Month: July 2015

Arctic fishing and Russian Maritime Doctrine

Many Arctic watchers were glad to hear about the agreement on prohibiting fishing in the newly-opening waters around the North Pole, signed a couple of weeks ago in Oslo by Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the USA. Indeed, it was a significant step in protecting migrating fish stocks – but Iceland declared strong reservations. It… Read more »

Contestations over National Identity and Diversity: An analysis of French and British media debates in the autumn 2014

How and when is national identity and nationhood debated, and what does this reveal about the boundaries of national identity? Drawing on analyses of opinion pieces from French and British newspapers, we examine how national identity is debated, contested and challenged in light of national and international news events during the autumn of 2014. This… Read more »

How Long can Putin Continue doing Nothing?

Putin has always preferred to postpone decisions until the last possible moment and to keep his lieutenants and international counterparts in the dark about his intentions. This summer, however, he is arguably wasting time and maneuvering himself into a corner, from which the only escape will be jumping into another spasm of hostilities in eastern… Read more »

The China Factor in Russian Support for the Iran Deal

The United States needed Russian support to conclude the Iranian nuclear deal. As U.S. President Barack Obama acknowledged, “we would have not achieved this agreement had it not been for Russia’s willingness to stick with us.” But with U.S.-Russian relations at their lowest point since the end of the Cold War, Russian support came as… Read more »

This Week in South Sudan – Week 29

Monday 13 July The civil war continues to stifle South Sudan’s oil economy. The Central Equatoria state government condemned the SPLA of “brutality” after clashes with fighters from the Mundri tribe near Juba, which left at least 8 people dead. The SPLA later denied allegations of attacks on unarmed civilians. A hand grenade explosion in… Read more »

How Can States and Non-State Actors Respond to Authoritarian Resurgence?

Two weeks ago, the Monkey Cage ran a piece by Matthew Baum and Phil Potter suggesting that the policy of “democracy-promotion” has gone out of style.[1] I think they’re right that in many circles democracy-promotion is politically passé and that, more broadly, democracy advocates are really having a tough couple of years. In the midst… Read more »