Search

Scientists and diplomats have significant differences in professional skills, activity time and work content, but they should work together. With the deepening impact of science and technology (S&T) on socio-economic development and international relations, S&T has become a crucial component of national strategies, particularly for diplomacy. There is a need for scientific evidence and advice, meaning that mastering more knowledge and skills in S&T would be helpful in negotiations. This paper analyses the ideas of S&T diplomacy, including a review of its 40-year history in China, its definition (with detailed connotations) and its characteristics. The paper focuses on the significant role of people-to-people communication in S&T, which may inform future work. Five suggestions are given to strengthen the strategic planning of S&T diplomacy: (1) A more clarified, strategic goal of future-oriented S&T diplomacy is required; (2) It is important to build a theoretical system for China to describe S&T diplomacy; (3) The creation of a global S&T cooperation map that adapts to the new type of international relations would be valuable; (4) Fairness and justice shall be maintained, while a reform of the global S&T governance system is promoted; (5) It is a must to adhere to bottom-line thinking and strengthen risk prediction and emergency responses. [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]

This paper seeks to answer the question what have been the main contributions of international political economy (ipe) to the historical evolution of the intellectual field of International Relations (ir) in Argentina. This inquiry is embedded within a broader question about the process of the constitution of the ir field as an autonomous academic discipline in Argentina. In order to do so, I analyze the contributions made by ipe, especially Latin American structuralism and developmentalism, as spaces of theoretical and conceptual production from which part of the thinking about the international reality has been built. The main objective of the paper revolves around reconstructing the ipe agenda and its contribution to the development of Argentine ir through the observation and analysis of the main authors and concepts, the institutions that have served as spaces of knowledge production, and finally the academic journals that have acted as platforms for the dissemination of themes and ideas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The genealogies of peoples and families developed in Europe during the modern period are prevalently studied by scholars from the perspective of the political history of ideas, with the aim of explaining the practical utility of genealogical works. These analyses do not foreground the aspect that is the focus of this paper: the fact that genealogical reconstructions are full of absurdities. They mix factual information, or information that may seem credible, with fabulous details, often false, sometimes ridiculous, in a word "incredible". This is all the more interesting since these texts were composed during the centuries in which scientific methods applied to historical research were developed. Using tools borrowed from cultural anthropology, this paper suggests an epistemological approach that takes into consideration the meaning and credibility of the genealogical materials in the still authoritative framework of the Historia Salutis, the unitary vision of human history as a fusion of the classical legacy and Biblical tradition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a profound importance with regard to Turkey's relationship and the Western Balkan states and their societies. This paper first analyses the Western Balkans from an historical developmental point of view and see its relationship ground towards the modern Turkish state having in mind their historical, cultural, religious, political, military and economical ties. Secondly it will be analysed the Turkish state policies towards the Western Balkans region and their states and societies. In the third part of the paper it will be focusing towards the Turkish coup d'états history and the civil-military issues that rise in the Turkish political history from the very beginning of its state formation and last until today. In the fourth part I will be structuring my paper while analysing the coup d'état attempt on the 15th of July and the Gulen movement as one the most important factor for the coup launch. In the last part actually the fifth I will be focusing on the coup d'état attempt of the 15th of July and its reflection in the Western Balkans as a political and universal event that dismantled the citizen sovereignty and legitimacy in general. Moreover, Turkish political relations with the Western Balkan states will be observed and future perspectives will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper undertakes an analysis of bilateral trade linkages between Australia and Thailand over 1990 to 2011, analysing changes in trade competitiveness, and possible role played by the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA) that came into force in 2005. Trade competitiveness changes are measured by the revealed comparative advantage index (RCAI) at an aggregate and value-added level, as well as a constant market share analysis (CMS) analysis. An export-demand model utilizing interaction effects in presence of the TAFTA is then estimated, hitherto not attempted earlier in the empirical literature on Australia-Thailand trade. The findings of the paper suggest that the Thailand-Australian trade relationship has undergone further adjustment since the establishment of the TAFTA. However, the changes in trade patterns are not necessarily due to TAFTA but more of a long term trend. CMS analysis suggest that Thailand's export competitiveness significantly contributed to the remarkable growth of exports to Australia experienced over the period, and the strongest trade link between the two countries has been the export of automotive vehicles from Thailand to Australia. However, value-added RCAI reveals that Thailand's domestic industry have been contributing to its exports to a much lesser extent than as actually observed in its gross exports, and this reflects the increasing role of foreign firms and imported inputs in Thailand's machinery and transport equipment sector. The export demand model therefore finds a significant positive impact of the TAFTA only on Australian exports to Thailand, but not vice-versa. The observed statistically insignificant impact of the TAFTA on Thai exports to Australia could be due to the limited impact of the TAFTA on trade barriers in Australia, as Thai exporters already enjoyed low tariffs prior to implementation of the TAFTA. The insignificant income effect observed in presence of TAFTA confirms that the TAFTA agreement had no impact on Thailand's demand for Australian exports even while the Australian economy was growing. The results imply that Australia and Thailand's membership with the same country in three different FTAs (bilateral, regional and cross-regional) could throw up additional challenges of utilization of these agreements for actual business purposes in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a critical historical analysis of the trajectory of geo-political and economic relations between India and Singapore. This paper argues that India’s perception of its interests and its geopolitical orientation towards the Cold War prevented India’s security and economic integration with Southeast Asia. Apart from geopolitics, the economic orientation of India was also a critical factor that influenced the trajectory of India – Singapore economic engagement. However, there was a dramatic change after the Cold War ended. The structural change from bi-polarity towards a unipolar moment transformed both geopolitics and economic engagement. Moreover, India’s own economic orientation had also changed by the end of the Cold War. In sum, this paper attempts to elucidate upon how ideas construct economic and political interests and how geopolitical interests, once constructed, drive economic relations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The theme of the paper is focused upon the problem of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the implication of the Quartet for the Middle East, this year the organisation is celebrating a decade of activity. The Quartet plays a significant role in the context of the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP) as a political group with four important members (the UN, the Russian Federation, the USA and the European Union). This paper presents a few strategies of the Quartet for the Middle East concerning the states directly involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but also of importance for the countries with interest in the evolution of the Middle East peace process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste (1975-99), the Roman Catholic Church grew in importance to the East Timorese people. This is demonstrated by the large increase in Timorese affiliation to the Church: 25-30% of the populace were baptized Catholics in 1975 compared with over 90% in the 1990s. Various explanations have been offered for this growth, many of which identify 'extrinsic' factors such as the religious prescriptions of Indonesian law or the pressures of Islamization. While acknowledging the importance of these factors, this paper argues that certain intrinsic factors substantially influenced the identification of the Timorese experience of occupation with Catholic faith and solidarity. An understanding of these intrinsic factors can provide a more expansive understanding of Timorese culture, experience and history. Drawing on original research into the faith and experience of Timorese people during the occupation, the author explores the relationship between suffering, resistance and the Catholic faith of the Timorese in four areas: language; 'a spirituality of resistance'; martyrdom; and sanctuary and advocacy for the persecuted. The paper draws on the insights of French philosopher and literary critic, René Girard, regarding the importance of Christianity in the context of violence. Girard has argued for a particular understanding of the centrality of the victim in human culture and of how Christianity helps to reveal this centrality. Girard's perspective sheds light on how the Timorese came to terms with their experience of suffering and violence under Indonesian occupation through their identification with Jesus Christ and the Church. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to enrich the analytical record of the process of formation of the political system of the Argentine “Confederation” in the 1850s, from the specificities of San Juan province. We considered variations of San Juan political and economic integration in the national and “transcordillerano” stage. We reveal that the attempts of San Juan authorities to (re)articulated in a long-standing activity as overland trade with Chile, though not always successful, were important both to define provincial political tensions and the gravitation of the province in the political and institutional frame of the “Confederation”. So, we analyzed provincial, regional and international aspects of this process, taking into account the multiplicity of actors, resources, ideas and practices that were involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper represents a contribution to the knowledge about the experience of the Japanese community in rural areas of Argentina, particularly Buenos Aires (state) across the first half of the 20th century. With the objective of updating knowledge about this subject, a comparison was made between communities in peri-urban agricultural colonies: La Capilla, located in Florencio Varela, and Justo José de Urquiza, La Plata. We also focus on the origins, incursions, productive profiles, and the level of participation of Argentine and/or Japanese entities that influenced how each community developed, as well as successful companies and migrant settlement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examining the coverage in seven major Japanese and Taiwanese daily newspapers of a selection of events involving both societies in the first decade of the twenty-first century, this paper investigates the phenomenon of rhetorical instrumentalization of the past for present ideological purposes. The concerns of this study are the processes of dehistorization in Japanese and Taiwanese news and public debate, and through a critical thematic reading of the sources I argue that a motif of Taiwanese repetition and imitation of Japan runs through all the studied cases as a basic narrative formula. Analyzed cases include news presentations of Taiwanese politicians visiting Japan, controversial statements on Taiwan by a Japanese cabinet minister, infrastructure developments in present-day Taiwan and the controversy surrounding a Japanese guidebook to Taiwanese prostitution. Throughout the material, Taiwan is pictured as ideally progressing along a trajectory marked out by Japan and the two are cast in fixed roles that recall their relative positions in the half-century of Japanese colonization of Taiwan: Japan teaches Taiwan order, unity and modern development and Taiwan studies Japan's past to overcome the challenges of its own present. Or Taiwan spontaneously imitates Japanese precedence as a consequence of its own development. This paper fundamentally challenges the rationale underlying strategic instrumentalization of the past and draws critical attention to the paradoxical fact that the use of the repetition formula positions the covered news events in a thematic field of time-lag and retrospection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focusing on the analysis of Athens' relations with both Greeks and non-Greeks as recorded in extant fourth-century decrees, this paper challenges the applicability of the notion of Greek/barbarian antithesis to the interpretation of formal diplomatic exchanges between Athens and the non-Greek states. A comparison of the types of decrees and honors reveals a remarkable uniformity in the forms of Athens' foreign relations irrespective of the ethnicity of honorands. The distribution of honors among individuals and groups of recipients within single decrees further demonstrates that the Athenian honorific system typically elevated individuals over communities they represented, suggesting that political differences between Athens and non-Greek states did not adversely influence the methods of exchanges between them. Apart from the provisions contained in the decrees, this paper also considers their function within the city as monuments that attest to the important place of philobarbaric discourse and practice in fourth-century Athens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with delimitations in the Adriatic sea after the signing of the Brijuni Convention in 1921 between Kingdom of Italy and Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The author analyses the Italian version of the agreement in accordance with the attached map. Analysis of the Brijuni Convention provides an insight into Adriatic fi shing policy during the fi rst decades of the 20th century as well as into complex relations between the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and the Kingdom of Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Federation of Adapted Physical Activity (IFAPA) has three purposes; international cooperation, promoting and stimulating research, and dissemination of adapted physical activity knowledge. This historical paper describes the emergence and growth of these three purposes by IFAPA. It also explores IFAPA's progress from a small organization based in Québec to an international corporation with active regional federations in Europe, North America, and Asia, and delegates from over 50 countries at some of its symposia. Part 1 (Reid, 2015) dealt with three time periods; precursor context, 1960-1973; beginnings, 1973-1981; and awkward adolescence, 1981-1989. Part 2 will cover two periods; maturing procedures and international growth, 1989-1999, and strategic planning and technology, 1999-2012; as well as a section on IFAPA symposia. The conclusion offers an evaluation of IFAPA's success in realizing its purposes and suggests some existing challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research intends to investigate Iran-Pakistan economic and political links since 1947 and the issues/differences that affected the relations between them. Both Pakistan Iran have a long standing historical, cultural and religious ties. Persian literature and language have had a great impact on Sub-Continent's cultural and educational milieu. During the reign of Mohammad Reza Shah, the relations between Pakistan and Iran were friendly but after the Islamic revolution of 1979 Pakistan tilted towards Saudi Arabia for its own interests. The ideological dimensions of foreign policy of both the countries also marred the friendly relations. Iran has some apprehensions that border violations and subversions carried out inside Iran are with the connivance of US. The paper has mainly adopted qualitative methods. The study recommends that Pakistan can increase trade and diplomatic relations with Iran to take advantage of resource rich country. The minor differences between the two countries can also be tackled through trade and diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International justice is characterized by the global articulation of basic human rights and peremptory norms outlawing crimes against humanity. In the twenty-first century, an international obligation of states to pursue individuals who bear responsibility for gross violations of human rights has formalized. Since the 1999 independence referendum, Timor-Leste has struggled to achieve substantive justice for the human rights violations committed during Indonesia's 25-year de facto administration. Timor-Leste provides a unique case study on the international dimensions of pursuing justice in a post-conflict transitional context, particularly as many alleged perpetrators of rights violations have been shielded by Indonesia. This presents a challenge for Timor-Leste in balancing its various international and domestic priorities: while domestic political order and rule of law necessitates the pursuit of substantive justice, Timor-Leste's external security interests require a positive relationship with Indonesia. This article examines the world's first bilateral Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Indonesia-Timor-Leste Commission of Truth and Friendship. It then analyses the implementation of the Commission's recommendations by Indonesia and Timor-Leste. The paper argues that the Commission was primarily a political mechanism designed to support international priorities rather than substantive justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper, based on the analysis of articles published in the scientific journal Politička misao between 1964 and 1987, aims to offer a detailed understanding of the history of IR discipline by combining the conceptual and contextual approach, positioning articles within three major theoretical debates, categorizing them thematically and then placing them within an academic environment. Analyzed articles represent the foundation of the IR discipline, hence its history portrays the way in which, in SFRY in general, and in Croatia in particular, it attempted to create its own identity. Finally, this analysis provides key insights related to the context, theoretical framework, discourse and concept development of IR in Croatia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I argue that the “Middle East” is an ideational construct maintained by geographical, intellectual, and ideological representations. I assert that the geographical boundaries of the area called the Middle East have shifted over the past century to reflect the strategic interests of the major hegemonic power in the region, initially Britain and later the United States. Drawing on published and archival sources, I trace the etymology of the “Middle East” and its accompanying geographical representations and their relationship to key American and British foreign policy decisions and declarations. I also discuss how the Arabic translation of the “Middle East,” or al-Sharq al–Awsaṭ, has been adopted and contested by scholars and journalists in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Historical writings concerning the structure of Prussian society in 13th-16th century Prussia traditionally distinguish among three social classes: the "great freemen", the "small freemen" and the bondmen. this rather simplified scheme, although providing an insight in Old Prussian society, still fails to provide complete information concerning importance (or lack thereof) of the role that the local people played in the land administration after the occupation of Prussian lands and the formation of the land administration by the Teutonic Order and dioceses. the present paper reveals that Prussian society of the 13th-16th centuries has in fact been much more multi-layered than the above-mentioned three-layer model and that the local people of that time played a significant role in the power hierarchy and land administration in the dioceses of Prussia and the Teutonic Order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Until the last two decades of the 20th century, health had never been an issue on the international politica agenda, nor was it considered a threat to international security. Moreover, the successes achieved during the 1960s provided a false sense of safety to what regards the infectious diseases, as it was thought that the biggest challenges to health were to be the non communicable diseases. And they are. The global overall mortality rate is dominated by cardiovascular diseases and cancer. But the HIV/Aids pandemics, the anthrax attacks of 2001, the rapid global spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003, the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic, the E. coli O104 (STEC O104:H4) outbreak in Germany, and the recent Ebola epidemic have all demonstrated the considerable human, political, and economic costs that result from outbreaks of infectious disease. This paper examines the processes that led to the securitization of public health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2001, China finally joined the WTO. The accession of China was looked forward to by many WTO members and China itself. However, observers had some fears that the Chinese accession would prove to be a Trojan horse, disrupting the working of the WTO. This paper looks into the Chinese accession and its involvement in the WTO Dispute Settlement and argues that these fears seem so far to be unfounded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews Brazil's pursuit for international insertion by: discussing its search for new partners; presenting an overview of the historical, cultural, and political features that render it the most Western of the emerging nations; and analyzing its participation in the management of two major international crises, the Honduran constitutional crisis and the Iranian nuclear crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The island province of Orkney played a crucial role in Norway's overseas expansion during the Early- and High-Middle Ages. Located just offshore from mainland Scotland, it provided a resort for westward-sailing fleets as well as a convenient springboard for military forays into Britain and down the Irish Sea. The establishment of a Norwegian-Scottish peace and the demarcation of fixed political boundaries in 1266 led to a revision of Orkney's role in the Norwegian realm. From that point until the its pledging to the Scottish Crown in 1468, Norway depended on Orkney as a hub for diplomacy and foreign relations. This paper looks at how Orkney figured in Norwegian royal strategies in the west and presents key examples which show its transition from a tool of war to a forum for peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This brief research paper is in the same time a study of modern world history, but also that of compared imagology. The researched theme can be regarded as an unprecedented one because the study presents the image of a West European country reflected in the main Transylvanian newspaper from the modern period, "Gazeta de Transilvania". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's involvement in Latin America has grown steadily over the past decade but there are a number of constraints on the role of the People's Liberation Army that prevents it from becoming the most important mechanism in expanding China's role in Latin America. This paper discusses those constraints and the methods China's military has used to engage with Latin America in the twenty-first century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the journal Minerva was founded in 1962, science and higher educational issues were high on the agenda, lending impetus to the interdisciplinary field of 'Science Studies' qua 'Science Policy Studies.' As government expenditures for promoting various branches of science increased dramatically on both sides of the East-West Cold War divide, some common issues regarding research management also emerged and with it an interest in closer academic interaction in the areas of history and policy of science. Through a close reading of many early issues of Minerva but also of its later competitor journal Science Studies (now called Social Studies of Science) the paper traces the initial optimism of an academically based Science Studies dialogue across the Cold War divide and the creation in 1971 of the International Commission for Science Policy Studies as a bridging forum, one that Minerva strangely chose to ignore. In this light, attention is drawn to aspects of the often forgotten history of Science Studies in the former Soviet Union and the Eastern European block. Reviewed also are several early discussions that are still relevant today: e.g., regarding differing concepts of Big Science, science and democracy, autonomy in higher education and what conditions are necessary to sustain academic freedom and scientific integrity (some of Edward Shils' primary concerns). Finally, it is noted how the question of quantitative methods to measure scientific productivity lay at the heart of a 'Science of Science' movement of the 1960s has re-emerged in a new form integral to the notion of a 'Science of Science Policy.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on several papers discussed at a workshop held March 23-25, 2012 at the Institute of Contemporary History of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic in Prague, titled "Environmental histories of the Visegrad countries: Cold War and the environmental sciences," is presented. Topics include the history of environmental science during the Cold War, the cooperation between scientists in the Soviet Union and Scandinavia, and the development of industrial towns in socialist Hungary.

This paper explores Hanoi's diplomatic strategy during the early stage of the so-called Vietnam War. It draws from Vietnamese, Western, and other materials to elucidate the meanings and usages Hanoi attached to diplomacy in those years, to describe the related maneuverings of North Vietnamese leaders, and to identify the forces shaping those maneuvers. Following the onset of war Hanoi rejected negotiations with Washington, but that did not mean that the so-called 'diplomatic struggle' was non-existent, or unimportant. State and party organs used diplomacy to manipulate and mobilize world opinion, to mitigate the effects of the Sino-Soviet dispute, and to secure necessary material assistance from socialist allies to sustain the war until 'final victory' over the United States. Diplomacy thus served as a veritable instrument of war for Hanoi. Admittedly, diplomatic priorities changed over time, but diplomatic struggle itself remained at the heart of its 'Anti-American Resistance.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about several papers presented at the European Network in Universal and Global History (ENIUGH)-Congress "Connections and Comparisons," held in London, England from April 14 to April 17, 2011, is presented, focusing on the panels on "Global Hierarchies and Inequalities." Topics include development in Tanzania, South African foreign policy ideals, and Polish scientists in Siberia, Russia. Several scholars spoke, including Emma Hunter, Sara Elmer, and Maria Rhode.

Information about several papers discussed at a conference entitled "The Flow of Concepts and Institutions," held October 6-8, 2010 in Heidelberg, Germany and sponsored by Heidelberg University’s Cluster of Excellence “Asia and Europe in a Global Context,” is presented. The conference focused on ideas of governance and religiosity. Topics included 17th century German views of governance in Mughal India, the influence of Marxism in Asia, and religious violence. Speakers included Bo Strath.

The papers in this special issue are the products of a conference, 'History and China's Foreign Relations: The Achievements and Contradictions of American Scholarship, ' held at the University of Southern California in February 2008. All of us, professors, policy advisors and policy-makers, think it would be helpful if there was more informed discussion among the general public of the challenges of China's rise in the world and our responses to it, but we all acknowledge that the American public sphere is a big mess, fragmented by the apparent riches of the Internet, dumbed down to the vanishing point in the major media. Can we as scholars make some beginnings in drawing on China's long and complex history of relations with other peoples to find generalizations and patterns that help to illuminate the present for the policy elite and for the concerned public? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper aims to explore the issue of how historians have used the concept of social movements. To reach this goal, it is necessary to provide a brief review of how this concept has been utilized and a succinct comparison of its multiple usages in the area of human sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author reviews commonalities and differences in the distortions of history by Japan and China and also analyzes the political implications and structure, ultimately to show how the process can be linked with bringing peace to Northeast Asia. Based on this analysis, solutions are sought to address the disputes over history between Korea, China, and Japan. In the long term, the historical debates can be addressed by establishing common historical perception based on academic research. This is possible when causes for debates such as the Sino-Japanese struggle for hegemony and the Gando issue raised by Korea are eliminated. Another premise is Japanese reflection on its modem history of aggression. What matters is to put words into action by calling on Japan to reflect upon the history of aggression in an effort to broaden common historical understanding among the three countries' civil societies and jointly defending the Japanese pacifist constitution as a universal value. When those issues are resolved, the sharing of East Asian history can realize its true significance of peaceful coexistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper investigates some major steps for achieving peace through a better knowledge of ourselves and f our neighbors. For a positive dialogue with people of other cultures and civilizations, we have to start listening to each other, never speak about past misdeeds, respect others' opinions, tolerate differences without contrasting values unnecessarily. This leads to a better understanding of others, for it is very important to understand cultures without stereotypical misuses of history, and we need attitudes toward real reconciliation through a forgiveness not disconnected from truth and justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article profiles Thomas W. Robinson, a literary contributor in the U.S. He was born on February 9, 1935 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and died at the age of 71 on June 13, 2006. The paper highlights his educational attainment and contributions to international politics and education. The discussion involves his erudition which began with literature in his youth, science and philosophy in college, international affairs and social science in graduate school, and history in adulthood.

The events of the Slovak-Hungarian "Little War" are closely connected to the circumstances of Hungary's re-annexation of Sub-Carpathia in March 1939, which took place under the motto of re-establishing a common Hungarian-Polish border. Corps belonging to the Carpathian section of the Hungarian army advanced into Sub-Carpathia and then proceeded to attack Slovak territories. Hungary's official explanation for its occupation of Sub-Carpathia ran as follows: since Slovakia has become an independent state and thus Czechoslovakia no longer exists as a state, the Viennese arbitration is no longer valid. Hungary has won the right to exercise its claim to Sub-Carpathia. The military conflict between Slovakia and Hungary came to an end when Germany intervened and ordered the two parties to conduct bilateral negotiations with a view to reaching an agreement. At the negotiations on March 28, 1939, the parties agreed to end hostilities and to establish a neutral zone between the two armies. They also agreed that Hungarian troops might remain at their occupied positions. On March 28 the Slovak delegation announced claims on Hungarian territory by way of compensation, but the Hungarian government rejected these claims. Germany offered no support to the Slovaks on the border issue; indeed, on April 7 Slovak troops were even required to withdraw from various settlements on the Slovak side of the demarcation line. On April 3, 1939, the German Ambassador to Budapest, Otto von Erdmannsdorff, paid a visit to the Hungarian foreign minister, István Csáky; in the course of their discussions, the two men touched upon the issue of the border established with Slovakia. The Ambassador informed Csáky that the Slovak government had turned to Germany for support, but that it had been told that under the circumstances any attempt at the full restoration of the old border, which was Slovakia's wish, would be futile. The German Ambassador then asked Csáky whether the Hungarian government would be willing to make certain territorial concessions. Csáky responded that this would be inconceivable — "where Hungarian soldiers have trodden, they will stay". Hungary could keep the 60-kilometre long and 20-kilometre wide strip of land that it had taken from Slovakia. The Hungarian authorities attached the area of land Sub-Carpathia, of which it remained a part until 1944. In 1945 the newly re-established Czechoslovakia was obliged to surrender the railway line between Csap and Ungvár as well as the Ung line: the Czechoslovak-Soviet border — today's frontier between Slovakia and Ukraine — was drawn ten to fifteen kilometres further west. During its engagements with the Slovak armed forces from March 23-28, 1939, the Hungarian army suffered 25 fatal and 56 non-fatal casualties; it captured 360 Slovak and 211 Czech/Moravian soldiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]