Download or read book The Transition to National Armies in the Former Soviet Republics 1988 2005 written by Jesse Paul Lehrke and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book looks at the militaries of the late-Soviet and post-Soviet republics. Beginning with the end of the Soviet era, it recognises that the successor states did not spring from nowhere, but inherited a legacy that influenced all that followed. The book discusses how politicians control the instruments that are the manifestation of the state’s monopoly on violence, and how society views and supports the military. By taking a bottom up empirical approach that examines the personnel, leaders, organisations and institutions, and their outlook and attitudes, the book presents a comprehensive picture of the armed forces, showing how the armed forces are very significantly shaped by the surrounding political and social environment. The book goes on to examine the armed forces in action, and highlights that to truly understand the militaries, studies need to go beyond looking at the static structures.

Download or read book The Transition to National Armies in the Former Soviet Republics 1988 2005 written by Jesse Paul Lehrke and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-01-03 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book looks at the militaries of the late-Soviet and post-Soviet republics. Beginning with the end of the Soviet era, it recognises that the successor states did not spring from nowhere, but inherited a legacy that influenced all that followed. The book discusses how politicians control the instruments that are the manifestation of the state’s monopoly on violence, and how society views and supports the military. By taking a bottom up empirical approach that examines the personnel, leaders, organisations and institutions, and their outlook and attitudes, the book presents a comprehensive picture of the armed forces, showing how the armed forces are very significantly shaped by the surrounding political and social environment. The book goes on to examine the armed forces in action, and highlights that to truly understand the militaries, studies need to go beyond looking at the static structures.

Download or read book Higher Education as Politics in Post Rose Revolution Georgia written by Brian Lanahan and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2024-01-11 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book summarises the evolution of the higher education system in post-Soviet Georgia, amidst democratisation, economic liberalisation and European integration. The author gives an overview of the recent political history in Georgia, paying particular attention to both the collapse of the Soviet Union as well as the Rose Revolution, and their roles in transforming the education system. The book seeks out national and international perspectives to understand how higher education in Georgia can be further developed to meet the needs of all Georgians, while also further advancing Euro-Atlantic integration. It will be of interest to students and scholars of comparative education, as well as the related fields of international development, political science and history.

Download or read book The Citizen Soldier in War and Peace written by James Biser Whisker and published by Universal-Publishers. This book was released on 2021-09-15 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Citizen Soldier in War and Peace is a is a short historical look at the use of firearms in America and throughout the world this book appeals to anybody who believes in the Second Amendment or who is interested in the historical use of firearms. It begins with the use of guns for hunting and self-protection ad well as personal property and of course national defense early in our country‘s early history . It also analyzes the philosophical standpoint of the idea of the armed citizen and its relationship to freedom. A freeman with a gun, an armed citizenry means a free country The book also does a thorough job of examining other countries and other philosophical aspects of arming the citizenry. This book clearly defines the Militias in other countries. It touches on China and the Soviet Union and their philosophy as well. The book is extremely readable and would be advised reading for anyone from high school to grad school. Those interested in history political science or current events will find this book a must for their personal library.

Download or read book National Minorities in Putin s Russia written by Federica Prina and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-05 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using a human rights approach, the book analyses the dynamics in the application of minority policies for the preservation of cultural and linguistic diversity in Russia. Despite Russia’s legacy of ethno-cultural and linguistic pluralism, the book argues that the Putin leadership’s overwhelming statism and promotion of Russian patriotism are inexorably leading to a reduction of Russia’s diversity. Using scores of interviews with representatives of national minorities, civil society, public officials and academics, the book highlights the reasons why Russian law and policies, as well as international standards on minority rights, are ill-equipped to withstand the centralising drive toward ever greater uniformity. While minority policies are fragmented and feeble in contemporary Russia, they are also centrally conceived, which is exacerbated by a growing democratic deficit under Putin. Crucially, in today’s Russia informal practices and networks are frequently utilised rather than formal channels in the sphere of diversity management. Informal practices, the book argues, can at times favour minorities, yet they more frequently disadvantage them and create the conditions for the co-optation of leaders of minority groups. A dilution of diversity, the book suggests, is not only resulting in the loss of Russia’s rich cultural heritage but is also impairing the peaceful coexistence of the individuals and groups that make up Russian society.

Download or read book The Russian Presidency of Dmitry Medvedev 2008 2012 written by J. L. Black and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-08-21 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The term "tandem" was used to describe the Putin-Medvedev combination which ruled Russia from 2008 to 2012, when Medvedev was president and Putin prime minister. Many people saw Putin as the real wielder of power, with Medvedev as his puppet. Others, however, saw Medvedev as a visionary, someone who envisioned large scale schemes - even though these schemes have not yet come to fruition. At the same time, many in the West regarded Medvedev favourably, and gave him credit for raising expectations among both the elite and the middle classes in Russia in such a way as to make it difficult for the Russian state to return to its old ways. This book presents a comprehensive survey of the Medvedev presidency, covering all areas including politics, the economy, international relations and social developments. The author concludes that it is still too early to assess Medvedev's achievements definitively.

Download or read book Russia and East Asia written by Tsuneo Akaha and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-02-05 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Russia has generally been neglected in the academic and policy discourse on regional integration in East Asia. This book fills this gap, with particular attention to the role of Pacific Russia in the deepening regional integration in East Asia. It examines the increasingly diverse foreign policy interests of Russia related to emerging economic and political realities of the world, and Russia’s potential role in the regional integration in East Asia. Topics discussed include Russian strategic interests and security policy in East Asia generally, Russia’s bilateral relations with China, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula, opportunities and challenges energy and immigration presents for Russia and its engagement with East Asia, and Russia’s present and future roles in regional integration in East Asia.

Download or read book Contemporary Debates on Terrorism written by Richard Jackson and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-09-03 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contemporary Debates on Terrorism is an innovative textbook, addressing a number of key issues in terrorism studies from both traditional and 'critical' perspectives. This second edition has been revised and updated to cover contemporary issues such as the rise of ISIL and cyberterrorism. In recent years, the terrorism studies field has grown in quantity and quality, with a growing number of scholars rooted in various professional disciplines beginning to debate the complex dynamics underlying this category of violence. Within the broader field, there are a number of identifiable controversies and questions which divide scholarly opinion and generate opposing arguments. These relate to theoretical issues, such as the definition of terrorism and state terrorism, substantive issues like the threat posed by al Qaeda/ISIL and the utility of different responses to terrorism, different pathways leading people to engage in terrorist tactics and ethical issues such as the use of drones. This new edition brings together in one place many of the field’s leading scholars to debate the key issues relating to a set of 16 important controversies and questions. The format of the volume involves a leading scholar taking a particular position on the controversy, followed by an opposing or alternative viewpoint written by another scholar. In addition to the pedagogic value of allowing students to read opposing arguments in one place, the volume will also be important for providing an overview of the state of the field and its key lines of debate. This book will be essential reading for students of terrorism studies and political violence, critical terrorism studies, security studies and IR in general.

Download or read book The Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Conflict De escalation written by James MacHaffie and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-03-10 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book’s main objective is to determine the role, if any, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) plays in de-escalating tensions among its members. It argues that the SCO is uniquely suited to keep its disparate members, many of whom have border disputes with each other, from escalating tensions among themselves. The book proposes a rivalry de-escalation model that differs from the standard belief that rivalries de-escalate due to a shock or external pressure. This model states that trust can be built between two rival states when confidence-building measures are instilled and utilized repeatedly over a long period of time. The SCO provides these mechanisms in the form of annual summits between state leaders and routine military exercises involving military units from every member. Examining three case studies involving the founding six members of the organization, the book argues that the SCO is effective in keeping rivalries de-escalated among its members. This book will be of much interest to students of Asian politics, regional security, and international relations.

Download or read book The Return of the Cold War written by J. L. Black and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-04-14 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the crisis in Ukraine, tracing its development and analysing the factors which lie behind it. It discusses above all how the two sides have engaged in political posturing, accusations, escalating sanctions and further escalating threats, arguing that the ease with which both sides have reverted to a Cold War mentality demonstrates that the Cold War belief systems never really disappeared, and that the hopes raised in the aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union for a new era in East-West relations were misplaced. The book pays special attention to the often ignored origins of the crisis within Ukraine itself, and the permanent damage caused by the fact that Ukrainians are killing Ukrainians in the eastern parts of the country. It also assesses why Cold War belief systems have re-emerged so easily, and concludes by considering the likely long-term ramifications of the crisis, arguing that the deep-rooted lack of trust makes the possibility of compromise even harder than in the original Cold War.

Download or read book Business Leaders and New Varieties of Capitalism in Post Communist Europe written by Katharina Bluhm and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-09-23 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Business leaders exert extraordinary influence on institution building in market economies but they think and act within institutional settings. This book combines both an elite approach with a varieties-of-capitalism approach. Comparing Poland, Hungary and East and West Germany, we perceive the transformations in East Central Europe and in Germany after 1989 as being intertwined. Based on a joint survey, this book seeks to measure the level of the convergence of ideas among European business leaders, assuming it to be more extensive than the institutional convergence expected under the dominance of neoliberal discourse. Analyzing the institutional framework, organizational features like size, ownership and labour relations, and subjective characteristics like age, social origin, career patterns and attitudes of the recent business elites, we found significant differences between countries and the types of organization. The growing importance of economic degrees and internationalization shows astonishingly little explanatory power on the views of business leaders. The idea of a coordinated market economy is still relatively widespread among Germans, while their Hungarian and Polish counterparts are more likely to display a minimalist view of corporate responsibility to society and adverse attitudes towards employee representation. However, their attitudes frequently tend to be inconsistent, which mirrors the mixed type of capitalism in East Central Europe.

Download or read book Russian Energy and Security up to 2030 written by Susanne Oxenstierna and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-01-03 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The challenges in Russia’s energy sector are changing. On the demand side, Europe is seeking to limit its dependence on Russian oil and gas, with the result that China and other Asian countries are likely to eventually become growing export markets for Russian energy. On the supply side, oil and gas fields in West Siberia are diminishing and in future Russia’s energy will have to come more from East Siberia and the Arctic, which will necessitate new infrastructure development and the employment of advanced technologies, which may increase Russia’s dependence on commercial partners from outside Russia. This book explores the challenges facing Russia’s energy sector and the resulting security implications. It includes a discussion of how far the Russian state is likely to continue to monopolise the energy sector, and how far competition from private and foreign companies might be allowed.

Download or read book The Making of Modern Georgia 1918 2012 written by Stephen F. Jones and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-03-14 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When most of Eastern Europe was struggling with dictatorships of one kind or another, the Democratic Republic of Georgia (1918-1921) established a constitution, a parliamentary system with national elections, an active opposition, and a free press. Like the Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1918, its successors emerged after 1991 from a bankrupt empire, and faced, yet again, the task of establishing a new economic, political and social system from scratch. In both 1918 and 1991, Georgia was confronted with a hostile Russia and followed a pro-Western and pro-democratic course. The top regional experts in this book explore the domestic and external parallels between the Georgian post-colonial governments of the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries. How did the inexperienced Georgian leaders in both eras deal with the challenge of secessionism, what were their state building strategies, and what did democracy mean to them? What did their electoral systems look like, why were their economic strategies so different, and how did they negotiate with the international community neighbouring threats. These are the central challenges of transitional governments around the world today. Georgia’s experience over one hundred years suggests that both history and contemporary political analysis offer the best (and most interesting) explanation of the often ambivalent outcomes.

Download or read book Open Participatory Security written by Jesse Paul Lehrke and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2017-08-15 with total page 259 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Our modern security systems have recently come under a lot of criticism: as too bureaucratic and unadaptable, too secretive and untrustworthy, and too obsessed with information technology rather than human needs. Yet listing failures is easy; security is never perfect. The question is why current approaches fail and whether there are viable alternatives. The root of their shortcomings is in the interaction of the very pillars of our security system in the contemporary context. While our enemies have adopted the technologies of the Information Age, changing how they organize and fight, these same technologies have only created more vulnerabilities for states. Governments have been generally unwilling to maximize their use of these technologies because it would require the wider release of information and the opening of organizational structures to include society in security making. Yet countering diffuse modern threats striking deep into our states and across our economies requires mobilizing the diffuse skills and variation of modern society. Open approaches for mobilizing participation and coproduction have the capabilities needed to improve contemporary security policy making, problem solving, and provision. Moreover, open participatory security can be effective not only for technical security, but also for restoring trust among the citizens and rebuilding the legitimacy of the state.

Download or read book Religion Nation and Democracy in the South Caucasus written by Alexander Agadjanian and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-10-10 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores developments in the three major societies of the South Caucasus – Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia – focusing especially on religion, historical traditions, national consciousness, and political culture, and on how these factors interact. It outlines how, despite close geographical interlacement, common historical memories and inherited structures, the three countries have deep differences; and it discusses how development in all three nations has differed significantly from the countries’ declared commitments to democratic orientation and European norms and values. The book also considers how external factors and international relations continue to impact on the three countries.

Download or read book Digital Russia written by Michael Gorham and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-03-05 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Digital Russia provides a comprehensive analysis of the ways in which new media technologies have shaped language and communication in contemporary Russia. It traces the development of the Russian-language internet, explores the evolution of web-based communication practices, showing how they have both shaped and been shaped by social, political, linguistic and literary realities, and examines online features and trends that are characteristic of, and in some cases specific to, the Russian-language internet.

Download or read book Eurasian Integration The View from Within written by Piotr Dutkiewicz and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-10-17 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As Eurasia and the adjacent territories become more important to the world, there is increasing interest from international powers, accompanied by attempts to give institutional form to traditional economic and security links within the region. This book includes a range of substantive work from scholars based in the region, offering contrasting perspectives on the process of Eurasian integration and its place in the world. Chapters consider economic, political, social and security developments, with notable studies of the major countries involved in the development of the Eurasian Economic Union. The work also examines the connections between the region and China, greater Asia and the European Union. It outlines the varying dynamics, with populations growing in Central Asia while at best stagnant elsewhere. The book discusses the increasing strategic significance of the region and explores how the new post-Soviet states are growing in national cohesion and political self-confidence. Above all, the book examines the concept of ’Eurasia’, outlining the debates about the concept and how various aspects of the legacy of ‘Eurasianism’ contribute to contemporary plans for integration. The book argues that although regional integration is very much a popular idea in our age, with the potential for economic benefits and increased international influence, in practice contemporary projects for Eurasian integration have been highly ambiguous and contested. Nevertheless, significant steps have been taken towards the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union. The book analyses developments to date, noting the achievements as well as the challenges.