Conflict In International Relations Research Articles

“Draw on your experience”: student diversity-driven internationalisation in a diverse International Relations course

AbstractThis study investigates the suitability of student-driven internationalisation of the curriculum in a diverse educational setting. Despite its vast educational potential, internationalisation of the curriculum is an often-missing component of general internationalisation even in programmes and courses with a diverse student body. To remedy this shortcoming in a course of international politics, I introduced a teaching and learning innovation, which encouraged students to use examples based on personal experiences and regional background—rather than merely from the assigned literature—during their arguments in preparation for and during biweekly seminars. In addition, the assessment criteria were shifted to support the sharing of information and knowledge among peers in this course, called “Theories of Cooperation and Conflict in International Relations”. The study uses a quasi-experimental setup and offers a comprehensive mixed-methods analysis of the innovation and finds that student learning and their classroom experience was positively impacted. While students did use notably more “own experience” examples and improved in their written preparatory work for the seminars, they turned to these very cautiously in the actual classroom debates. The findings are explained by the interplay between internationalisation and decolonisation of the classroom and the increased stakes in assessment criteria.

Queer lives during conflict in Northern Ireland: deconstructing the “two communities” model

ABSTRACT This article poses the question of how incorporating the “subjugated knowledge” of queer histories of the Troubles in Northern Ireland affects understandings of the conflict in international relations and security studies. It argues that while the centrality of the “two communities” model drives all other issues to the political margins and perpetuates division, adopting a queer approach can deconstruct the identities of those communities and suggest ways to move beyond that model. It uses Jack Halberstam’s queer methodology as a “scavenger methodology” to draw on existing published interviews, as well as plays and films representing queer experiences during the Troubles, and a queer theoretical approach that seeks to both foreground queer experiences and challenge normative and binary understandings of identity in this context. Focusing on queer lives during the conflict reveals that constructing the identities of the two communities depends on excluding the queer subject, that queer people’s security during the conflict was shaped by their queer identity, and that queerness can and has been mobilized to deconstruct received narratives and the apparently essential identities of the two communities, demonstrating some possibilities for dismantling the unionist/nationalist dichotomy.

Environmental Terrorism Twenty Years On

Abstract In 2002, a few months after 9/11, I published one of the very first academic examinations of environmental terrorism: what was included in this term and what wasn’t, who might commit such terrorism, and what sorts of environmental resources were vulnerable. Since then, it has been the subject of academic and government analyses. Now, twenty years later, it is time to revisit the concept in light of worsening anthropogenic climate change, the rise of authoritarian states and ecofascism, and gray-zone conflicts in international relations.

Justification of Intergroup Violence: An Exploratory Study within the Israeli-Arab Society

The aim of this exploratory study was to assess the level of justification of intergroup violence from the perspective of Israeli Arab minority group (n=196). The study analyzed the link between threat perception and justification of intergroup violence in Israel, which presents a suitable setting due to ongoing conflict between Arabs and Jews. Results indicate that symbolic threat is more salient among Israeli Arab participants compared to realistic threat. The study also found that females tended to perceive violence committed by Arabs against Israeli Jews as more justified than males suggesting that women are more prone to frustration due to intersectionality, leading to violence. In addition, a strong correlation between a person's support of the idea that frustration led to intergroup violence and their justification of such violence was found, supporting some of the frustration-aggression hypothesis. Results emphasize the need to emphasize understanding intergroup conflicts in international relations.

Role conflict in International Relations: the case of Indonesia’s regional and global engagements

In recent years, scholars have devoted increased attention to the notion of roles in foreign policy analysis and international relations. However, role theory literature has so far less frequently explored re-conceptualising role conflict. To further understand the concept of role conflict, this article aims to unpacks the notion of international audiences. To do so, this article advances the application of role conflict by arguing the importance of notion of vertical role conflict that considers the different levels of international audiences, specifically regionally and globally. Building upon the symbolic interactionist conceptualisation of social interaction as a stage, regional and global levels can be seen as arenas for role-playing but with different expectations to fulfil. The article proposes two types of vertical role conflict, stemming from the difference between the regional and global levels. These theoretical claims will be elucidated through the study of Indonesia’s regional and global engagement in two areas: human rights and trade.

Christoph Besold on confederation rights and duties of esteem in diplomatic relations

ABSTRACT The self-worth of political communities is often understood to be an expression of their position in a hierarchy of power; if so, then the desire for self-worth is a source of competition and conflict in international relations. In early modern German natural law theories, one finds the alternative view, according to which duties of esteem toward political communities should reflect the degree to which they fulfill the functions of civil government. The present article offers a case study, examining the views concerning confederation rights and the resulting duties of esteem in diplomatic relations developed by Christoph Besold (1577–1638). Besold defends the view that confederations including dependent communities—such as the Hanseatic League—could fulfill a stabilizing political function. He also uses sixteenth-century conceptions concerning the acquisition of sovereignty rights through prescription of immemorial time. Both strands of argument lead to the conclusion that the envoys of dependent communities can have the right to be recognized as ambassadors, with all the duties of esteem that follow from this recognition.

КОНФЛІКТИ В МІЖНАРОДНИХ ВІДНОСИНАХ ТА ЇХ ВПЛИВ НА КОНКУРЕНТОСРОМОЖНІСТЬ ЕКОНОМІКИ КРАЇНИ

The economic growth of any country is impossible without the world economic relationships today. Its progress depends on participation in the international division of labour and efficient and timely adaptation to today's challenges. The degree of dependence of a country on foreign economic relations as well as on foreign policy often leads to conflict situations. Increased conflict in international relations is a threat and destabilizing factor both for separate neighbouring countries and for entire regions. It is of utter importance to understand the consequences that may arise in economic terms due to conflicts between the countries. It is referred to as the impact on commodity turnover, financial and production relations, GDP, tourism, governmental costs, macroeconomic, export-import indices, household costs, foreign and domestic investment volumes, external debt indices, national security, etc., as well as on the competitiveness of the economy. The competitiveness of the economy in the given research is considered a systemic, obligatory indicator of the efficiency of the economic well-being of the country. It is a comprehensive assessment of the economic, political, and social system of the country as a whole; an indicator of the efficiency using the economic potential. Therefore, increasing competitiveness is an extremely important task for any country. The article characterizes the essence of the international conflict as a component of international economic relations. Key reasons, most often contributing to their occurrence, are outlined. Criteria and types of international conflicts are specified. The influence of international conflicts on the competitiveness of the economy is revealed, which allowed enlightening their specific features and characterizing the mechanism for coordination of the national interests in order to avoid and prevent international conflict.

The Role of UN General Assembly in the Development and Creation of Humanitarian law

The United Nations as one of the most important international organizations has an important role in securing human rights. The UN General Assembly as the principal organ of this organization, regarding the duties and powers considered for it, can also improve humanitarian law among state members. The role of the UN General Assembly has been investigated through an analytical-descriptive method in this article. An important and special role has been given to the UN in the new international order. One of the organs of this organization is the General Assembly which has found more importance in expressing the thoughts and values of the Third World countries since the Third World countries can express their views against the developed industrialized- countries through this organ. Assigning missions such as mediation and good office to the Secretary General of United Nations in the times of crisis, as it has been discussed in this article, indicates that UN General Assembly has taken advantage of all available mechanisms to create humanitarian law and prevent international conflicts in international relations. The position of the General Assembly against violence and extremism becomes more apparent when we know that almost all human rights institutions are considered as subsets of the General Assembly and that their job is to monitor human rights violations done by governments. This issue is important for this reason that the violation of human rights regulations in long run will lead to devastating violence in the international arena as well as among governments; an issue that will eventually lead to terrorist measures and behaviors.

Peran Media Sosial Sebagai Alat Propaganda Dalam Konflik Nagorno Karabakh Antara Armenia Dan Azerbaijan

The purpose of this paper is to explain how social media has become a new space for political discussion. The use of social media to report on conflicts, influence political perceptions, voice opinions about conflicts, and solicit public support around the world. As is the case with the Nagorno Karabakh ethnical conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan which cannot be separated from social media. In this conflict, social media was also used to ask for public support around the world to side with one of the countries in the Nagorno Karabakh Conflict. This paper will also examine how governmental and non-governmental actors use social media as a tool of propaganda and how the international community is a part of spreading propaganda in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. To help the author in the analysis process, at least the author uses several conceptual frameworks, including the role of social media in international relations, propaganda and identity conflicts in international relations.
 Keywords : Armenia; Azerbaijan; Ethnic Conflict; Nagorno Karabakh; Propaganda; Social Media

ETNİK ÇATIŞMA HAREKETLERİ: BOSNA- HERSEK VAKA ÇALIŞMASI

If the conflict occurs between two or more ethnic groups, it can be named ‘ethnic conflict’ due to political, social, economic, etc., which either includes violence or not. The issue of ‘ethnic conflict’ can be accepted as one of the special topics in international relations, and it should be discussed with experienced cases to provide research through social sciences. This study aims to contribute the studies of the ethnic conflict in international relations with the history and evaluation of dissolution of Yugoslavia, with the selected case of ‘Bosnia and Herzegovina’. This article examines the issue of 'ethnic conflict' and the historical background in the scope of International Relations. It investigates the ethnic conflict movements of Bosnia and Herzegovina's chosen region, since the Cold War years with appropriate International Relations theories. In this context, the issue was discussed within the historical background framework, together with the selected theories for the analysis and evaluation of the causes of ethnic conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the post-Cold War period on the psychosocial approach and evaluation of ethnic identity.

Theory of Political Culture the Origin of Conflict in the International System

The traditional Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism international relations theories cannot offer adequate and sufficient approaches to its existing conflicts in the world politics. Realism with the idea of security and military power, and liberalism with a focus on the role of the economy in international system and constructivism in the formation of the international system, have all largely lost their effectiveness in the world ahead. The emergence of new conflicts has transcended the geographical borders of countries and encompassed the peripheral regions, and finally, like rings of zenith, has connected all the sensitive regions of the world. Theories of the Cold War era in international relations were formulated and taken into account with the assumptions of their time, and now, like the Berlin Wall, it is only a symbol of the Cold War. Because China was not yet an emerging economic power and had not built artificial islands in the South China Sea, Russia was embroiled in internal bombings and oligarchy, and Putin had not yet annexed the Crimean peninsula to Russia and participated in the war in Syria, North Korea has been involved in International Atomic Energy Agency resolutions and has not yet acquired a nuclear bomb, and Iran has been involved in a war with Saddam Hussein in Iraq and has not yet acquired long-range missiles and was not expanding its influence in the Middle East, and for the US-led Western world, human rights and democracy in the world were valuable, and most importantly, the United States did not yet have a populist president, and so on. We have entered a new era of relations between States in the international system, for which we have not yet been able to choose a name due to the ambiguity in the concept and interconnectedness of events and the complexity of relations. Turkey's distance from West and proximity to Russia, Iran's proximity to China, and the rise of populism, the isolation and polarization of American society and unprecedented tensions in US-China relations and disorder is seen in Brexit in the European Union. Recognizing the predominant source of these changes and the origins of the conflicts and the elements involved and the functions helps us to improve knowledge from a particular situation to make an idea in the realities of the world politics and provides a suitable context for educational and research activities with a more accurate perspective. It is my hypothesis: “The fundamental source of future conflicts will be neither border disputes nor economic competitions nor ideological differences nor will change of leadership in the world, but the political culture is predominant source of the conflicts in the world”. An Explanatory Research conducted to identify the nature and extent of the political culture and its impact on conflict in international relations.

United Nations Peacekeeping Missions and the Intervention in the Yemeni Civil War (1963-1964)

"The tumultuous 1960s brought a multitude of inter- and intrastatal conflicts in international relations. Some of them derived from extinguished disputes as a subsequent effect of the decolonisation, while others were motivated by the aggressive intentions of states to conquer other states. An example was the Yemeni Civil War (1962–1970) which came in the spotlight of the international community because two neighbours countries, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Republic involved in the internal fight. The external involvement motivated and set the scene for the United Nations Organization to intervene and mobilise a peacekeeping operation which had to observe the withdrawal of the third parties and eventually facilitate the peace process. The study aims to analyze the UN peacekeeping mechanism, which is seen as a compromise created by the bipolarization of the international system that prevented the organization from fulfilling its task of keeping the international peace. Through the case study on the Yemeni peacekeeping operation which operated from 1963 to 1964, one could learn about how UN functioned during the Cold War years, what were the underlining processes supporting the authorization process of such an operation, about the contribution of the Secretary General to the functioning of the peacekeeping mechanism and lastly how the events in Yemen underlined the impact that the interests of involved actors had on the fulfillment of the given mandate of the UN operations."

Політико-правові аспекти міжнародних конфліктів крізь призму системності в міжнародних відносинах

The authors attempt to conceptualize approaches to determination of the nature and place of conflicts in international relations, as well as ways to resolve international conflicts in the modern theory of international relations. An international conflict is defined by the authors as an open political clash of two or more states (or other international actors) on the basis of differences or conflicts of interest. The views of leading theorists of realism, liberalism, and Marxism as directions in the theory of international relations were outlined. It was found that the end of the Cold War created further discussion about the prospects of world politics in the new conditions. During this period, the concepts of F. Fukuyama, S. Huntington, I. Wallerstein appeared, J. Galtung, M. Kaplan, K. Waltz, S. Brown and others expressed their views on the prospects of world politics and the nature of conflicts in the XXI century. Theorists of different scientific political science schools point on the persistence of conflicts in international relations, but their views on the nature of conflicts and the possibility of conflict management are different. The views of theorists on the influence of the structure of international relations system on the nature and intensity of international conflicts are systematized. The authors note that in the context of the study of international conflicts, the legal aspects of the regulation of international relations are of particular importance. In view of this, the main function of international law is to regulate international relations, the main subjects of which are states. Sovereignty remains the main feature of the state. It is noted that the mechanisms of formation and operation of international law are interstate, not supranational. It is determined that under modern conditions the attributes of modern international politics are regional crises, hybrid wars, information blockades, which do not contribute to the formation of a stable system of international relations

The Concept Of Conflict In International Relations And Ways To Settle It

This research sheds light on the concept of conflict in international relations, in terms of its implications and importance in the literature on international relations, especially the school’s realist view of both classic and modern aspects of the international conflict, in addition to showing the extent of the impact of the conflict on international relations when referring to the conflict that occurred between States, and how they are settled. The phenomenon of conflict is historically one of the characteristics of international relations, and international relations are witnessing rapid changes that result in multiple tensions and diverging interests of countries. Although civilization and civilization are witnessing remarkable progress in all respects, and that international relations are based on firm foundations and pillars based on international laws and norms, the world is characterized by the multiplicity of regional and international conflicts and disputes resulting from different interests and aspirations in the midst of the imbalance in the regional balance of power and Internationalism, which is also the result of seeking to establish spheres of influence and control over the decision-making centers of weak and decaying states by the dominant super powers.  Conflict management is one of the most important rules of the modern political game. It is considered an administrative and political art that requires political and administrative skills and fitness by decision makers and the bureaucratic apparatus that works with them, and therefore the study searches for those mechanisms that contribute to the conflict    management process.

Imbalance in Multiplex Networks

The study of balance and imbalance in signed networks has been a key topic for over 80 years. Starting with Heider's theory of structural balance and Harary's balance theorem, the measurement and understanding of structural balance in networks has grown exponentially. Most theoretical and empirical studies, however, focus on the conceptualization, measurement, and analysis of imbalance in single networks. We offer a methodology for measuring imbalance in multiplexes. We show that a multiplex composed of l layers can be imbalanced even if all of its component networks are balanced. We also demonstrate the differences between structural imbalance in individual layers of a multiplex and structural imbalance in the multiplex as a whole. These findings are then illustrated with data on international alliance and conflict in international relations and roll call votes in the U.S. Senate. We end our paper by discussing the theoretical and empirical implications of our analyses.

Education as a breaker of poverty: a critical perspective

Education as a breaker of poverty: a critical perspective

The phenomenon of International Conflict in International Relations

There is an ongoing debate on what has brought about the reduction in violence over the past century, since the first and second World Wars, but the phenomenon cannot be reduced to the application of War and the fear of war have been by far the most powerful among the influences that have shaped the course of international relations over the past two centuries. In general, it should be pointed out that the conflict is remote and can be distinguished between a negative dimension and a positive one. While it is easy to recognize the negative side of a conflict through its general and stable association with the attempts to destroy, exploit, or impose a solution on one side or others, the positive dimension of the conflict generally refers to that aspect of Push towards work or establish contacts, solve problems, and positive exchange between the parties concerned. Hence then we would like to say in brief, that It is the history of the influence of the use and threat of force. Strategy sometimes is a contested concept, and the term is widely misused specially in international relations. Conflict is a competitive phenomenon that involves two or more conflicting goals. At the same time, the main element in the definition of conflict is that it involves at least two or more parties with opposing objectives, that means that each party wants to get what the other wants or retains it, and therefore if the demands of one party are met.

Water Scarcity and Violent Conflict in International Relations: How Process Tracing Contributes to Demystify this Alleged Causal Relationship—The Rio Grande-Colorado Case

Water Scarcity and Violent Conflict in International Relations: How Process Tracing Contributes to Demystify this Alleged Causal Relationship—The Rio Grande-Colorado Case

Contemporary International Relations and the BRICS Geopolitics of State Capitalism

This article posits that the BRICS set serves to create a “regional” business space for exclusive operations of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) of member states. Far from being forecast as leading emerging economies of future significant standing on the global stage, the BRICS of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa is trapped in the binary-paralysis of private-public partnership governance. The article examines the BRICS set conditionalities and principles for conduct of international relations in order to demonstrate that member countries’ continued reverence of state capitalism governance, manifested through SOEs “champions”, will precipitate intra-set economic and political conflict in ways that perpetuate domestic political-economy of poverty and inequality. It argues that state capitalism, and a nuance hybrid of SOEs that are supported through public funds in order to operate on the global business platform in the same way as private multinational corporations that pursue commercial financial interests, does not serve societal goals of justice and equity. Given that the establishment of the BRICS is framed on the set being the centre of future global growth, consolidation of state capitalism and the nuance hybrid of SOEs imply that domestic poverty and inequality will continue unabated, as public investment share of education and health remains negligible. The article demonstrates that state capitalism and SOEs “champions” governance, is inherently biased towards greater public investment in industrial production rather than social objectives. It concludes that multidimensional and income poverty will continue to be intensive whilst inequality remains stark among the BRICS member states, whilst their cultural, historical and ideological diversities stimulate economic and political conflict in international relations. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n25p238

Cyber Conflicts in International Relations: Framework and Case Studies

Twenty years ago, the possibility of having an international conflict extend into the cyber domain was distant. Since then much has changed. Today cyber conflict is not considered particularly unusual. But considerable uncertainties remain about the nature, scale, scope and other features of such conflicts. This paper addresses these issues using a re-analysis of the case studies presented in A Fierce Domain recently published by the Atlantic Council. In addition, we draw upon other materials (academic and media) to expand our understanding of each case, and add several cases to the original collection resulting in a data set of seventeen cyber conflict, spanning almost three decades (1985-2013). Cuckoo's Egg, Morris Worm, Solar Sunrise, EDT, ILOVEYOU, Chinese Espionage, Estonia, Russo-Georgian war, Conficker, NSA-Snowden, WikiLeaks and Stuxnet are some of the major cases included. This study presents each case in terms of (a) its socio-political context, (b) technical features, (c) the outcome and inferences drawn in the sources examined. The profile of each case includes the actors, their actions, tools they used and power relationships, and the outcomes with inferences or observations. Emphasis is placed on characteristics of cyberspace visible on conflicts. Findings include: Distributed Denial of Service is the most common offensive action; accountability is difficult in cyberspace, particularly with international conflicts; outcomes of each instance have been variable, and economic impact is hard to estimate; the private sector has been a key player in cybersecurity; size of an actor, and countries' ICT infrastructure, influence the nature of the cyber conflicts.