Foreign Policy Considerations Research Articles

Towards a Coherent Trade-Environment Nexus? The EU’s Critical Raw Materials Policy

This article contributes to the debate on the policy coherence of the trade-environment nexus by analysing the recent critical raw materials (CRM) policy of the European Union (EU). Critical raw materials are crucial for the green and digital transitions but face significant risks in their supply. This raises the question to what extent the EU can ensure a coherent approach in an era of geopolitics. The analysis proceeds in three steps: what does coherence mean (problem definition), how coherent are the EU’s policy objectives, and how coherent are its policy instruments designed for CRMs? The article finds that the EU’s problem definition of the trade-environment nexus has over the past two decades become more coherent. However, the rise of geopolitics has added foreign policy considerations to the understanding of this nexus. As the case of CRMs shows, open strategic autonomy, which aims to reduce strategic dependencies, generates incoherence among the policy objectives. The many existing or proposed EU policy instruments can, so far, be assessed as being relatively more coherent yet also with a mixed record. Future research will have to confirm this preliminary finding and also address the coherence of the policy implementation and outcomes of the EU’s CRMs policy. critical raw materials, European Union, geopolitics, Green Deal, open strategic autonomy, policy coherence, sustainability, trade-environment nexus, trade policy, twin transition

Canada’s Implementation of the UN Global Compacts on Migration and Refugees: Advancing Foreign Policy Objectives and the Status Quo?

Abstract Canada has been a strong supporter of the 2018 United Nations Global Compacts (GCs) on Migration and Refugees. This article examines Canada’s reception and implementation of the GCs in the policy domains of refugee resettlement, complementary protection pathways, gender equality, and migration governance capacity building. It draws on the analytical framework of “migration diplomacy” to argue that Canada’s efforts to carry out the GC objectives in these areas are primarily motivated by foreign policy considerations, including those with significant domestic implications, rather than efforts to ensure domestic alignment with the GC principles enhancing migrants’ rights and freedoms. By supporting the GCs, Canada has positioned itself as a global leader in migration management. Migration diplomacy has also legitimised the implementation by Canada of exclusionary refugee policies.

Introduction Turkey and Africa: Motivations, Challenges and Future Prospects

Turkey's presence in Africa has experienced significant growth over the last two decades. In recent years, Turkey's expanding African outreach has transformed media narratives and generated a surge of scholarly studies on Turkey's involvement in Africa. Turkey's renewed focus on the continent and its commitment to establishing an equal partnership with African nations came after years of neglect. Previously, Turkey's relationship with African countries followed a cycle of ups and downs. The interest in Africa was largely driven by short-term foreign policy considerations, such as breaking Turkey's international isolation and securing diplomatic support from African nations. Understanding how Turkey's carefully crafted discourses resonate with African countries in the face of competition from other external actors is a challenging task. Despite the existence of a rich and extensive literature on how external players engage with Africa, Turkey's role and the long-term impact of its involvement have often been overlooked. This special issue aims to contribute to the existing literature by exploring different dimensions of Turkey's multifaceted Africa policy, including its engagement in the security landscape, the African arms market, humanitarian efforts, and public diplomacy initiatives.

Southeast Asian States’ Approaches to Peacekeeping and Conflict Resolution

This paper conducts a comparative analysis of three cases - Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam - to examine the distinctive features of Southeast Asian states’ involvement in peacekeeping. These cases provide representative insights into the motivations and experiences of regional states that joined UN peacekeeping operations at different historical junctures: Indonesia in the 1950s, Thailand in the 1990s, and Vietnam in the 2000s. By identifying the common and unique aspects of this engagement, the authors argue that Southeast Asian nations’ approaches to peacekeeping are deeply rooted in the values that underpin their foreign and domestic policies. Appealing to these values, Southeast Asian states contribute conceptual innovations to existing peacekeeping models, which are predominantly based on Western perspectives. By generalizing the peacekeeping experiences of Southeast Asian states, this paper fills a gap between broader publications that focus on Asian peacekeeping practices and single-country studies. The research underscores that Southeast Asian states, following a challenging period of decolonization and nation-building in the framework imposed by the Westphalian international relations system, have been trying to infuse their own approaches into the Westernized realm of international interaction. Since the 1950s, several regional states have participated in UN peacekeeping operations. The involvement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in resolving the Cambodian conflict in the late 1980s and the Thailand - Cambodia settlement in 2008-2011 has stimulated the development of regional peacekeeping practices. By contributing to peacekeeping operations, Southeast Asian states aspire to enhance their regional and even global influence. In certain instances, their engagement in peacekeeping has ideological, cultural or religious motivations, or stems from specific foreign and domestic policy considerations.

Chained to History: Slavery and U.S. Foreign Relations to 1865 by Steven J. Brady

Reviewed by: Chained to History: Slavery and U.S. Foreign Relations to 1865 by Steven J. Brady Ann L. Tucker Chained to History: Slavery and U.S. Foreign Relations to 1865. By Steven J. Brady. (Ithaca, N.Y., and London: Cornell University Press, 2022. Pp. viii, 232. $39.95, ISBN 978-1-5017-6105-8.) Slavery constituted one of the most critical issues in U.S. domestic politics from the founding through emancipation. In Chained to History: Slavery and U.S. Foreign Relations to 1865, Steven J. Brady follows in the footsteps of historians such as Matthew Karp by positioning slavery as a critical issue shaping U.S. foreign policy as well. Using the records and words of leading American statesmen, Brady argues that slavery influenced American foreign policy goals, actions, successes, and failures from the American Revolution through the Civil War, continually complicating and challenging efforts to advance U.S. interests at home and abroad. Chained to Slavery traces the influence of slavery on American foreign policy through a series of critical events in U.S. history. Brady reveals the key role slavery played in these well-known incidents and highlights the influence of foreign policy considerations on well-known American actions related to slavery. Slavery complicated efforts to resolve ongoing conflict with Britain during the early republic and shaped American reactions to the Haitian Revolution. International disagreements over slavery limited efforts to police the Atlantic slave trade and helped thwart American attempts to promote Black colonization in Africa. Slavery drove American expansionism, despite the risks of harming U.S. relations with European powers, and hindered the [End Page 360] Abraham Lincoln administration’s diplomatic efforts during the Civil War. Throughout these events, slavery and international relations were inextricably intertwined, shaping American actions and historical outcomes. As Brady reveals, a major reason why slavery was so woven into every element of U.S. diplomacy was that leaders frequently equated the promotion and protection of slavery with national interests and even national security. Yet despite this prioritization of slavery, American statesmen continually struggled to define domestic and international legal precedents and obligations regarding the institution, and therefore the obligations of domestic and international parties toward each other. This dynamic shaped decades-long debates with Britain over compensation for the owners of self-emancipated enslaved people and over the British enforcement of the prohibition of the Atlantic slave trade. Further complicating matters, the connection between slavery and foreign policy was not always straightforward, and other concerns often intervened. For example, a desire to promote commerce led the United States to continue trade with Haiti, a nation founded in part by a slave revolt, and the ideas of American unilateralism continually clashed with the defense of slavery’s tendency to draw its proponents into the larger international world. In this analysis, Brady shows how influential American leaders, and their foreign counterparts, were repeatedly snared, thwarted, and redirected by the issue of slavery as they debated and negotiated America’s place in the world. One theme that emerges throughout the book was the particular challenge that the United States’ generally proslavery foreign policy posed to its relationship with abolitionist Great Britain. This tension began with long-lasting conflict over compensation for the owners of enslaved persons who had self-emancipated across British lines during the American Revolution, and it continued with American refusals to acquiesce to British visions for an alliance against the Atlantic slave trade. Throughout the nineteenth century the United States and Great Britain repeatedly found themselves at odds over the issue of slavery. This dynamic was intensified even by seemingly unrelated events, such as the U.S. annexation of Texas (which Britain opposed because it advanced slavery), as well as ongoing fears about British abolitionist influence in Spanish Cuba, and the expansion of British power generally. Brady’s emphasis on the role slavery played in shaping the United States’ relationship with Britain is one of the strengths of the work. The relationship between slavery and foreign relations that Brady depicts was multidirectional, with varied results for American leaders and their goals. Nonetheless, with clear use of evidence and strong organization, Brady compellingly demonstrates that slavery and international relations were inextricably...

Reconsidering ‘EU Actorness’ in Changing Geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean Region

The discovery of hydrocarbon resources in the Eastern Mediterranean reshuffled the existing foreign policies, increased the region’s geopolitical importance, and acted as a catalyst for the emergence of new geopolitical dynamics and political alignments. The European Union (EU) has been involved in the Eastern Mediterranean region due to foreign, security, and energy policy considerations. The hydrocarbon deposits have the potential to provide diversification of resources and act as a bridge for greater cooperation in the region. Instead, the explosive geopolitical context evokes insecurities and threat perceptions. This article aims to contextualize the EU’s engagement in the Eastern Mediterranean region vis-à-vis the latest developments and political factors.

Editor's Note

Editor's Note

Soviet Publications of Holocaust Diaries in the 1960s: Anne Frank and Masha Rolnikaite

ABSTRACT A strict ban on organized Jewish activities apart from those of a limited number of religious bodies, coupled with the state monopoly on all publishing, simplified the Soviet Union’s control over Holocaust-related publication. The appearance of any such work was an idiosyncratic event, associated with concurrent political and cultural contexts and official agendas. The relatively liberal climate of the first post-Stalinist decade raised the possibility of such events. Soviet publication of both the diary of Anne Frank and Masha Rolnikaite’s I Must Tell reflected in part foreign policy considerations, but each played a rather different role in the Soviet cultural sphere. Anne Frank’s diary—not reprinted for three decades—would be referred to as, and possibly read only as, an important anti-fascist narrative with distant relevance to wartime events in the Soviet Union. Masha Rolnikaite (Rolnik), a survivor of the Vilnius ghetto, would become a widely published belletrist “Soviet Anne Frank.”

Energy security issues in US and EU foreign policy: comparative analysis

Energy resources are becoming an increasingly politicized commodity, which at the same time retains special technical and economic characteristics, which complicates the work of the foreign policy leadership. The authors, using a comparative method, conduct a study of the relationship between energy and foreign policy in the EU and the USA through the prism of different cognitive structures used by subjects to assess the landscape of global energy. On this conceptual basis, the authors explore the evolution of the relationship between energy and foreign policy in the EU and the United States: to what extent energy is a useful tool of foreign policy, and, conversely, how deeply the goals of energy policy are embedded in foreign policy. By making such a comparison, the authors identify differences and potential similarities between the EU and the US in this area. Thus, comparing the approaches of the USA and the EU, one can see a tendency towards their convergence. Despite the significant difference in the energy landscape of the EU and the United States, Brussels and Washington agreed that they included a common vision of the global energy architecture in their foreign policy. The use of energy as a political tool, at least in rhetoric, was condemned by both sides. Nevertheless, at the national level, energy issues in the EU are often determined by the foreign policy considerations of a particular country. It is also worth remembering that LNG exports from the United States to Europe are considered to a certain extent as a means of increasing competition for Russian natural gas, as a way to provide US allies with an alternative and help them reduce dependence on Russia, sometimes even as an energy weapon, but in any case as a very effective foreign policy tool.

Iraq as a Lab: a Critique of the New American Way of War

This paper analysis the evolution of the US force structure after 1975 in two core aspects: foreign policy and military modernization. Building on the works of Clausewitz (2003) and Mearsheimer (1981), we argue that a country's force structure should be based mainly on foreign policy considerations. The evolution of the US Army followed this logic until its defeat in Vietnam (1975), but this traumatic event precipitated reforms in the US military force before a proper reformulation of the country’s foreign policy objectives had been achieved. Therefore, these reforms created a "syndrome" that would deform and reform the US strategic culture inadequately. The new military doctrine, Air-Land Battle (ALB) was not oriented towards long-term political objectives, but rather by purely operational and tactical issues of combat, which proved harmful for the US interests in the long-run. Hence, we propose to analyze the Iraq Wars (1991-2003) as labs for this New American Way of War, the first empirical applications of ALB. We conclude by demonstrating that the disregard for post-war planning ended up forcing a prolonged and costly American involvement in the Middle East and damaging the country’s international image.

“Poles of the World Unite”: The Transnational History of the 1929 World Congress of Poles Abroad in the Context of Interwar Soviet–Polish Rivalries

AbstractBy investigating the information and propaganda campaign surrounding the election of delegates to the 1929 World Congress of Poles Abroad, this article seeks to elucidate a complex interplay between foreign policy considerations, security concerns, and nationality policies of the Polish and Soviet governments. It examines the role of national minorities in the Soviet modernization effort and the ongoing Polish-Soviet rivalry of the interwar period. The focused study of the information campaign, and the public discussion surrounding the election process to the congress, contributes also to the debates on mass political culture in the interwar Soviet Union. Party communication, intelligence, and secret reports compiled during the local elections and conferences provide a unique source for sampling public opinion of the Polish population regarding the Soviet regime in the early years of Stalin’s First Five-Year plan. The article argues that despite the considerable efforts of the party to define and promote Polish identity, and thus shift their loyalties closer to the Soviet state, the Polish population in Soviet Ukraine, even at the end of the 1920s, continued to express persistent nonconformity and a lack of faith in the Soviet government.

Double Objective in Mind: Translating American Management Ideas in the Context of Cold War Finland

The transfer of American management ideas was a central part of the Cold War struggle over ideologies. A key mediator was the European Recovery Program, which conveyed American influences to European management specialists. However, a direct influence was not always possible, as in Finland, which officially blocked assistance because of foreign policy considerations. Still, it was among the first countries to follow Harvard University’s lead in launching advanced management training. We examine how and why the focal actors adopted the American model of executive education, and how they managed to translate foreign ideas persuasively to the local business elite. The translation of executive education to Finland was a lengthy process that involved modification and readjustment of the original idea according to emerging needs. The Advanced Management Program became the core of the curriculum of Finland’s leading executive education institution and thus has influenced the emergence of new business culture.

Evaluating the German Position Towards Asylum Seekers During the 2015 European Refugee Crisis

The refugee crisis that emerged in 2015 was considered to be one of the worst political and humanitarian disasters and the huge influx of immigrants that arrived in Europe caused collective concerns among the receiving countries. The general attitude towards immigrants in Germany has been positive for years but the Syrian crisis prompted the German policies to become more lenient towards the refugees. Therefore, this paper analyzes Germany’s policy shift towards refugees after 2015 and examines the reasons behind the positive stance towards immigrants from the existing literature. The paper discusses the role of different factors ranging from economic, foreign policy considerations, ideological concerns to humanitarian values. In addition, this paper highlights the gaps in the literature and proposes directions for future research to comprehend German policies on immigrants. The research concludes with the findings that humanitarian values and past experiences have played a crucial role in shaping Germany’s refugee policy during the European refugee crisis.

Project Plowshare: The Peaceful Use of Nuclear Explosives in Cold War America

Project Plowshare: The Peaceful Use of Nuclear Explosives in Cold War America

Trilateral relations among China, Nepal and India: Opportunities, Challenges and Prospects

Through multiple cases, comparative analysis, and empirical analysis, the purpose of this essay attempts to examine the triangular interaction among China, India and Nepal from the geopolitical and geoeconomic perspectives. It can be observed that the progress over intensive cultural exchanges among China, Nepal and India has been a little bit more noticeable and more substantive than interstate economic engagement. The comparison between the China-initiating Belt and Road Initiative and India’s neighbourhood policy shows that both major economies tend to be strategically vying for constructive partnership in South Asia. Furthermore, Nepal’s proposal of trans-Himalaya connectivity provides a crucial, intermediary trade alternative among these three economies in promotions of mutual economic growth and prosperity. This essay chiefly argues that both Nepal and China, as the two chief emerging powers in Asia, are encouraged to play a much more proactive role in fostering trilateral connectivity, whilst India as a member of BRICS should revamp its foreign policy considerations to fully utilise India’s neighbourhood policy and meanwhile acquaint itself with China’s Belt and Road Initiative to facilitate regional growth at an interstate level that can share beneficial trilateral interests. This essay unveils a more accurate, comprehensive scenario of BRI-generating linchpin of triangular China-Nepal-India ties that is heterogeneous to the neoliberal system.

Maike Hausen: Reviewing Britain’s Presence East of Suez. Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Foreign Policy Considerations Surrounding Southeast Asia, 1956 – 1971.

Maike Hausen: Reviewing Britain’s Presence East of Suez. Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Foreign Policy Considerations Surrounding Southeast Asia, 1956 – 1971.

Maike Hausen: Reviewing Britain’s Presence East of Suez. Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Foreign Policy Considerations Surrounding Southeast Asia, 1956 – 1971.

Maike Hausen: Reviewing Britain’s Presence East of Suez. Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Foreign Policy Considerations Surrounding Southeast Asia, 1956 – 1971.

An International Relations Perspective on the Reform Needs of the Human Rights Council

Abstract: This article approaches the matter of institutional reform of the United Nations Human Rights Council from an international relations perspective. A well-known tension exists between State representatives acting for their governments in international organisations, but whose decisions are presented as UN policies. The latter should be guided primarily by the UN Charter and public international law. However, in reality, different worldviews and foreign policy considerations play a more significant role. In a comprehensive stock-take, the article looks at four major dimensions of the Council, starting with structure and dynamics and major trends, followed by its country and thematic activities, and the role of key actors. Council reform proposals from both States and civil society are explored. Whilst the intergovernmental body remains the most important authority responsible for the protection of human rights in the international sphere, it has also been the subject of considerable criticism. Although it has made considerable progress towards enlarging its coverage and taking on more challenging human rights crises, among some of its major weaknesses are the election of human rights-unfriendly countries into its ranks, the failure to apply stronger sanctions on large, politically influential countries in the South and North, and lack of influence on human rights crises and chronic human rights problems in certain countries. Whilst various reform proposals have emerged from States and NGOs, other more far reaching propositions are under sometimes difficult negotiations. In the mid- to long-term, the UN human rights machinery can only have a stronger and more lasting impact if support from national/local actors and coalitions in politics and society can be strengthened.

The Power-Interest Nexus in Responses to Syrian Refugee Arrivals in Lebanon: Tensions and Interactions between the State and the International Community

This paper focuses on power dynamics between the Lebanese government and the international community in response to Syrian refugee arrivals in Lebanon as of 2011. Looking at the power-interest nexus to understand the multifaceted aspects of both actors’ motivations and bargaining tools, it seeks to map the interactions, tensions and opposing discourses at play. The methodology used is based on a series of in-depth interviews with representatives of the international community, Lebanese officials, and civil society actors. It also includes field visits, analysis of extensive documentation, and examination of scientific literature and media sources. This paper argues that international donor interests, beyond humanitarian concerns, have been infused with foreign policy considerations, aiming to prevent Syrian refugees from migrating towards Europe. Meanwhile, the Lebanese government has been encouraging resettlement, and recently returns, notably by implementing policies targeting Syrian refugees in Lebanon. The article posits that asymmetric patterns have emerged between the international community and the government, with Lebanese authorities capitalizing on the use of “productive power” to increase their bargaining position to request further funding.

The pope’s man in London: Anglo-Vatican relations, the nuncio question and Irish concerns, 1938-82

Although a British mission to the Holy See was established in 1914, the diplomatic relationship was not on a basis of reciprocity. From 1938 the pope was represented in London not by a nuncio (the Vatican equivalent of an ambassador) but by an apostolic delegate whose mission was to the hierarchy alone and not the British government. The evolution of the nuncio question sheds light on the nature of Anglo-Vatican relations, the place of Catholicism in British public life, inter-church rapprochement and British foreign policy considerations. This article assesses the divergent positions of the Foreign and Home Offices. The former was sympathetic to a change of status, whereas the latter was cautious due to the opposition of the archbishop of Canterbury and concerns about anti-Catholicism. The nuncio question was also of great interest to the Irish government. It feared that a nuncio in London would exert jurisdiction over Northern Ireland and undermine the all-island unity of the Irish Catholic Church. The Northern Ireland Troubles and the support displayed by the apostolic delegate for British policy hastened the restoration of full ambassadorial relations between London and the Holy See in 1982, ending a diplomatic breach that had existed for more than four centuries. It paved the way for Pope John Paul II’s historic pastoral visit to Britain which helped to consolidate the position of Roman Catholicism in British national life.