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This paper describes the contours of a research program on peacekeeping and peacebuilding, representing the interests of Non-Western countries (the world’s majority). The article is based on both individual developments of its expert authors in the theory and practice of peacekeeping, international law and development cooperation, as well as on generalized conclusions of eight international workshops on Non-Western peacekeeping, held by the Department of Theory and History of International Relations of the RUDN University in 2020-2021 with the participation of leading Russian and international experts. Particular attention is paid to the current moment in international peacekeeping associated with the “power transit” (from the United States to China, and more broadly, from the West to the Non-West) and the power vacuum observed in a number of regions. Conclusions are drawn about the crisis of humanitarian intervention and the system of liberal peacekeeping in general. At the same time, the remaining instruments of Western structural power in the field of peacekeeping are examined in detail, covering both personnel representation in the UN and the practice of ‘penholding,’ as well as the discursive hegemony of the “Collective West.” The main directions in the development of Non-Western academic discourse in the field of peacemaking and peacebuilding are explored in the context of building a multipolar world. Special attention is paid to the problems of regional human rights systems in the context of the protection of civilians and post-conflict peacebuilding. The study concludes that Non-Western countries have a significant influence on the formation of international norms in the field of peacekeeping (rule-changers), but so far do not act as norm-setting actors in world politics (rule-makers).

The hybrid nature and scope of contemporary conflicts, the terrorism threat, and the dramatic increase in competition for resources, global militarization and security challenges in Africa do not only carry the risk of state collapse, but have conditioned concerted efforts by national, regional and international actors to protect human rights and remedy the humanitarian situation. In many ways, the African continent with its unique and diverse nature of conflicts has become a platform for the renewal of the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping through the development of new operational and normative practices and strategies that, as a distinctive feature of the UN missions in the African continent, have gradually moved from the status of innovations to the category of quite commonplace global practice. This article attempts to assess UN peacekeeping in Africa from the 1960s till 2022. The authors examine the characteristics, nature and scope of peacekeeping operations (PKOs) as well as strategies for transforming peacekeeping mandates. Using a problem-chronological approach, comparative analysis and quantitative assessments of the UN peacekeeping missions, the formats of cooperation with regional organizations (the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)), gender composition of the UN missions, in particular, the authors come to the natural conclusion that the number of the UN peacekeeping operations and political missions in Africa remains high and their mandates have expanded and become more complex with increased activity of the leading world powers. The authors conclude that stabilization and conflict resolution in Africa will greatly depend on effective cooperation between the UN and regional organizations, as well as on the UN reforms and its ability to adapt rapidly to changing conflict scenarios in each African state.

A strong partnership between the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU) is essential to achieve strategic convergence, coherence and effective solutions to Africa’s complex peace and security challenges. This article analyzes the key challenges in the UN - AU partnership for peacekeeping, including the UN - AU frameworks, policies and strategies in implementing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda to establish equal, full and constructive participation of women in the peacekeeping process. The authors identify key challenges in the UN - AU partnership for peacekeeping and assess the effectiveness of the mechanisms and tools of this partnership in the field of maintaining peace and security. The implementation of the WPS agenda in Africa in 2003-2022 is discussed in detail. The empirical basis for the research was drawn from the UN peacekeeping website database, official AU documents, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, and AU and UN statistics on the gender composition of key UN peacekeeping missions during the period under review. This study employs quantitative methods of assessment and comparative analysis of UN and the AU statistics on women’s participation in African peacekeeping from 2003 to 2022. It focuses on the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) as a case study. The article concludes that there is a direct link between the deteriorating security situation in Africa, the effective implementation of the WPS agenda, and the level of strategic partnership between the UN and the AU.

Narratives are essential for organizations and states to provide a framework for their decision-making processes and organizational structure and bolster their legitimacy by appealing to shared values and worldviews. These narratives will play a greater role in a multipolar world characterized by a diversity of worldviews and values that shape the internal and external perceptions of international actors. The authors compare the critical narratives forwarded by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), namely the Shanghai Spirit and the ASEAN Way. Drawing on scientific works dedicated to explicating the worldview, values, and norms espoused by the Shanghai Spirit and the ASEAN Way, the authors use syncretic approaches to show how these concepts are applied in these narratives. The Shanghai Spirit is based on mutual trust, mutual benefit, quality, respect for the diversity of civilizations, and the pursuit of common development. Similarly, the ASEAN Way is based on non-interference, non-confrontation, non-use of force, and consensus-based decision-making. The Shanghai Spirit and the ASEAN Way have notable similarities, such as an emphasis on preserving sovereignty, a pragmatic approach to regionalism, and a flexible, non-binding application. Although they also have significant differences, such as the rationale behind them, different preferred means of cooperation, and an emphasis on state security versus human security. The article argues that the unique features of the Shanghai Spirit and the ASEAN Way, which promote loose regionalism, combined with the state-centric Westphalian features of the contemporary international system, result in a new form of regionalism that is open yet preserves and reinforces the individual sovereignty of states. In this sense, the Shanghai Spirit and the ASEAN Way may provide the intellectual basis for a new form of regionalism and international relations that can better respond to the emerging challenges of a multipolar world.

A survivor-centered approach is at the heart of the international community’s humanitarian action today. In armed conflicts various forms of sexual violence are seen not only as accompanying violence, but also as a tool of pressure and warfare of the contesting parties, and important measures to prevent and counteract such acts have been included into the mandates of the UN peacekeeping missions. This research aims to identify the logic of international community’s action to counter conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) by strengthening peacekeeping initiatives, and complement ongoing research on the protection of women in armed conflict and situations of sexual violence. This goal entails an examination of all elements of the existing system: legal framework, the role of states, and the activities of the UN. The authors conducted a content analysis of the UN Security Council resolutions on the topic to trace conceptual terminological changes. At the same time, to identify the main contradictions in the rhetoric of states and, consequently, the motives of their actions, a discourse cluster analysis was used based on the statements of delegations in the UN Security Council. The resulting clusters display three unique positions of the national states that are mostly explained by different understandings of the term itself, the categories of victims of such violence, and the relevant tools for countering it. Emphasis could be placed on including sexual violence on the sanctions list, gender education in military training, increasing the number of women in peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions, or preventive measures. The authors identified the most active states pushing the anti-sexual violence agenda; they include Germany, the UK, the US, Canada, and France. The article also examines the practical implementation of UN peacekeeping mandates in terms of including measures to counteract sexual violence. The research confirms that peacekeeping missions are now more actively engaged in the international response to CRSV.

The article reviews Soviet and East German studies of neocolonialism that have been translated into Russian. A total of more than 60 monographs on Western neocolonialism have been systematically studied and finally compiled into an electronic archive in preparation for this publication. Based on the materials of Soviet studies, the article presents the main features of Western neocolonialism, related both to political manoeuvres and the economic arsenal of the former metropolitan powers. A detailed analysis of the narratives used by Western countries to emphasize their proximity to the “Third World” is given. Particular attention is paid to neocolonial theories, both “variants of well-known bourgeois and reformist concepts addressed to developing countries” and “concepts and theories specially created to support neocolonialism.” Neocolonial approaches were studied both in the context of individual Western countries and groups of states (Great Britain, France, Germany, the European Economic Community (EEC), USA) and by functional areas (technical assistance, food neocolonialism, international organizations). Regarding the UK, the differences in neocolonial policy between Labor Party and Conservatives are examined. The main instruments of France’s neocolonial policy are described and it is concluded that they have hardly changed in recent decades. The role of the FRG in the strategy of “European neocolonialism” is shown, and major characteristics of the neocolonial policy of the EEC are highlighted. With regard to the, authors speak of a new type of imperialist colonialism associated with American leadership in the institutions of the “collective West.” As for the United States, a new type of imperialist colonialism is being put forward, associated with America’s leadership in the institutions of the “collective West.” The origins and “running-in” of the US neocolonial tools are shown in detail, using the actual American colonial experience in the Philippines as an example. The main directions of critical analysis of the participation of Western countries in technical and food aid systems and in the activities of international organizations are presented. In conclusion, some remarks are formulated on the practical component of Soviet studies of neocolonialism. It is also stressed that in the mid-1980s, after the proclamation of the “New Political Thinking” the critical degree of Soviet studies of neocolonialism declined significantly.

The article attempts to highlight the key economic, political, and social factors that have adverse effects on current relationship dynamics between the Russian Federation and the CIS countries and are thus responsible for the gradual decline in Russia’s influence in the post-Soviet area. Authors affirm that this specific phenomenon is predetermined, on the one hand, by the aspiration of the political and economic diversification and, on the other hand, by a number of socio-cultural and psychological factors. The article argues that Russian political leaders’ perception of various post-soviet countries as “pro-Russian” is biased in its conceptual core and based on a number of subjective factors that have no actual relation to the decision-making process in these countries. In reality, the foreign policy of CIS countries is based mostly on pragmatic economic interests capable of providing steady development, which makes implementation of such subjective terms as “pro-Russian” and “pro-Western” highly misleading and unproductive, especially in the current conditions of confrontation between Russia and the West.

The article analyzes the cultural policy of Italy, which is one of the key soft power instruments of the country, along with public diplomacy, the Italian language, education and scientific activities, through the prism of the cultural strategy of the EU. Despite the presence of a large number of articles on soft power implementation, this issue remains insufficiently covered today, since the concept of soft power emerged at the end of the 20th century in the framework of the American international relations school (J. Nye) and the majority of academic foreign papers are still devoted to the American soft power model. It is revealed that scientific community paid not enough attention to the Italian soft power phenomenon. The author’s goal is to analyze the cultural model of Italy, used as one of soft power component. According to the results of the structural, comparative and institutional analysis, fundamental problems in the development of the Italian cultural model were identified, as well as the links between the successful adoption of cultural diplomacy and economic crisis. The governmental initiatives in Italy in realization of cultural diplomacy and the EU cultural strategy are thoroughly reviewed. The analysis of the activities of specialized government institutions responsible for the cultural promotion of the country and the Italian language abroad is carried out. The soft power rankings, reflecting the effectiveness of cultural policy, in particular, Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index and The Soft Power 30 are being analyzed. Measures to ensure the efficient use of the soft power resources in Italy are proposed. They are mostly aimed at combining the activities of existing institutions and forming an integrated strategy for popularizing, financing and broadening soft power components both within the state and foreign policy strategy.

This article is devoted to the theme, scientific actuality and practical relevance of which is not in doubt, and is caused by a new wave of interest in human security. The human security concept has been the subject of active discussions on national and international security forums for the past 10 years. This article is focused on the human security concept evolution in the framework of the UN in conditions of the growing challenges and threats as well as polycentric world and international relations transformation. The author turned to the analysis of human security issues in the UN human rights dimension, as this organization performs a key role in the application and implementation of the concept on a global scale. The detailed periodization of human security development within the UN is presented for the first time. The analysis of the situation with Syrian refugees in Lebanon is carried out in the format of a case study. Author has made an attempt to undertake not a comprehensive analysis of the concept within the UN, but re-evaluation of new trends and dominant problems in practical application of human security idea and its impact on the effectiveness of international organizations.

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Since 2010 Boko Haram uprising, it has transformed into a powerful regional terrorist group whose terrorist act of bombing and kidnapping had attracted the world attention. Rapidly Boko Haram has become the second most dreaded terrorist group in the world after Islamic States (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria. The group’s tactics shifted and diversified from attacks on government installations to more damning quest through bombings, robberies, kidnappings, assaults on churches and mainstream Muslim targets, leading to occupation of villages and towns, indicating greater confidence and capacity to form a territory within the territory of Nigeria and declare an “Islamic Caliphate” in Nigeria which is their utmost objective. This article reviews the activities of Boko Haram Islamic Militant terror group operating in the northern region of Nigeria, the result of its frequent attacks in the region, governance and economic activities had been brought to a halt. This article also analyses the roles played by international community and the efforts of the Nigeria government in resolving the crisis. The article further points out the continuous attacks of Boko Haram if unchecked its will threaten the relatively peace and security in the West Africa region.