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There has been a change in international politics since the 2008 financial crisis, thanks to a greater spread of economic resources and military capabilities. For many, it is a radical transformation that could spell the end of US hegemony in Latin America. This paper examines the proposition, beginning with a review of the concept of hegemony, which rather than being viewed as a structural characteristic is conceived of here as a "nuanced hegemony", in other words a network of asymmetric and hierarchical relations. We can observe not just one transformation then, but the emergence of a hemispheric context that could be described as "differentiated hegemony". The United States still occupies a central position, but its foreign policy is marked by subregional fragmentation and the externalisation of electoral priorities. The paper explores the effects at subregional level, focusing on the opportunities and challenges it presents to Latin American countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses Latin America's role in an international system in flux, with high levels of uncertainty and transformations that signal a shift in the geoeconomic and geopolitical landscape across the world. Against this backdrop, the paper examines the challenges (both old and new) the region must face, focusing on the impact of global changes on regional dynamics and the capacity of the different countries to find answers both to the international situation and old and new internal problems. In addition, as an introductory paper to this monograph entitled "Geopolitics from Latin America: a change of cycle and multipolarity", it identifies the fulcrums of these changes, their impact, the main actors involved and the processes underway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the European Union (EU) response to three conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa region and shines a spotlight on the degree of division among its member states and on the management of these divisions. It concludes that the EU's desire to be seen as an international actor varies according to the confrontation; it is stronger in the Arab-Israeli conflict, but weaker in the Sahara. Domestic protest and politicisation in the EU affect the fragmentation of positions and the frequency of obstructionist stances. The EU manages the divisions differently in each conflict, with strategies that vary according to the level of ambition or the desire to ensure the sides note the existence of a European position. The paper highlights the growing interaction between the different regional flashpoints and makes the case for a systemic and multilevel approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the ties between Latin America and Asia by moving beyond the homogenisation of the two regions through elevating the importance of opposition to a third party, in this case an "imperialist" and developed North. In contrast to normative analyses based on outmoded conceptions of world history, it proposes an intellectual exercise that problematises the interregional bond by placing the emphasis on heterogeneities rather than broad bush approaches that ignore the complex and diverse national and regional realities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The international system is in a period of transition, marked by a weakening of multilateralism, challenges to the liberal order and the consolidation of new global leaderships. In addition, various cross-border crises, like the COVID-19 pandemic, have compounded the effects of these changes at a regional level. Given this context, what room is there for regional cooperation in Latin America? As a tool for regional coordination and integration into international flows and dynamics, regionalism can boast achievements, but challenges remain. In analytical terms, this paper proposes an approach that enables an examination of the combination of interests, ideas and institutions at play on a regional level in Latin America. The central argument is that the changing dynamics of regionalism are a product of the way in which states' interests interact with ideas about the region in a specific institutional environment over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a world of growing international competition and rivalry between China and the United States, Latin America and the European Union (EU) are caught in the same thorny dilemma. Positioned between these global giants, both regions are facing a retorn to a Westphalian system of nation-states, which undermines their roles as emerging regional players. In view of these new global challenges in Latin America and the EU, this paper uses a qualitative and comparative approach to explore foreign policy discourses on autonomy in both regions. It examines their goals and priorities and assesses the potential regional and interregional consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There have been several overlapping crises in North Africa in recent decades. The social contract is in crisis, and this became clear during the antiauthoritarian uprisings of 2011 and 2019. In addition, the region is locked in a socioeconomic crisis that deepened after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and has been aggravated by the global impacts of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This paper underscores the need to reflect on the legitimation of the North African elites in this context, looking at the connection between the domestic and international spheres. It also presents various legitimation strategies that take in the interaction between the domestic and external spaces. This approach seeks to enrich the debate on the relationship between authoritarianism, its legitimation and the international dimension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is democracy's place in the shifting international order? There is a fear that a more geopolitical order will only aggravate the general crisis of democracy; or that a more plural order will dilute the efforts to defend the rules governing it. Yet, while recent political and normative trends corroborate this concern, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has in some ways given greater prominence to the defence of democratic values around the world. This paper explores the impact that geopolitical tensions and shifting international order on global democracy. And in the context of the crisis of meaning affecting democracies, it examines whether Russia's war in Ukraine has served both as a catalyst of the international dimensions of support for democracy and as a factor magnifying its fragility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The liberal international order established after the end of the Cold War is currently an order in transition. The shift in material power - following the rise of China - is necessary to understanding the changes in the international order, but it is not the whole story. We are seeing both material and ideational changes. The present moment is one of rules under challenge. But the normative contestation the international order is facing is not just about the rivalry between China and the United States or the tired description of "the rest against the West"; its parameters are more complex and diverse. To demonstrate that, this paper looks at three very different issues on the international agenda: a) governance of the Internet, b) sexual and reproductive rights and c) migration management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the introduction to the 40th anniversary issue of Revista CIDOB d'Afers Internacionals, this paper looks at developments in international relations over the last four decades, alongside the publication's content and against the backdrop of the current crisis of the international order (or disorder). It spans the end of the Cold War and the faith deposited in globalisation and liberal democracy in the unipolar world of the mid-1990s, taking in the spread of the values and ideas of global governance at the end of the last century, before arriving at the growing multipolarity, rivalry between China and the United States and the challenge to the liberal order and permacrisis of recent years. Special mention is made of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's war in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2014 and Russia's annexation of Crimea and the start of hostilities in Donbass, the West has shown unprecedented solidarity in imposing sanctions on Russia. Yet Asia-Pacific's response to the Ukraine crisis has been different. While Japan and New Zealand imposed symbolic sanctions, South Korea refrained from introducing any measures at all. The main objective of this paper is to explore the response of the Asia-Pacific region to the Ukrainian crisis and the underlying motivations behind these stances. From a perspective of sanctions coordination and alliance behaviour theory, this paper examines the interaction between domestic and international factors when states decide whether (or not) to join international sanctions coalitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the effects on Belarus of European Union (EU) sanctions against Russia, on the one hand, and Russian sanctions on Ukrainian and EU goods, on the other. International sanctions opened up new political and economic opportunities that the Belarusian authorities sought to capitalise on. But Minsk's attempts to swim between two waters (retaining the benefits Moscow offered while improving relations with the EU) have backfired and distrust towards Minsk has grown in Moscow, Brussels and Kiev. A theoretical approach is made to the foreign policy of small states, before this paper shows how Belarus has been harmed by its attempts to take advantage of EU and Russian sanctions regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ostensibly, Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential elections should have placed United States international policy back on a familiar path. However, despite the prevalence of a highly traditional vision of US foreign policy, the Biden administration has maintained significant continuities with the previous administration, as reflected in the policy towards China and the withdrawal from Afghanistan. In part, this is due to the constraints produced by the deep divisions that exist at domestic level. This paper aims to unravel the fundamental elements of Biden's foreign policy, focusing on possible ideological and doctrinal elements, strategic priorities, and any continuities and changes relative to his predecessor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the relations between the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and China from a historical perspective. To do this it addresses the genesis and content of DAC's "altruistic paradigm" and China's "realist paradigm", highlighting their differences. It also analyses DAC's efforts and failure to co-opt China into the effective aid agenda: while China refuses to become a donor - citing its Southern identity - the DAC is resistant to recognising China as a co-operator with different responsibilities. The paper goes on to illustrate how, in order to survive "unfair competition", the DAC incorporates elements from China and the South into its narrative and cooperation practices. Lastly, China's move towards a more assertive foreign policy is explored along with the dynamic of relations between the DAC and China - between competition and convergence - in an uncertain international context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to describe the historical evolution of the cooperation between the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) and Mexico following the signing of their cooperation agreement in August 1975, which remained in effect until COMECON'S demise in 1991. To this end, a brief analysis is made of the antecedents of this international body, which was created within the so-called socialist bloc, and a review is conducted of the body's conception of international cooperation. After covering the historical context behind the mentioned agreement's negotiation, its legal framework, context and scope are reviewed. This paper thereby seeks to contribute to the historical memory of cooperation policy and its international regime, with particular reference to COMECON and Mexico in the period known as the Cold War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trilateral South-South Cooperation (TSSC) for development has generated great debate over whether these alliances constitute a new paradigm for development or merely disguise a new form of imperialism. Beyond categorisations, this paper presents a more nuanced image and examines the focus of TSSC solidarity, specifically, the intrinsically political nature of development and the unequal power relations at its heart. Starting with the TSSC memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Brazil, Mozambique and the World Bank, the narratives are analysed of agricultural development and the social imaginaries that support it in order to better understand the patterns and motivations of solidarity. By showing the colonial, capitalist and patriarchal rationale that persists in the conception of solidarity used in the current development framework, this paper proposes the decolonisation of this concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this introductory paper is to contextualise, via a historiographical reflection, the nine papers selected for this special edition of Revista CIDOB d'Afers Internacionals, which focuses on "using past international cooperation to rethink development", prioritising "alternative critical approaches". As the historical perspective is missing from most publications in this shared field of Development Studies and International Relations, this introduction presents original works - for their empirical, comparative and/or theoretical contribution - in contrast to the prevailing interpretative frameworks (interdependentist from International Relations, and problem-solving from Development Studies), giving a voice to authors and problems from the countries of the South both as aid recipients and as cooperation providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the second decade of the 21st century, Mercosur is faced with two potentially influential politico-normative proposals: the EU's and China's. This paper analyses the content and scope of these two politico-normative approaches, as well as their respective impacts on the regional bloc in the context of domestic changes in the governments of Argentina and Brazil. The paper states that Mercosur has produced two external strategies: interregional with the EU and bilateral with China. There are structural limitations to this strategy as well as some that relate to Mercosur's domestic policies, but it contains the foundations for the bloc's normative convergence with these extraregional actors and ultimately a positive-sum game. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2008 crisis marked the end of globalisation as a historical phase and hegemonic order. The end of the commodities cycle, an expression of that change in Latin America, is the context for the rise of new neo-patriotic far-right forces - nationalist, sovereigntist movements deploying distinctly anti-globalist rhetoric. Global and national structural and agency factors are examined and the paper begins with the rise of Latin American neo-patriotic right-wing movements. Analysing their foreign policy and international integration matrices shows that common elements include alignment with the United States and the contestation of multilateralism and regional institutions and norms. Finally, consideration is given to the extent to which the rise of new Latin American rightwing movements form part of a global trend or cycle of contesting the liberal international order and globalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International sanctions return Iran to the centre of the international debate. President Donald Trump's interest in implementing new economic, political and military sanctions against the country is forcing European executives to redefine their regional strategy, just when they had resumed fluid trade and diplomatic relations with Tehran. This paper analyses Iran's relations with some EU members, especially France, Germany and the United Kingdom, and examines the European response in 2006 and the positions taken in the current context. It also studies the effects of past sanctions on Iranian-European bilateral relations. The research goes on to address the different European positions on the decision to impose new sanctions and discusses their possible consequences for Iran and third countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of development cooperation is said to lie outside the core of the international relations (IR) discipline. However, academic production on this subject is abundant. This paper carries out a systematic ordering of the most relevant literature by analysing the evolution of its debates (differences, coexistence, separation and combination of different theoretical perspectives). This journey allows us to observe how the transformations in the international order and the theoretical evolution of the discipline established four axes of debate: a) the nature of foreign aid; b) the methods of studying aid policies; c) the deep forces behind aid policies; and d) the ways of understanding aid and development. Given the current divide in the subfield between rationalists and reflectivists, the need is postulated for theoretical dialogue, methodological robustness and a greater emphasis on research on the Global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sanctions are presented as a form of international punishment that not only stigmatises the target, but creates a hierarchy between those who impose punishment and those punished. Such practices go against the principle of sovereign equality and contradict the horizontal structure of the international system. Drawing on the literature on stigma management and resentment, this paper argues that when states react to sanctions, they respond not only to the imposition of stigma, but also to the inferior position in which they are placed. Targets may resent the position of authority adopted by the sanctioners. This may in turn motivate them to contest the status quo upon which sanctioners justify their authority, thereby reasserting the norms and corresponding practices they believe should be prioritized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores mandatory due diligence schemes in supply chains as conflict prevention tools in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Drawing on reports and fieldwork, it argues that their impact on violence in the region has been ambiguous. One reason for these mechanisms' shortcomings is that they address the role minerals play in this conflict from the perspective of "conflict resources" and "resource conflicts". Giving consideration to the "resource curse" would help address how the militarisation of competition between elites and weak state institutions make minerals factors of conflict. In practice, this would mean recognising that international measures against transnational money laundering and illicit capital flows are vital to tackling the link between minerals and conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines secondary sanctions as part of the triangular relations between the United States, the European Union and Cuba. The analysis - built on Dittmer's (1981) strategic triangle theory and Womack's (2016) studies of asymmetric relationships - questions the evaluation of sanctions carried out by the US Departments of State, Commerce and the Treasury, noting that, by prioritising the impact on the target's economy, the evaluation ignores other fundamental effects of the sanctions in terms of triangular relations with allies and alternative powers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subnational governments entering the international arena through lobbying may be a turning point in global governance, but numerous challenges remain at regional level. This paper charts a municipal geography of the planet that is strongly conditioned by its capacity to respond to the dynamics of urbanisation and rural depopulation, and reflects on the need to structure more representative, supportive regional governance. With the global implementation of the 2030 Agenda focussing on the ability of local governments to institutionalise the "right to the city" and "leave no one behind", the regional level becomes the ground in which territorial intermediation can help germinate the right to "leave no municipality behind". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The friction that has occurred - and continues to occur - at some of the European Union's internal borders is a reflection of mechanisms for the delegation and transfer of immigration control between member states. This paper addresses these dynamics - defined as "internal externalisation" - through a comparative analysis of the specific management and legal regulation of France's border with Spain and Italy. These two borders are similar in many respects (being two mountain ranges) but are, at the same time, very different (in the geographical intensity of the controls and types of crossings). Comparing them could reveal the border control mechanisms that characterise the subordinate relationships between member states, and which represent true externalisation of the EU's internal borders. Some states are forced to take on the role of containment states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sectarian readings explain the conflicts in the Middle East through religious variables. This paper criticises their reproduction in Latin American international relations, which draw on the epistemological and ontological assumptions of hegemonic/Western approaches to international relations. This is not inconsequential, as it constitutes an identity politics that simultaneously constructs Western identity and reaffirms and perpetuates prejudices that "other" the Middle East. From Latin America, such readings form part of peripheral Orientalism and produce subjectivity effects that distance the Latin American region from the Global South, as well as consolidating their marginal position in global power relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking the answers of over fifty Latin American scholars to a survey as its foundation, this paper analyses the features of the global and Latin American context and presents some of the potential areas for its development over the coming decade. To do this, the number of poles in the system is considered along with the logics of cooperation and competition that predominate in the relations between countries. In addition, an analysis is made of how different countries define a 'region' in their foreign policy, and the reasons behind Brazil losing its leadership position and Mexico's potential role in the region are set out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses and compares the roles of the Comfort Women Justice Coalition (CWJC) in the United States and Justice for Comfort Women UK (JCW) during the cycle of protests unleashed by the transnational 'comfort women' advocacy network between December 28th 2015 and September 30th 2016. The central hypothesis of the work is that the emergence of diasporic activism ' in this case in defence of 'comfort women' ' does not constitute an isomorphic pattern of activism from abroad nor of linkage with the dominant actors in the transnational network. By combining classic discussions of movements and social networks with recent contributions on political activism in the diaspora, a qualitative case study is presented based on institutional material and semi-structured interviews with members of the JCW and the CWJC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Trump administration's foreign policy has generated significant debates in the field of US foreign policy studies. Using a methodology based on theoretical elements such as neoclassical realism and Foreign Policy Analysis, this paper seeks to unravel the foundations of his administration's foreign policy in areas like decision-making processes, doctrinal and ideological bases and the ruptures and continuities with his predecessor's foreign policy. The conclusions provide a more nuanced view of the foreign policy of a US president inspired by different theoretical sources with more continuities with his predecessor than most authors admit, but conditioned by a dysfunctional decision- making process and the lack of strategy in the medium and long term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South-South cooperation between Brazil, Chile and Venezuela and developing country partners in Africa, Asia and the Middle East showed great dynamism from 2000 to 2010. This paper questions the specificity of the activities carried out by these three countries. Taking the studies of sociologist Marcel Mauss on donation as a starting point, it observes that these actors see their cooperative action as self-interested, which should come as no surprise from an anthropological perspective. So, although South- South cooperation is symbolised by three ideals (horizontality, reciprocity and equality), the three countries differentiate the content of projects according to the recipient country. Though nuances exist, generally reciprocity is respected only to a degree with emerging partners and not at all with other developing countries. Such practices contradict the original conception of South-South cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a methodological framework for a critical analysis of EU-funded development cooperation policies towards the Central American region between 2007 and 2013. The aim is to identify certain recurring elements that allow the systematisation of the main imbalances of these transnational public policies to be advanced. It also seeks to contribute to understanding the complexity of implementing policies, such as those on international cooperation, in a diffuse global governance scenario in which legal and institutional frameworks are still weak - not to say non-existent - and collective action is complex and multilevel. It can help us understand why these policies have been ineffective in their attempt to compensate the losers of globalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Official Development Assistance (ODA) received a new boost at the start of the 21st century, but this did not translate into a meaningful decrease in poverty and inequality on the periphery. In Latin America, under the leadership of governments called progressive or post-neoliberal, significant advances were observed to this effect, with the Movement for Socialism (MAS) in Bolivia paradigmatic in terms of socioeconomic development and the political and cultural inclusion achieved. Beginning with a critique of US ODA to Latin America, and considering the case of Bolivia, this paper seeks to open up potential ways of underpinning a theoretical line in the political praxis of development that maintains a positive sense of this notion, and which is at the same time able to break with the neoliberal perspective and dispute the scepticism of post-structuralist radicalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After the Second World War, Japan began paying war reparations and instituted a strategy of international positioning - based on international cooperation activities - that aimed to ensure the supply of natural resources to its production and trade. Economic security became the target of Japanese cooperation. Japan soon became a major donor, whose strategy has been permeated by its interests. Taking a critical perspective, this paper analyses the evolution of the Japanese cooperation strategy, in particular the changes promoted by the prime minister, Shinzo Abe. Its starting point is a review of the stages of Japanese cooperation (emphasising the outside interference the country has had to respond to), the underpinning of which has shifted from the principle of economic security via the principle of human security to its present greater focus on strategic security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of the war between Ukraine and Russia in the Donbass and the earlier crisis over Crimea, this paper examines four speeches by Vladimir Putin to identify and map populist elements in his discursive and formal strategies of justifying and creating a specific form of conflict. The analysis shows how this populism goes beyond the people/establishment dichotomy and is based on complex notions of enmity and alliance, a very broad definition of the Russian nation, a new division of the political space, and the introduction of new symbols of unity and the reaffirmation of old ones beyond the borders of today's Russia. This casts a new shadow over Russian foreign policy in the post-Soviet space. Clarity is sought on questions about the Ukrainian conflict, but it is also hoped new elements will be brought to the existing literature on populism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the features of the emerging donors in Africa and the challenges they face. The case study explores how Brazil positioned itself as a development partner in Africa by focusing on Ghana, a country often described as a "donor darling". Based on qualitative research on the bilateral relationship since the turn of century, the study describes a range of difficulties Brazil encounters in the competition with other aid providers. Faced with the financial advantages of both China and Western donors, Brazil established its cooperation within the niche of agricultural programmes. However, the normative and technical stance of this approach was unable to bridge divergent expectations and Brazil ultimately refocused its Africa engagement to its competitive advantage in Portuguese-speaking Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A little more than a decade and a half into the "Asian century", the epicentre of the global economy has moved from the North Atlantic towards East Asia at an unprecedented pace. As a correlate, China's growing expansion at global level has been gradually undermining the position of leading regional powers such as Brazil and South Africa. The displacement of their investments and the consequent loss of their regional markets, added to the growth of other medium-sized regional powers through stronger links with Beijing, have damaged both countries prospects of regional leadership. From this perspective, in contrast to the abundant literature depicting China as a great opportunity for Brazil and South Africa, this paper warns that both countries' regional importance has been diminished in favour of China, which calls the usefulness of the BRICS concept into question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the border shared by Peru, Colombia and Brazil has become an enclave of drug production and trafficking for the international markets. It is a territory whose control is disputed by non-state actors and where state security forces suffer from severe material and transport limitations. This paper takes an ethnographic approach to explain the limitations of border security and the institutional challenges of controlling drug and wood trafficking in this context. It places the ideas of reproduction and social change at the centre of the discussion on drugs and borders, as key ways of thinking about the dynamics of growing and processing coca-derived drugs in the global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses Kazakhstan's vision of long-term development and its ambitious goals. After revising the history of the infrastructure projects in the country during the tsarist period and the Soviet era, it sets out the plans of the Kazakh president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, to turn the country into a logistical hub between East and West by 2050. Later, the paper puts Nazarbayev's vision in the context of the political and economic reality of Kazakhstan, focussing, specifically, on how the government's multivector foreign policy fluctuates between Russia's regional integration projects and the Chinese push westwards to develop Xinjiang province along the new Silk Road. As a conclusion, it identifies the multiple goals that may put the future of this plan in doubt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article will analyse factors which, since the end of last century, have made interregional relations very important to understand the world geopolitical and economic order. Interregional relations are defined as those which pertain to relations between regions or between a given state and a given region, or within a megaregion. This evolution results from: the growing demand in the emerging economies and the interaction among them, a new framework of interregional economic relations, and the development of new commercial channels. Finally, this paper will introduce the different articled included in this issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents abstracts of papers related to human security. They include "The Concept and Use of Human Security: A Critical Analysis of Its Potentialities and Risks," by Karlos Pérez de Armiño, "Human Security and Japanese Foreign Policy: Context, Concept and Application," by Caterina García and "The Contribution of the Concept of Human Security to the Western Balkans," by Gemma Collantes Celador.