and sometimes are even counterproductive. This paper begins with a brief review of the variety of governmental American efforts to end various destructive conflicts abroad and initiate sustaining peacemaking. I then cite the consequences of these efforts, which include relatively successful interventions and the adverse results of many other interventions. The paper examines the range of domestic factors that impede more effective results and also the effects of the characteristics of the local actors in the foreign conflict constrain the effectiveness of the interventions. In addition, the changing international context that affects the results of the interventions is analyzed. I conclude with reflections on the implications of the analysis for U.S. interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the manner in which energy and security modulate each other as categories of international politics. The convergence of these two terms is neither accidental nor inconsequential. Far from a neutral descriptive category, energy security is the product of particular understandings of international politics that it reproduces and effectuates into particular policies. Using a broad range of empirical evidence, this paper argues that we are witnessing the emergence of three different energy security logics - war, subsistence, and "total" - which can be traced in analytical as well as policy documents. These three paradigms are in essence distinctive modes in which energy and security modulate each other, and have distinct vocabularies, policy implications, and normative consequences. More generally, the study of energy security is an opportunity to discern the potential emergence of new contextual modes of defining security, or new modes in which the constitutive ingredients of a security context are spliced. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the wisdom of the second half of 2009 conference theme, "anticipating the future" in international politics. Many scholars would immediately reject the notion that the prediction should be a goal of scholarship; explanation is our business, we are told, not prediction. Despite such sincere protestation to the contrary, prediction in some form has always been a major (if sometimes unstated) goal of the scholarship on international relations. Theories that ignore the future for the sake of the past contribute little to society or policymakers. This paper makes a methodological case for the evaluation of predictions as a way to test our theories of state behavior. If correlations in past data capture more than merely coincidence or historical anomaly, then those relationships ought to remain fairly constant when extrapolated into the future. Likewise, when predictions logically extrapolated from the core theoretical concepts fail to materialize, then epistemological red flags should rise. The moment international relations scholars cease using their theories to predict the future is also the moment they give up their aspirations to create a true science of international interaction. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the competing discourses being promoted to frame the debate over social policy in the EU and the impact that this debate is having on the implementation of the flexicurity policy model. First, this paper examines how ideational power is used by competing social forces to construct and support a hegemonic order. By examining how the discourse of competitiveness has been constructed to foster discourse of fear, this paper details how this framework has engendered a policy environment that maintains the member-states must restructure their economies to remain competitive and attractive to transnational business. In addition, the paper traces the four interrelated policy discourses used to frame the debate over the harmonization of social policy within the EU and how this broader context has shaped the implementation of flexicurity. Finally, the paper analyses how the 'common pathways' approach to flexicurity acts to reinforce neo-liberal hegemony in the EU by embedding it within 'depoliticalising' discourse of pragmatic problem-solving. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the focus on the state and state transformation distracts attention to security orders and in particular makes us blind to the role of firms in security orders. It proceeds to suggests that looking at security orders as practices is a way of circumventing this blindness and to move the analysis forward. The paper then discusses what an analysis in terms of practices may entail, emphasizing questions of order, contextuality and change. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that fiction and literary non-fiction should play an important role in the environmental politics classroom, and explores how such works might best be employed. The paper draws on experience with past, present, and future-oriented liter ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes to what extent existing public policy (the status quo) set the scope for international negotiation mandates in the case of the United States in the climate change negotiations. To that effect, the analysis explores whether the political dynamics between the actors and institutions that can change the status quo through collective action can help explain the U.S. position and mandate in the negotiations over time. Agenda setting and agenda control in the legislative process are found to be essential mechanisms for changing public policy, and the paper offers a comparative analysis of the consequences domestic agenda setting and agenda control had for U.S. participation in international climate talks in the period 1993-2008. The political institutions of the United States structured interaction among policymakers and affected policy outcome, and ultimately the chance of changing the policy status quo. To exemplify this, the paper provides a systematic comparison of Senate votes in the period 1993-2008 - votes related to greenhouse gas emissions reductions and efforts to limit the use of fossil fuels. Logistic regression analysis as well as qualitative methods are used to analyze the impact of political institutions and public policy on U.S. engagement in the international climate negotiations over time. The analysis is useful for future international negotiations, because it points out where the potential for change and influence is in the United States, a key actor in the climate negotiations; in party politics or interest group politics. An international treaty that would be ratified in the United States must accommodate these interests. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes Russian policies toward quasi-states in Eurasia since the “color revolutions.” The paper begins by exploring Russian views of the similarities and differences among such quasi-states such as Kosovo, Transdniestria, Abkhazia, and South ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at enhancing the explanatory power of the Bureaucratic Politics Model (BPM). It commences with a brief outline of the model's three core propositions (stand-sit proposition, bargaining proposition, resultants proposition). The paper moves on to discuss the BPM's major deficiencies. They relate to a lack of clarity concerning the formation of the actors' policy preferences and a limited specification of the conditions under which unintended compromise solutions, that is, resultants, occur. The paper puts forward suggestions as to how to overcome those shortcomings. Concerning the formation of the actors' policy preferences, the paper argues that the BPM's stand-sit proposition could be integrated into the framework of poliheuristic theory in the form of a "noncompensatory bureaucratic loss aversion variable." This variable leads to the elimination of options that are unacceptable for the actor's organization. As to resultants, the paper specifies the conditions under which results are more likely than resultants. However, the paper argues those conditions seldom materialize. Therefore, resultants are the likely outcomes of bargaining processes among bureaucratic actors with diverging policy preferences and different power potentials. Future research might want to systematically account for the impact of domestic (e.g., coalition governments) and international (e.g., multilateral security institutions) constraints on the decision-making processes along the lines of the revised BPM. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of the extractive industries on human rights and corruption has become a salient policy area in recent years. This has led to the emergence of global governance initiatives such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights. The politics and design of these initiatives remain poorly understood. One reason is that the literature's emphasis on 'networks' and 'flows' is ill-suited to the analysis of global governance mechanisms in high-stake policy areas. Arguably, an analytical focus on interest-based bargaining can add to the study of global governance by looking at EITI and the Voluntary Principles as transnational regimes. The paper compares the political processes surrounding the establishment of EITI and the Voluntary Principles in terms of strategic bargaining between four dominant sets of actors: multinational oil and minerals companies, international NGOs, resource investment 'host states' and company 'home states'. Secondly, the structural design and potential effectiveness of EITI and the Voluntary Principles are compared. Differences in the bargaining processes are found to have had a determining impact on the design and potential effectiveness of each initiative. The paper lastly discusses the implications for other new mechanisms in the policy area. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzes the degree of environmental policy institutionalization among 21 OECD countries from 1960 to 2005. The institutionalization of environmental policy will be analyzed on the one hand, by focusing on the way domestic policy instruments have been applied in OECD countries. On the other hand I will investigate international institutionalization of environmental policy by means of involvement in international treaties and agreements. The paper concludes that highly industrialized societies have institutionalized a high degree of environmental policy over the last decades in both areas. However, environmental institutionalization is clearly divided into a domestic and international realm. Although both areas are linked, different factors explain their respective implementation. Domestic environmental institutionalization is above all determined by domestic political factors (environmental movements, government positions, veto player functions) and international factors (EU membership, diffusion). The analysis is much less successful in explaining international environmental institutionalization. The most robust results of the analysis clearly contradict the findings of earlier studies in this field. International integration does not seem to be a driving force for international participation in environmental treaties among OECD countries. While the paper can answer a great deal of open questions concerning domestic environmental institutionalization, further research is needed in order to explain international environmental institutionalization and why some OECD countries participate in international treaties more often than others. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central question of this paper is whether and how the new EU chemicals Regulation REACH could play a role in international chemicals governance. The REACH Regulation is one of the largest and most controversial pieces of legislation that the EU has ever adopted. It introduces a comprehensive and ambitious system for chemicals management, which moves away from a hazard-based approach to a risk-based approach. The introduction of an element of increased responsibility for private actors to provide information about specific properties of chemicals, to ensure that this information is used to assess possible risks and to ensure that the risks are appropriately managed are expected to lead to more anticipatory approach to chemicals management. Moreover, the application of the same registration, evaluation and authorisation requirements for all, existing and new, chemicals and the substitution obligation where possible, are expected to provide incentives for increased innovation activities.This paper first introduces the main features of the REACH Regulation. Then it describes the international system of chemicals governance before discussing the contribution that REACH could make to this system. In the subsequent section, the different ways in which REACH requirements could diffuse to other jurisdictions and benefit international governance are analysed. These conceptual considerations are then applied to the US and California in a brief discussion of first signs of the potential influence of REACH. Since the REACH Regulation only entered into force on 1 June 2007 and will only be fully implemented by 2016, the full international impact of REACH will only become clear at a future point in time. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I present a new model for relations between the EU and its neighbours. I argue that, against the background of the growing challenges of the European Neighbourhood Space, there is a need to think about a new model for the relations between the Neighbourhood Partner States and the EU. The model should enable a significant upgrade of the political and security relations, as well as those in the economic, research, cultural and social/human fields. The paper departs from the assumption that, the time has come to implement the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) principles and ideas and to accelerate the discussions on the development of a new strategic model. Drawing on the ENP experience, the Barcelona Process and the new Eastern Partnership initiative, this paper proposes the creation of what it calls the "Advanced Partnership" (AdP) Model. The paper exposes and analyses this new model, and further discusses common tools needed to confront political, social and security challenges in the European Neighbourhood Space. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will address the allied occupation of Japan from 1945-1952 as a public policy issue. It articulatesand explores the general concept of institutional continuity during an occupation; more precisely, this paper will look at resiliency in terms of the prewar political authority of the bureaucracy. At its most basic, an important pre-surrender institution—the Japanese bureaucracy—can endure and resist substantive change during a system altering transformative period: Bureaucratic resilience during an occupation. One would expect that a celebrated democratization process that began with a military occupation would be peopled with those who seek to dramatically alter a variety of institutions; instead, one discovers a more accurate blend of continuity and change—hence, the challenge. At the most general level, I am identifying instances where institutional continuity can be recognized and then observing this condition and offering the implication for budding democracy. Specifically, with a finer focus on Occupation-era Japanese bureaucracy, this paper will first introduce this concept of resiliency. This introduction is followed by short discussion of the concept resiliency in relation to the Japanese bureaucracy; then, it presents them in relation to the following four topics: It maps the landmarks of (1) the purge process in Japan, (2) the enduring and problematic role of the Emperor, (3) the secretive crafting of the postwar constitution that celebrates democracy and curbs Japan's military, and (4) the role of Japanese bureaucratic reforms in the construction of postwar political power. Goal: To understand Japan during this uncertain times, the resiliency of institutions. Use of secondary sources &archival material. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to understand and empirically analyse the neo-conservative project and its influence on US foreign policy and its 'new imperial' turn. The nature, evolution, and long-term implications of the post-9/11 shift in US foreign policy are addressed from a perspective stressing the interplay between structure and agency, and, crucially, incorporating an ideological dimension. With the help of Social Network Analysis a neo-conservative (two-mode) network is identified starting from affiliation with the neo-conservative advocacy group Project for A New American Century. On the basis of both qualitative and quantitative (yet relational) data it is analysed how this multileveled network, spanning the private institutional, governmental, and corporate/financial level, has influenced US post-9/11 foreign policy, with a focus on grand strategy and the global 'War on Terror'. Taking a transnational political economy perspective as a point of departure it is analysed to what extent this neo-conservative project can interpreted as a 'hegemonic project' understood as containing: a political formula and a geopolitical strategy and how this is related to the reigning (neoliberal) accumulation strategy. In this respect it is also explored to what extent and how the neo-conservative project can be related to the neo-liberal project and how it differs from, or implies a transformation of the neoliberal project. The paper ends with a theoretical reflection on how to interpret the empirical findings with respect to some key questions concerning the the dialectical relationship between the interstate system on the one hand and global capitalism on the other. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to problematize and expand upon the concept of “order” in international relations by considering the contingent relationship between historical meaning and agency in international society. It argues that the concept of order, commonly understood as a certain set or pattern of relations specific to the “goals of social life” (Bull, 1977) in world politics, remains under-theorized. Neither the conventional conceptualizations of order as a set of enforceable norms and standards, nor the more reflexive and critical meditations on the centrality of “social forces” and global power configurations, it is argued, adequately explain the very subjective and normative foundations of any particular order in world politics. This glaring oversight is in large part due to the lack of engagement with the varied contours of historical meaning and memory that condition human thoughts and relations in world politics. In other words, order is very much implicated in the problem of public imagination which arises from the conflicting and often exclusionary cultural narratives that remain the perennial facts of human society. By neglecting the public understanding of international history, therefore, both conventional and critical conceptions of order not only perpetuate longstanding cultural divisions, but also represent the failure of international theory to address questions of historical meaning that in turn lead to an interpretive vacuum at the level of states and individuals. By looking at the contingent, yet ever-present, interpretations of historical meaning and memory, this paper aims to formulate an alternative conception of order rooted in the problem of public imagination. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to explore the way in which the UK has formulated its policy on enforced disappearance between 1976 and 1980. This period encompasses the Dirty Wars in Chile and Argentina, the prelude to the UK conflict with Argentina over the Falkland Islands and the formation of the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearance, the first thematic mechanism of its kind. This was a period of contrast for UK foreign policy; in terms of responses to so called 'dirty war' at the UN and mission level. The primary material for this paper is derived from interviews with foreign policy thinkers and influencers during this period and recently released archival material. This paper seeks to shed light on the formulation process behind these policies. It will look at the way in which external actors influence foreign policy, question the role of organizational priorities in affecting the policy product and examine the dialectical relationship between human rights and national interest. In exploring this relationship, the paper seeks to bridge foreign policy analysis and human rights. More broadly the paper seeks to explicate the linkages between disappearance and other extra-judicial activities, shedding light on the under explored phenomena of Dirty War. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the definition of social resilience and its relationship to national security. In sum, social resilience refers to the ability of a nation-state to preserve the cohesion of its society when it is confronted by external and internal stresses caused by socio-political change and/or violent disturbances such as a terrorist attack. Unaddressed or confronted ineffectively, socio-political upheavals can swiftly undermine the social fabric of the state, resulting in social dislocations that may ultimately result in state collapse. The implications for the state’s national security are obvious. A weak state is prey to external military threats. More broadly, severe social disruptions, in themselves, can also be defined as constituting threats to the national interest. Given the repercussions, governments have recognized the importance of advancing social resilience. The paper surveys and reflects upon the manner in which different states have recognized and deployed the concept to advance their national security. It concludes by analyzing the implications of social resilience for national security. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the current state of historical and historiographical practice in the sub-discipline of international history by the lights of the thinking of Hayden White, the American literary critic and historical theorist who will celebrate his 80th birthday in 2008. It has often been observed that White occupies a somewhat paradoxical position within the discipline of history, lauded by the theoretically ‘initiated’ as an influential visionary and yet ignored in practice by the vast majority of mainstream practitioners. This situation certainly pertains in the case of international history, and the paper will argue that this is regrettable not only for White but for the sub-discipline.The paper will begin by offering a rendering of the key elements in White’s narrativist thinking. Taking a cue from his recent injunction that our prime concern should be ‘to consider the political and ethical implications of different modes of interpreting history’, it then proceeds to analyse the current lineaments of mainstream practice in the sub-discipline, with particular reference to the role attributed to ‘politics’ and ‘ideology’ in historiographical discourse. It observes that international historians generally remain in thrall to attenuated conceptions of the political, and to binarised understandings of subjectivity/objectivity. The paper will conclude by suggesting the potential benefits for the sub-discipline of attending to White. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explains the transformation of Russian foreign policy concerning the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) by focusing on key decision makers’ conception of the Russian national interest in this policy area. The ECT is a multilateral, intergovernmental legal agreement governing the international exchange of energy. It is the largest and most important legal instrument governing international energy markets.Based on the analysis of key actors’ statements made during January, 2000 to December, 2003, the paper argues that the policy change cannot be explained by structural realism, theories of democracy, leadership, or culture. Instead, the paper argues that Russian policy changed because of a transformation in decision makers’ conception of the national interest. The national interest changed due to a conjuncture of three processes: 1) the production of new knowledge by opponents of the ECT and especially Gazprom, 2) the appointment of a close associate of President Putin to the head of Gazprom which created an effective lobbyist against the ECT , and 3) policy events produced by the EU that became discursive resources for opponents to argue effectively against the ECT. The contributions of this paper are three-fold. The transformation of ECT policy presents a “critical case” that adjudicates between structural realism and constructivism. It also elaborates the theoretical mechanism by which ideas change. Finally, it points to an important transformation in the architecture of the international system, to a contest over the structure of international energy markets, and to the erosion of the hegemony of neo-liberal thinking in Russia. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the origin of the collection of processes, organizations and international structures which today make up the International Humanitarian system. It pays particular attention to its development from the mid 19th centaury onwards, tracing both state and non-state actions. It builds a model of humanitarian action which hypothesizes that its origins lie in three very different agendas: An agenda of containment and security, an agenda of compassion and an agenda of radical change. The present state of international humanitarian action is examined against this analysis and found lacking. Drawing on field work from Sudan, Afghanistan and Iraq the paper argues that humanitarian action has become significantly, maybe fatally, entwined with the political agenda of the Northern metropolitan states. The paper goes on to suggest actions which humanitarian agencies and their financial backers could take to render the humanitarian system more fit for its future challenges. This paper seeks to move us towards a deeper understanding of this complex concept, and in particular of its evolution and diffusion by exploring the ‘globalization’ of humanitarianism. It examines the extent to which humanitarianism should be understood as a globalized concept, interrogating three dimensions of this globalization: those of moral community, of practices, and of norms. It argues that while in several respects humanitarianism can be understood as a globalized concept, this ‘globalization’ is constrained and contested in significant ways at both conceptual level and at the level of practice. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the nature and character of international economic institutions by focusing on the World Trade Organization (WTO) within the context of the proposal for a multilateral competition policy at the WTO. Given the fact that the European Union and, to a lesser extent, the United States, are the principal supporters of this proposal and that the developing countries have displayed a near-unanimous opposition to it, the paper asks whether the WTO (a) displays the status of an autonomous entity, (b) merely reflects the interests of a hegemon, or (c) follows a logic of collective action among the member-states for providing a public good. To answer these questions, the paper combines theoretical insights from neoliberal institutionalism, public goods theory, international trade theory, and competition theory. After examining these three questions separately, the paper employs a combined multidisciplinary approach that produces an integrated understanding of international economic institutions and cooperation. The paper argues that a combination of historical factors, policy imperatives, interest-group politics, and economic policy linkages explains the developments surrounding the proposed multilateral competition policy at the WTO. Methodologically, the research combines historical analysis with a utility-maximizing model based on the assumption of rational agents. In adopting a multidisciplinary theoretical approach, this paper attempts to bridge existing divides in the international political economy literature relating to international economic institutions and their operations. The findings of this paper aim to advance existing institutionalist theories in the field of international relations while informing us of the political economy of international cooperation at international economic institutions. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the manner in which the human security discourse enables a dual exercise of sovereign power and biopower. Drawing from the work of Michel Foucault and Giorgio Agamben, the paper argues that human security contributes to this dual exercise by conceptualizing a form of life rendered amenable to biopolitical technologies and rationalities while simultaneously defining the conditions of exceptionality which assist in sovereign power's ability to authorize international interventions meant to secure human life. This frame of reference is then mobilized to read the human security discourse within the broader developments of the concept of security from the immediate postwar period to the post 9-11 moment. It is argued that the human security discourse informs the current biopolitical networks of world order and often works in conjunction with - rather than against - the global exercise of sovereign power made evident by the war on terror. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper directly questions the ways in which International Relations, as a discipline, engages with its objects/subjects. Framed around a discussion of how IR can engage with images produced by individuals in detention awaiting deportation in Toronto, Ontario, I ask how an aesthetic understanding can add to ways in which IR understands our world, and the borders that exist within it. Theoretically, this paper is a discussion of the disciplinary rigors of IR, assessing what contributions critical theory has made to broadening its scope and depth. I tie this theoretical discussion to actual artifacts, asking how IR can understand them as artifacts of IR. Beginning with subjects that are easily understood in traditional IR, migrants, I discuss how border crossings create relationships amongst individuals, states and organizations in complex patterns that contribute to globalization. I then focus on artwork produced by a particular group of migrants, asking how an aesthetic understanding of such pieces can contribute to our understanding of the migration experience and consequence. I engage with the politics of recognition and of difference, and examine the ways in which traditional IR silences certain narratives, asking if an aesthetic approach can begin to break down these silences, creating different opportunities for voice(s). Finally, I assess the ethical demands of research in IR such an approach demands, and challenge the discipline to develop an approach that is not a one-way study of accessible subjects whose voice we (may) appropriate, but instead a two-way conversation that celebrates rather than quells difference. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the emerging debate about the use of precautionary thinking and the Precautionary Principle (PP) in the development of foreign policy, especially but not only in the US, in light of the unpredictability and potentially catastrophic outcome of trans-national terrorist activity. The PP is used internationally to aid decision-making in the environmental and public health arenas in particular. The PP is often portrayed simplistically as a “better safe than sorry” way of dealing with risk, but in fact offers a much more sophisticated account than that. As Jordan and O’Riordan have noted, it ‘assumes that science cannot always provide the insights needed to protect the environment effectively, and that undesirable effects may result if measures are taken only when science does provide such insights’. The PP entails a willingness to take action in advance of hard evidence of proof, and there is openness and honesty about uncomfortable data. As Adams reminds us, this approach ‘is about making decisions in the presence of uncertainty and before there is “sufficient scientific evidence”’. Versions of precautionary logic have informed Pentagon thinking since the Presidency of George H. W. Bush, becoming closely associated with neo-conservative defence intellectuals. George W. Bush’s West Point address of June 2002 and the 2002 US National Security Strategy offered powerful arguments in favour of such an approach and embedded the idea of ‘pre-emptive’ war in US policy in the ‘war on terror’ on the basis of recognisably precautionary logics. Echoes of these arguments are also heard in UK policy statements and speeches.The paper will critically examine the extent to which the Precautionary Principle is being transferred to the foreign policy arena in this way, whether this represents a defensible interpretation of the PP as a risk management mechanism and whether or not it is a viable way addressing effectively the risks identified by the rhetoric of the ‘war on terror’, assessing the success of the effort to transfer the PP into a new arena of governance and risk. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is twofold. Firstly it seeks to address the burgeoning literature developing on discourse analysis within the discipline of IR (Doty, 1996, Larsen, 1997, 1999, Milliken 1999, Fierke 1998, Campbell 1998, Hansen 2006). In particular, I turn to the relevance of this approach for conceptualising traditional agent-structure and self-other relations as dialectical. Theorising the relationship between identity and recognition will thus become imperative throughout the paper. Taking these finding as a starting point, the second section moves to outline patterns of continuity and change systematically introduced into the Bush administration’s foreign policy discourse since September 2001. Essentially I maintain that the democratic language constructed therein has created a legitimacy crisis for the US by exposing a glaring gap between its words and deeds. Using discourse analysis as a tool, the analysis offers an alternative angle from which to explain and understand the tension created by such inconsistencies. Harnessing this approach, moreover, provides a lens to observe how these variations have opened up the space for alternative interpretations of current US foreign policy objectives. In sum, I seek to illustrate how the concept of democracy has changed from a widely accepted term into a paradox that the Bush administration has had to defend within its ambitious foreign policy goals. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to examine Japan’s relations with North Korea which have been deadlocked for a long time. Former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi made a visit to Pyongyang in September 2002 and held a summit meeting with Chairman Kim Jong-Il, and signed the “Japan-DPRK Pyongyang Declaration”. Since then Japan has made a continuous effort to normalize diplomatic relations with North Korea. It is Japan’s desire to put the abduction issue, the nuclear and security issue, and the normalization issue on the same table and solve all these problems in a comprehensive manner. To North Korea, on the other hand, the normalization issue is the top priority, as they demand a full apology and adequate compensation for Japan’s colonial past. Meanwhile, North Korea’s repeated nuclear testing and launching of missiles over the Sea of Japan has dampened the negotiating process. The Six-Party Talks intended to halt North Korea’s nuclear development are coming to a stalemate. Furthermore, U.S. economic sanctions and North Korea’s efforts to retrieve money once frozen in a Macau bank have complicated the whole situation.This paper will, first, examine differences in priorities in foreign policy between Japan and North Korea. Second, the paper will focus on the reasons why the Six-Party Talks are not making the progress expected toward North Korea’s denuclearization. Third, the conflicting interests and differences among the five countries toward North Korea will be analyzed. Finally, different alternatives regarding the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and North Korea will be considered. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]