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Debate regarding the continuity of Cypriot political forms from the Late Bronze Age to the Cypro-Archaic is persistent, resulting in a scholarly divide with few signs of resolution. This article reviews the historiography of political forms proposed for Cyprus as the essential context for this debate. It considers several major themes that emerge from the debate: the use of anthropological models for state formation, regionalism, social networks, and the nature of spatial power. The author views the debate as centred on two equally valid motivations: using related social science theory to enhance archaeological explanation and emphasizing Cypriot autonomy. These motivations need not be set in opposition but, together, illustrate the island's unique history and provide the basis for vibrant scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Indo-Pacific region, linking the Indian and Pacific Oceans through Southeast Asia, is becoming increasingly significant in academic discourse and global politics. The geopolitical background of the idea is evident as it connects several major powers around China. However, can the concept serve as a cornerstone for a viable regional setting beyond geopolitics? And in extension, why do some regions institutionalize while others are unable to do the same? Drawing on social constructivism and region-building theories, we argue that three intersubjectively shared preconditions—proximity, interests, and identity—play a crucial role in regional consolidation. We posit that this framework operates as a scale, wherein meeting these conditions positively influences region formation and institutionalization. Comparing the Indo-Pacific to the Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia, we contend that while the latter two possessed these components, the Indo-Pacific severely lacks shared ideas of proximity and identity, and the component of interests remains contested. We conclude that this limitation significantly hampers the possibility of the Indo-Pacific emerging as a viable and intersubjectively shared regional framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing literature on diffusion shows that ideas, policies and institutions originating in the European Union shape decision-making in other regional organisations (ROs). However, a research programme which claims to examine processes of interdependent decision-making between ROs in general cannot treat a single RO as the 'default' source of this diffusion. This paper thus (1) discusses what we term the 'multiple sources' problem in diffusion research and (2) presents a model of institutional diffusion, which highlights the important role of local actors in the multiple sources scenario. Based on original data collected via extensive fieldwork in East Africa, we present a case study on the interdependent sources behind the East African Community (EAC)'s establishment in drawing on this model. We find that EAC policymakers selected between, combined and modified several external institutions. These findings highlight local actors' capacity for institutional innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interregional inequality of public services is accompanied by their combined supply by government and market. This study investigates whether the spatial allocation of regional investment influences inequality and explores the differentiated source of such influence, distinguishing between government investment and private investment in China. Results suggest that the interregional inequality of public services is spatialised by the distorted spatial allocation of investment, which manifests itself as capital market segmentation, and it is aggravated by government investment but relieved by private investment. Such effects derive from differences in local protectionism, interregional competition and capital flow between government investment and private investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the impact of cultural proximity on interregional industrial linkages using evidence from China. The results show that cultural distance hinders horizontal industrial linkages between regions, but does not limit the formation of vertical industrial linkages. Cultural proximity affects interregional industrial cooperation strategies primarily through knowledge diffusion rather than transaction costs. Cultural proximity favours the formation of transregional social networks and the cognition of localised tacit knowledge. Consequently, regions that are culturally similar to one another have a comparative information advantage in forming horizontal industrial linkages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the distinctive features of Latin American regionalism by examining its rhetorical justifications during the onset of the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic offered an exceptional opportunity to witness the professed role of regional organizations in the Global South as bridges between national and international systems: how this role is discursively constructed and the practical limitations it faces in times of disruption. We address different attempts to (self-)justify the relevance of regionalist visions, analyzing how three (inter-)regional organizations of the Americas reacted discursively to the global public health crisis: the Common Market of the South (Mercosur), the Organization of American States (OAS), and the Ibero-American Summits (SEGIB). We examine three features that have traditionally shaped Latin American visions of regionalism: coping with world hegemony; striving for regional autonomy; and expressing transnational solidarity. The findings provide insights for further understanding the legitimation of regional and global governance under conditions of uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global maritimization over the past half-century has heightened states vulnerability to maritime risks and threats, a situation particularly acute in the Wider Caribbean Region. This region, characterised by an important number of small and micro-states, faces a multitude of multiscalar maritime security challenges. In response, these states have increasingly adopted cooperative strategies, fostering close relationships to mitigate their shared vulnerabilities. Drawing on 98 interviews conducted between 2018 and 2023 with international, national, and local authorities, alongside extensive field observations, this article contributes to the scholarly discourse on regionalism. It demonstrates how a shared sense of vulnerability among these actors has fostered a ‘community of situation’, promoting intensified interactions that have led to notable advancements in regional integration and the diminishing of border effects. This study highlights the critical role of proximity-based cooperation in overcoming the geopolitical fragmentation that hampers security efforts in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Canada is the world’s fourth largest producer of oil and fifth largest producer of natural gas. Yet, the country faces a ‘twin’ challenge in tackling the climate crisis. On the one hand, Canada’s federal climate goals state that it must achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. On the other hand, regionalism stronghold in fossil-producing provinces lead to difficult trade-offs between an ambitious climate transition and reluctant actors supporting the fossil fuel industry. This situation is characterized as ‘fossilized’ petro-provinces by political scientist Angela Carter. This article explores how Alberta, Canada’s largest oil and natural gas producer, became fossilized. The article develops a path dependence argument organized around the role of regionalism in Alberta’s political development. Regionalism is a crucial persistent feature of Alberta to explain its fossilization because it influenced the formation of an interdependence between the government and the industry, a distinct political culture, and a conservative-led party system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While a rich body of work on nations and national borderlands has demonstrated how the ideal of the nation state resulted in ever greater (and often violent) demands for geographic fixity, this article shows how territorial visions of regional communities permitted a tremendous level of flexibility and were able to hold highly divergent geographic imaginings in suspension. The article seeks to demonstrate this by looking at a unique moment in post-war West German history when spatial planers, parliamentary committees, regionalists and an army of experts sought to determine the boundaries of regional belonging in preparation for a planned redrawing of the West German federal map. Many believed that a viable federalist democracy required stronger federal states rooted in a sense of regional community. The states created by the Allies were initially seen as temporary, and Article 29 of the new constitution required that states be redrawn by considering boundaries of regional belonging. The intense efforts of experts, politicians, and regionalists, however, ultimately failed and revealed widely diverging ideas about which territories corresponded to a common sense of regional community. Conflicting historic state borders, the historic force of physical geographies, confession, orientation to urban centres, a profusion of dialect borders, and regional cultural practices all shaped geographic visions of region, but simultaneously underpinned widely-variant cognitive maps. While the failure to redraw the West German map resulted in this episode of history largely being forgotten, I argue that it speaks volumes about how forms of community beyond and beneath the nation state have been imagined in territorial space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the relationship between ecological identity and various social and pro-environmental variables among the inhabitants of Southern Patagonia, comparing groups with internal (Chilote) and external (Croatian) migratory ancestry. A total of 212 individuals participated, selected based on their self-categorization as Magellanic, identifying as descendants of Croatian (n = 71), Chilote (n = 66) or other origin (n = 75). We used a non-experimental cross-sectional correlational design to measure regional identity, pro-environmental attitudes, ecological behaviour, essentialism and regionalism. Findings point to differences in ecological variables between the groups compared. Magellanic participants with Chilote ancestry show a stronger relationship between ecology and identity than those with Croatian ancestry. The findings are discussed in terms of the impact of indigenous cultures on the current relationship of Magellanic inhabitants with their natural environment and the importance attributed to territoriality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do regional institutions promote more equitable governance in the global South and, in particular, do they enable more gender-equitable governance? We examine these questions in the light of regional governance actions and policies under COVID-19, drawing on evidence from Latin America and Africa. We argue that weak regional gender equality norms contributed to the downgrading of the rights of women and girls in policymaking during COVID-19, within both member states and regional organizations, which resulted in women and girls paying an unnecessarily high price during and after the pandemic. Using interview and documentary data, we show that the existence of gender equality norms led to an initial recognition of the need for gendered protections in COVID-19 policies but that these were side-lined, and the rights and needs of women and girls deprioritized, as the pandemic deepened. We also discuss the gendered costs of deprioritization in terms of preventable everyday harms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union has sparked interest in voluntary withdrawals from regional organisations (RO). While Brexit is a well-researched subject, other exits from ROs around the globe have been somewhat neglected. We still know relatively little about states' motivations to leave and how such exits play out in the short and long run. This article addresses both gaps. First, it conceptualises withdrawals from ROs as differentiated disintegration to better grasp the pre- and post-exit dynamics. Second, it puts forth three factor groups explaining states' reasoning composed of (i) geopolitical and geoeconomic conditions, (ii) intra-regional tensions and (iii) domestic factors. Third, it applies this framework to Uzbekistan's exit from the EurAsEC, Mauritania's departure from ECOWAS and the UK's withdrawal from the EU. Despite great differences in the regional setup and level of institutionalisation, we find that strong parallels can be drawn between all three cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are prominent regional organisations in the global South. However, their divergence becomes evident when considering variations in governance and institutional structures. This article attributes these differences to distinct approaches to national sovereignty by their members. Factors including historical colonial legacies, member states' experiences, and shared norms shape the construction of sovereignty in ASEAN and ECOWAS. ASEAN prioritises individual sovereignty and self-determination. In contrast, ECOWAS adopts a more flexible approach, emphasising collective action to address common challenges, even if it involves compromising some aspects of sovereignty. These trajectories continue with ASEAN Charter and ECOWAS Revised Treaty that transformed the organisation into a parliamentary structure with Court of Justice. By examining these dynamics, this paper sheds light on the nuanced relationship between sovereignty and regional integration, providing insights into governance and decision-making processes in ASEAN and ECOWAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sustainable Development Goals, through Goal 5 on Gender Equality, put gender as a focus at the heart of every endeavour. Yet with 2030 looming, across the globe, we have made insufficient progress towards gender equality. Despite a plethora of mentions of the aim to achieve gender equality in regional and international documents, progress is slow (see and ). What can be done? If transformative change is required, then a range of options needs to be explored. Could expanding exposure as to who studies gender be just one tool for building a pipeline of actors who take a gender lens when engaging with key issues, and speeding up progress towards the gender equality goal of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG Goal 5)? How should we rethink the teaching of gender and development? My proposition is that gender should be mainstreamed in every course through a revised curriculum as a practical lever for change and to hasten progress towards Goal 5. The hope is that this paper can encourage conversation both in gender and development circles and the scholarship of teaching and learning, and prompt new lines of research and action towards rethinking the teaching of gender and development, which can then strengthen the knowledge base in the pipeline of political decision-makers and development actors. This paper is a call to action for the repositioning of gender at the heart of all studies – not as an elective or "boutique", but as core to every subject. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic suffering prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic, coming on the heels of earlier 2008 global-financial and 2015 migration crises, revived debate on citizen support for European fiscal integration policies. Such support can be expected to reflect not only individual-level characteristics but also the extent of crisis exposure in subnational regional contexts where individuals live and work. Unfortunately, existing studies of public support have said little about such regional contexts. This study hence explores how regional-level experience with 'polycrisis' affects support for EU fiscal capacities, combining regional-level crisis measures with a 2020 survey experiment on European citizens' preferences towards fiscal capacity instruments in 5 European countries (DE, ES, FR, IT, NL). This allows tests of whether individual support for various European fiscal capacities reflect regional differences in covid suffering, growth losses after the 2008 global financial crisis, and migration spikes from the 2015 migration crisis. We expect and find that citizens in regions more heavily impacted by the pandemic, financial crisis, and (albeit less so) migration crisis – measured separately and as a composite – tend to more readily support European fiscal integration capacity that is redistributive between countries, financed through progressive taxation, refrains from budgetary conditionality, and is lenient towards reform non-compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ernst B. Haas pioneered the formation of European integration studies outside the field of International Relations. The European Coal and Steal Community of 1951 was already more supranational than any existing international organisation to date. Supranationalism subsequently expanded with European integration. In his attempt to account for the supranationalism of European regionalism, Haas had developed his neofunctionalism as a general theory, which could be applied to other regions as well as the global level. EU scholars, in contrast, began to treat the EU as a case sui generis insisting on its unique supranational nature. The paper revisits the question of the uniqueness of European regionalism. Combining Ernst Haas' works on supranational regionalism and liberal nationalism, the EU is approached as a strong form of supranational regionalism that has transformed interstate relations in Europe towards what he called 'cosmopolitan internationalism'. The paper argues that liberal nationalism is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for this transformation. It, however, provides an explanation for the contestation of the EU as a model of liberal regionalism by non-liberal forms of nationalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Relaciones Internacionales (1699-3950) is the property of Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain, International Relations Studies Group (GERI) Law Faculty and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Relaciones Internacionales (1699-3950) is the property of Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain, International Relations Studies Group (GERI) Law Faculty and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

AbstractThis paper explores the dynamics of cross-border relations, ethnic diversity and the role of sub-state actors in border regions, focusing on the Austrian–Italian border. Using a transnational regionalism lens, it examines how minorities, majorities, sub-state political elites and the media perceive and utilise cross-border spaces. The findings reveal contested perspectives among sub-state political elites, influenced by historical conflicts, while the media emphasise the connective role of the state border. Furthermore, autonomist parties and representatives contribute to framing cross-border cooperation as a means of connection and shared territorial policymaking. The research highlights the potential of sub-state to foster inclusive cross-border relations in minority contexts and empower minority communities in border regions, offering insights into integration and connection beyond ethnic and territorial divisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the construction of South American collective identities in Brazil, emphasizing regional integration and identity formation. Using a seven-scale model adapted from European identity research, it evaluates the psychological existence and identification with South America as a transnational imagined community among Brazilians. The findings highlight the complex interplay between national and regional identities, influenced by historical, cultural, and socio-political factors. The study contributes to the field of Comparative Regionalism by providing a nuanced understanding of identity dynamics in South America, underscoring the importance of elite-led integration efforts and their impact on citizens’ perceptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change and the associated imperatives for decarbonization and energy transition are changing the stakes of urbanization. There is little doubt that the next quarter century will be one of the most decisive, disruptive, and possibly transformative times for human societies and our coexistence with planetary systems. This is a critical moment for the agency of design and its capacity to cocreate these transformations. This is relevant for the material realities of the constructed environment as well as for its forms of representation—the unbuilt, experimental, and speculative imaging of future worlds. This project is focused on the latter. Climate transitions, and in particular just climate transitions, are less of a problem of technology, but moreover a problem of imagination; the imagination of socioenvironmental coexistences at both the intimate scale of individual relations and at the territorial and temporal scale and complexity of the crises that society faces. This visual essay positions the potential agency of scroll drawings as tools for thinking with, in the visioning and speculative prototyping for the transition toward alternative futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on localism in the form of the friends and neighbors effect (FNE) over the past 70 years has been focused on Western democracies, but has largely overlooked political contexts in other regions. This article examines the prevalence of the FNE in presidential elections in the Republic of Korea to partially fill this gap. The particular significance of this contextual electoral effect is due to the specific phenomenon of Korean regionalism, largely created by politicians. The results of the study confirm the main assumptions about the importance of geographical proximity between the candidate and the electorate for the spatial distribution of candidate support. Most candidates’ electoral support levels are higher near their birthplaces. Differences in the effect’s expression are observed among urban and provincial, left-wing and all other, major and minor candidates. The gradual decrease in the influence of the effect over time is consistent with the assumption of a link between the FNE and regionalism in Korea. Regionalism, created by politicians who mobilized their regional strongholds, becomes weaker due to the increasing orientation of young voters towards institutions and structures rather than personalities. Another factor mitigating regionalism is the FNE within major party strongholds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia's war on Ukraine has generated a new chain of insecurities in Europe: energy and food crises, new migration flows from Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, military threats sharpened by Russia's invasion are triggering a spatial and territorial reshuffling of Europe's Eastern flank. In this context, regional dynamics within and across the Eastern frontiers of Europe have undergone a succession of path-breaking transformations ranging from overt support to the Ukrainian war effort to decoupling from the Russian economy and an unprecedented boost to expanding the European Union's security architecture. However, one of the most important effects of the war is the growing gap between two regional models which might be dubbed normative (Europeanization within the EU- and NATO-led European normative space) and post-colonial (exemplified by different Russia-centric projects within the post-Soviet space). The original contribution of this special issue is to address the conceptual connections between security, borders and national identity to discuss the evolving European landscape. While we do not explore the military side of the war, we focus on the nexus of (in)security and bordering practices to capture how a combination of geopolitical changes, economic dynamics and human dimensions of war has created new borders and reshaped existing ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of URVIO - Revista Latinoamericana de Seguridad Ciudadana is the property of FLACSO - Ecuador (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are trade partners and believe in rules-based multilateralism. They have developed strong ties despite starting from different starting points and having different standards. The EU is a mature regional cooperation scheme(union) with a highly institutionalized and legalized architecture. At the same time, ASEAN is an intergovernmental association with low institutionalization and legalization in which decisions are made by consensus. After almost fifty years of establishing a diplomatic dialogue between the EU and ASEAN, their cooperation has been of essential importance in maintaining peace and balancing great power rivalries. Bibliography in books and articles. The EU and ASEAN are among the world's largest economies in terms of gross domestic product. The EU is already the world's second-largest economy, and ASEAN could become the world's fourth-largest economy by 2030. The EU looks forward to strengthening its economic cooperation with ASEAN to maintain its competitive position in the dynamically developing region of the Indo-Pacific. ASEAN is a crucial hub for transporting European goods and is essential in regional supply chains. Closer trade and investment relations could also help the EU achieve its goal of a strategic partnership between the two regional blocks encompassing political and economic cooperation. It would be desirable if the EU and ASEAN continue to connect Europe and Asia by acting as balancers and reducing tensions between the major international players. In the 21st century, the rise of China, India, and other regional powers is consolidating a multipolar system and new geopolitical balances. In this new era, the EU and ASEAN can continue to connect Europe and Asia by acting as balancers and reducing tensions between the major international players. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Realidad Economica is the property of Realidad Economica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Bylye Gody is the property of Cherkas Global University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Bylye Gody is the property of Cherkas Global University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The media has been repeatedly demonstrated to have a large effect on voting behaviour and voter information worldwide, and to be crucial in the establishment of collective identities. Relatively unexplored in the field of regional politics are the effects of media on substate party system divergence and non-statewide party success. This article takes Europe as its focus and demonstrates how strongly regionalized media environments contribute to the development of distinctive party systems at the regional level. I argue that the effects of media works chiefly through the establishment of a 'banal regionalism' and by increasing voter information, thereby boosting issues traditionally associated with regionalist success such as socio-cultural distinctiveness and regional autonomy. The paper demonstrates this through a regression analysis of 69 European 'Small Worlds' and an illustrative case study of the United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits China's city-regionalism based on a multi-scalar reading of state entrepreneurialism, with a special focus on the transition from the Pearl River Delta (PRD) to the Greater Bay Area (GBA). We first propose a multi-scalar theoretical framework of state entrepreneurialism to comprehend China's city-regional development. At the national scale, the central state maintains planning centrality by establishing normative goals through national political mandates and orchestrating socio-spatial reconfiguration of city-regions using various planning techniques (e.g., zoning, annexation, connectivity, and place-making), which demonstrates state spatial selectivity. At the local scale, city-regional development, led by the local state, pivots on the mandates and resorts to market instruments. Place-specific contexts and development trajectories give rise to distinctive 'regional models' and contingent socio-spatial processes. From a historical-geographical perspective, these contingent socio-spatial processes represent both the outcome of and the precondition for successive waves of state spatial selectivity in city-regional development. Building upon the dynamic interplay between state spatial selectivity and contingent socio-spatial processes, we present a periodised analysis to delve into the ongoing transformation from the PRD to the GBA. Amidst evolving global-local conjunctures and shifting national political mandates, state spatial selectivity within the PRD-to-GBA transformation is categorised into three periods: (1) 1980s to early 1990s: exploiting zoning technologies to institutionalise exceptionality within delimited areas for undertaking market-oriented experiments; (2) mid-1990s to 2000s: empowering entrepreneurial cities to drive market-oriented development while managing their size, internal hierarchy, and external connections; and (3) 2010s onwards: an intensified planning centrality at the national scale and the reinvention of zoning technologies to emphasise relationality, reshaping the urban-regional and cross-border dynamics of the GBA within an 'integration' framework. In conclusion, this paper reflects on the variegated geographies of China's city-regionalism – the socio-spatially distinctive, temporally evolving and ultimately polymorphic, multi-scalar construction of Chinese city-regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early 21st century, the rise of left-wing administrations in South America bolstered regional frameworks. The proposal to establish a new regional financial architecture materialized as the Bank of the South, formalizing its Constitutive Treaty in 2009. Despite this, the Bank remains uncapitalized. This study examines its rise and decline, addressing factors behind its establishment; the impact of divergent regional approaches by Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela, and the reasons for its decline in the second decade of the 21st century. The research attributes the Bank’s demise not only to the crisis in post-neoliberal regionalism but also to internal disagreements among proponents. Drawing on a thorough literature review, primary source analysis from the Bank, and insights from policymakers’ memoirs, this research provides a nuanced understanding of the Bank of the South’s trajectory.

The European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are trade partners and believe in rules-based multilateralism. They have developed strong ties despite starting from different starting points and having different standards. The EU is a mature regional cooperation scheme(union) with a highly institutionalized and legalized architecture. At the same time, ASEAN is an intergovernmental association with low institutionalization and legalization in which decisions are made by consensus. After almost fifty years of establishing a diplomatic dialogue between the EU and ASEAN, their cooperation has been of essential importance in maintaining peace and balancing great power rivalries.

The basic financial-administrative document of the government, referred to as the budget, has now found an important and high-ranking position in light of new studies and evolving relationships of governance and regulation. Fewer institutions and public services can be found in the budget without appropriate representation and established rules and figures. In this context, the budget can play a key role in realizing the government's goals. Among these noble aims is poverty alleviation, which involves addressing the causes and factors of production, as well as the promotion of poverty, with the government's involvement. Pesharavi's writing sought to identify the potential capabilities and capacities for preparing and adjusting the poverty alleviation budget by employing a meta-analysis method and utilizing library resources within an interdisciplinary framework. This approach facilitates explanation and analysis. The findings of this research indicate that achieving poverty alleviation and expanding justice through budget tools and their associated rulings and figures requires strategies such as budget transparency, regionalism and localization, fair distribution, and the reduction of hidden subsidies. Additionally, he emphasized the creation and unification of poverty alleviation institutions. Although each of the strategies discussed in the research needs to be studied separately and in detail, it is also essential to consider the political and administrative geography of governments and the economic theories embedded in their legal and management systems when applying these strategies to the budgeting systems of each country.

The article discusses the integration of the Mount Hebron area into a distinct social and political region during the time of British Mandate in Palestine and the emergence of a regional "Hebronite" identity encompassing both the city of Hebron and the villages of the area. The study demonstrates that, while in many areas of the country such regional integration, or regionalization, developed through the gradual growth of economic, administrative, and political networks in the nineteenth century, the regionalization of Mount Hebron took place much later. It was not an outcome of the same dynamics as in other regions, but mainly a reaction born of chronic insecurity, as well as the social and even environmental hardships experienced in the region. In the 1940s, the determination to overcome these challenges was translated into the construction of a stable regional system that had significant intra-Palestinian and even geopolitical consequences. The study also shows that, while the Hebronite identity was a sub-national one, it had strong symbiotic, sometimes ambivalent, relations with the Palestinian and Arab national identities. Moreover, it was in no way a primordial but clearly a modern phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article traces the trajectories, theoretical propensities, and thematic insights underlying Malaysian scholarly thinking and writings about international relations (IR). It argues that while their contributions to the Global IR research program have been indirect and implicit, they are not insignificant. The contributions are not claims of exceptionalism but expressions of diverse experiences, perspectives, and narratives that are reflective of the contesting, yet recurring logics significant for understanding and explaining small- and medium-sized states' behavior in an anarchical world. Three themes are particularly pertinent: (1) external policy choices are extensions of internal attributes; (2) small-state outlook on regionalism and multilateralism; and (3) middle-state alignment behavior. Local insights contribute to Global IR by enriching, expanding, and exporting national narratives and regional mindsets into thematic thrusts pertinent for making sense of similar cases elsewhere, thereby pluralizing the universality and inclusivity of IR concepts and theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article offers a historical perspective on co-productions of high-end television drama in Germany. It argues that such co-productions have seen three distinct phases that although overlapping, are described by industry insiders and critics as distinct periods where one form of co-production is dominant at a particular time but then becomes residual as other forms take over. These three forms are, first, public broadcaster-led co-productions, second, 'Europudding' co-productions, and finally, distinctive co-productions in TVIV. This article shows that these phases are connected to stylistic as well as industrial changes, which do not always overlap with the description of industry insiders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper attempts to answer the question about the conditions for the implementation of regionalist ideas within the Jewish community across Polish territories, especially in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The author identifies internal variations within this community, delineating diverse stances towards local character and varied circumstances surrounding the practice of regionalist endeavours. The text presents statements (declarations) made by Diaspora representatives, testifying to their attachment to the land (place) of their birth, as well as activities that can be regarded as an emanation of such a relationship. Furthermore, the profiles of several enthusiasts with Jewish roots, pursuing their regional interests in various places in the Republic of Poland and at different moments in its history, are presented. The categories of nostalgia, sentiment, establishing roots, and the concept of a “little homeland” are also highlighted.

This article investigates energy regionalism in wider Europe, examining extra-regional and intra-regional challenges. In recent years, the European Union (EU) has taken concrete steps to enhance its energy security and reduce its dependence on Russia. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has further highlighted the critical dimension of the energy crisis between Russia and the EU. This study emphasizes the vital role of sub-regional energy dynamics in regional policy formulation and criticizes the EU's regional approach. In this realm, the article assesses the EU's Eastern Partnership through the Caucasus Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia) and the Northeast Europe Eastern Partnership countries (Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus). Thus, countries' recent initiatives will be investigated to demonstrate how they cope with issues of energy security. In the end, the article underlines the necessity for the adoption of tailor-made sub-regional energy policies by the EU. For Northeast Europe Eastern Partnership countries, the EU needs to support energy market liberalization and stability, invest in critical infrastructural developments, foster effective dispute resolution mechanisms, and maintain transparent transit conditions. For Caucasus Eastern Partnership countries, the EU needs to facilitate multilateral energy cooperation and dialogue, promote energy market liberalization, and facilitate energy interconnection. In short, strong political leadership and continuous efforts to foster collaboration and interconnectivity in wider Europe are necessary to enhance energy security.

The purpose of the study involves representing the image of the outstanding Siberian public figure N. M. Yadrintsev through textual analysis of necrologies dedicated to him, published in the newspaper “Eastern Review”, 1894. The edition was a great success among the provincial and metropolitan public. The choice of chronological framework is explained by the year of the enlightener’s death. The ongoing research is based on the methodology of “new intellectual and cultural history”, revealing the facets of a historical figure and his ideological heritage in the perception of the worldview of his contemporaries and colleagues. To implement research plans, the theory of historical memory was used. The anthropological approach emphasizing the individual with his way of thinking and characteristic behavioral traits was important for this study. Also, content analysis as a form of historical research was widely used in the work. Such tools made it possible not only to identify the content of written sources, but also to show their social context. The author emphasizes that after the death of N.M. Yadrintsev, many obituary texts were published in memory of the public figure. The work shows that obituary materials reveal N.M. Yadrintsev as a talented journalist, traveler, writer, and expert on the Siberian frontier. In this vein, the social significance of the enlightenment’s heritage is emphasized and his social and professional status is noted.

The paper focuses on the emergence of the European Federalist Movement between the two World Wars up to the establishment of the Association of European Federalists in 1944. The Author pays particular attention to Piero Calamandrei’s significant contribution to European federalism. The Florentine jurist envisioned federalism as closely linked to regionalism and peace, in an international context marked by a world divided into two opposing blocs by the Cold War.

This study investigates city regionalism within the context of state restructuring in postcolonial Ghana. To understand Ghana’s emerging city regionalism, first, we argue that planning is marshaled as an institutional instrument to materialize the state’s vision of remaking national territory and internationalizing the state. Second, city regionalism is a political process leveraged by a unique power geometry. The study adopts Ghana’s Northern Savannah Ecological Zone (NSEZ) regional plan to elucidate city regionalism in the Global South. Our findings reveal the central government’s inclination toward endogenous territorial restructuring, by which city region development is centrally orchestrated and state guided. In addition, city regionalism is influenced by the geostrategic ambitions of international capital, especially Chinese capital, which seeks to draw investment into the built environment and infrastructure. The central government’s customization of a regional governance agency, the Northern Development Authority (NDA), and the decentralization of land resources give rise to a “dumbbell” power structure. The concentration of legal and cohesive power in the central government and an overly privatized land ownership regime characterize this dumbbell power structure. The operation of the NDA is thus a scaffolding with no substantial power. The central government exercises restrictive fiscal regulation over regional and local states in the NSEZ. These two dimensions hamper the effective implementation of the regional plan. Collaboration between different levels of state administration, traditional authorities, and civil society actors is imperative to address the complexities of city regionalism in postcolonial Ghana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on authoritarian connections beyond the state requires a transregional practices approach. This special issue is an invitation to combine critical approaches to the study of authoritarian power by paying attention to spaces of contestation, authoritarian practices, as well as non-state actors and agency below and beyond the scale of the state. We focus on authoritarian practices and their spatial and temporal articulations in (1) transregional infrastructures, (2) global processes of capital accumulation and (3) nature-society relations. This enables us to capture the diversity of authoritarian actors and the interconnectedness of authoritarian power and forms of contestation across time and space. Drawing on logistics and infrastructure literature, we reconcile the contextualization of power relations with multi-scalar authoritarian practices beyond the inside-outside binary of national territoriality. We thus offer a conceptual approach to understanding the violent and repressive practices inherent to a continuum of different political settings, including liberal governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) aims to integrate the banking industry in the region. To achieve this, ASEAN members have agreed to create the ASEAN Banking Integration Framework (ABIF) to support such integration. Despite being endorsed in 2014, the framework remains vague and lacks clear policy coordination arrangements as well as standardisation instruments that enable ASEAN member states to integrate their banking sectors. This article examines why the member states agreed to such regulatory arrangements. Building upon the regulatory regionalism approach, we argue that the regulatory arrangement is underpinned by a socio-political struggle among dominant social forces in ASEAN. The article further argues that the political endeavour to internationalise domestic capital through the banking integration project remains problematic, given that local banking players seem to largely focus on protecting and penetrating domestic markets rather than regional expansion. This has hindered the progress of regional banking integration in ASEAN. To substantiate this argument, we use Indonesia's engagement in the process as a case study. This article contributes to the study of political economies of banking integration outside of the European experiment by emphasising the importance of state–society relations in shaping the outcome of regional integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese President Xi Jinping has since 2013 advocated for an "Asia-Pacific Community with a Shared Future" (APCSF). This concept has rekindled debates on regional integration. The article begins by critiquing conventional Eurocentric theories of community-building while highlighting fundamental features of the Asia-Pacific approach. It recounts erstwhile proposals put forward by Japan, Australia, and America, drawing comparisons with the emerging Chinese vision. The APCSF envisions an inclusive intergovernmental society of cooperative yet interdependent economies in the Asia-Pacific. Unlike the notion of Indo-Pacific, the idea of Asia-Pacific countries belonging to a community has deeper economic and psychological roots. Furthermore, what sets the APCSF apart from previous proposals is its solid foundation that aligns with its ambitious goals. It can draw upon existing initiatives such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership for Trade Liberalisation and the Belt and Road Initiative for enhancing connectivity. Consequently, the APCSF stands a better chance of eventual realisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term "the space of appearance," which originates from the writings of Hannah Arendt, resonated strongly within the writings of Kenneth Frampton. In this article, I trace how Frampton understands this notion. As he has been mostly concerned with the democratic necessity to establish a public realm, he laments the loss of architecture's ability to establish such a realm. Arendt's notion informs him to turn to the local and thus can be understood as informative with regards to his engagement with "critical regionalism" and his attempt to define an architecture resisting neocapitalist urbanisation and its inherent placelessness. By introducing Martin Heidegger's distinction between space and place, he connects Arendt's "appearance" to bounded spaces and the notion of proximity. Frampton, I claim, nevertheless does not align the "space of appearance" with particular spatial typologies, but develops his understanding of the potential (or lost potential) of architecture through the reflection on specific projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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