State-building Process Research Articles

The principle of equality as the basis of Ukrainian nationbuilding and state-building of the end of the XVI – to the 70s of the XVII century.

From the perspective of historical and legal research, an objective reproduction of historical and legal reality, an understanding of the political history of Eastern Europe and the process of the formation of Ukrainian statehood and the nation of this era requires the use of new methodological paradigms. The article examines the role of the principle of equality in the process of the formation of the Ukrainian nation and the creation of a state from the standpoint of a totallogical analysis on the basis of an analysis of the Ukrainian transitional society of the late 16th – up to the 70s. XVII century The factors that determined the fundamental role of the principle of equality in the integration of Ukrainian society into a nation and an independent state are determined. At the end of the 16th – until the 70s of the 17th century. formation of the principle of equality in the legal life of Ukrainian society has become the main driving force of the process of Ukrainian nation-building and state-building. Factors that determined the fundamental role of the principle of equality in the integration of Ukrainian society into a nation and an independent state in the late sixteenth – to the 70’s of the seventeenth century: violation of the principle of equality of the Polish and Russian peoples as a result of the Lublin Union; formation of a separate Cossack state and mass Cossacks of the Ukrainian population during the revolutionary events of 1648-1676; intensive formation of the capitalist system on the basis of the abolition of the estates and the granting of equal economic and social rights to the population; formation of the Ukrainian national idea and development of the concept of the Ukrainian Cossack republic on the basis of the principle of equality according to the ideology prevailing at that time; support for the idea of creating an independent national Ukrainian state by the Ukrainian Orthodox clergy; the spread of literacy among a large part of the Ukrainian population and the high level of education of the Ukrainian nobility and clergy, which led to an appropriate level of general and legal culture; spiritual kinship of Ukrainian society on the basis of Orthodox faith and common moral values. Key words: principle of equality, Ukrainian Hetmanate, totallogical analysis, Ukrainian nation-building and state-building of the end of the 16th – to the 70s of the 17th century

Navigating Neutrality: Early American Governance in the Turbulent Atlantic by Sandra Moats

Reviewed by: Navigating Neutrality: Early American Governance in the Turbulent Atlantic by Sandra Moats Aaron Chin (bio) Keywords Early U.S. republic, Neutrality, Foreign relations, George Washington, Law of nations, State-building Navigating Neutrality: Early American Governance in the Turbulent Atlantic. By Sandra Moats. (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2021. Pp. 212. Paper, $29.50.) Although the United States won its independence, the young nation remained deeply—at times dangerously—intertwined with European empires. [End Page 456] The nation's first major foreign policy crisis erupted in 1793 when the United States had to decide whether to support the French Republic as its revolution took a radical turn and warred with much of Europe. In April of that year, George Washington and his Cabinet issued the Neutrality Proclamation, which stated that the United States would be "impartial" in its relations with all parties. But this was easier said than done. Americans, French, and British regularly violated this policy. Washington's administration would have to take proactive steps to implement this neutrality. As Sandra Moats convincingly argues in Navigating Neutrality: Early American Governance in the Turbulent Atlantic, the government's implementation of the Neutrality Proclamation marked a critical period in American state-building. As Moats shows throughout this brief but informative book, "enforcing neutrality contributed to America's transformation from a paper republic into an autonomous nation fully embracing its constitutional responsibilities" (1). In Moats's view, Washington himself played a crucial role in steering the nation through this delicate international situation. The first half of the book explores the American experience with neutrality before and during the Revolution, as well as why Washington's administration adopted this position in 1793. While still part of the British Empire, American sailors enjoyed trade during peace and privateering during war. Once the United States declared its independence, however, it learned the hard way that navigating neutrality as an in de pen dent nation presented new challenges. As president, Washington drew from his own experiences to address these problems. As a veteran of the Seven Years' War and a regular correspondent with French observers passing on news of their own revolution, Washington decided neutrality was the best approach. The second half of the book explores how the United States implemented neutrality. By soliciting input from the entire Cabinet and issuing a single statement, Washington set the precedents of taking initiative and speaking with a unified voice regarding foreign policy. In the following months, the executive branch issued several statements and implemented policies to enforce neutrality amid rampant violations by all parties. When Congress returned to session, both chambers supported Washington and passed legislation to back neutrality. In addition, the Supreme Court ruled that only American courts—not foreign ones—could rule on admiralty cases in the United States. Finally, the U.S. sent diplomatic personnel to promote its neutral interests across the world. By the end of 1794, the federal government had created a series of enforcement [End Page 457] mechanisms that gave neutrality teeth and contributed to the growth and consolidation of the American state. Moats's work primarily contributes to studies of American state-building in the early republic. These works focus on the steps the federal government took to consolidate the nation during its early years. Some scholars have focused on the international dimensions of this state-building process, emphasizing things like America's "treaty worthiness" and its adherence to the "law of nations" and "law of merchants" that moderated the interactions between powers. Other scholars have focused on the domestic aspects of this process, emphasizing the standardization of America's currency regime and the consolidation of the nation's debt. Moats's work cuts across both the international and domestic, making a convincing case for how the federal government strengthened the American state by carefully managing developments at home and abroad. The text, as the author notes, also engages with the New Diplomatic History. Moats draws from an impressive array of sources to make a strong argument. Writings by Washington, his Cabinet, and their foreign interlocutors make up the core of the source base. Letters, Cabinet Notes, and government reports appear frequently in the endnotes. Moats also shows a command...

Козацьке самоврядування на Запорозькій Січі як складова державницької традиції України

Козацьке самоврядування на Запорозькій Січі як складова державницької традиції України

Politological Science in the Carpathian Region after the Declaration of Independence

The article dwells on the state, achievements and research perspectives of the political science school of the Carpathian region scholars. It analyses the whole complex of debatable issues under study that scientists have been working on lately relying on the social demand regarding Ukrainian political processes coverage. The research revolves around certain political aspects of the general topic "Western Ukraine in the national liberation movement and in the processes of state-building". It provides analysis of the historical participation of Western Ukrainian lands in national state-building processes and in national liberation movement, ways of establishing the unity of Ukraine in the historical and political context, as well as political aspects of state-building. Political scientists of the Carpathian region have worked out a scientifically valid position condemning Russia's imperial ambitions regarding the independent Ukrainian state.

Activity of the Admiral A. Pokrovskyi in the Development of the Ukrainian Fleet in Crimea and in Southern Ukraine in 1917—1918 (To the 160th Anniversary of the Birth)

In the article, the power of the formation and development of the Ukrainian military-naval forces near Crimea and in the South of Ukraine (1917–1918) at the duty of Admiral of the Ukrainian State Andriy Georgiyovich Pokrovskyi (1862–1944) is shown. Great attention is paid to the significant contribution of A. Pokrovskyi in the times of the Ukrainian Central Rada (UCR) and the Hetmanate of P. Skoropadskyi to the organization of the national Ukrainian fleet. It is noted that Vice-Admiral of the former Russian Empire A. Pokrovskyi became one of the highest representatives of the fleet team, who actively supported the process of Ukrainian state-building. He actively denied the attempts of the Central Rada to implement the idea of voluntary service in the fleet and believed that the fate of the young state should be decided not by political slogans, but by the force of arms. This was especially evident during hetman's rule, when A. Pokrovsky, being the commander of the Black Sea Fleet and the Minister of Marine Affairs, managed to restore a full-fledged Ukrainian naval fleet on the Black Sea.It was stated that after the victory of the anti-Hetman rebellion, A. Pokrovskyi did not accept the new republican form of government and left the Ukrainian military movement. It is noted that in the current conditions of full-scale aggression of Putin's Russia against Ukraine, the experience of our predecessors in organizing national-state and military life will help preserve the state-building traditions of our people and serve to strengthen the self-awareness of the servicemen of all Ukrainian armed forces.

FEMALE ACADEMICS’ ROLE IN PEACE-BUILDING, STATE-BUILDING AND GENDER EQUALITY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Twenty-seven years after the end of the war, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is still considered a post-conflict state dealing with war memories, genocide, socio-political divisions, and political and socio-economic challenges like ethno-nationalism, unemployment, social inequalities, a complex education system, high levels of corruption, migration, and depopulation. The article aims to investigate the role of female academics in peace-building, state-building and gender equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For this purpose, a survey questionnaire was distributed to female academics aiming to obtain data regarding female academic’s role in the post-conflict society, how they have contributed to peace-building processes and the future of the country, the main issues and challenges they face as women in academia, their engagement in gender equality and women empowerment activities, the ways they cope with the COVID-19 pandemic in their professional and private life, and their work-life balance. Descriptive statistics and a thematic analysis of the participants’ responses to open-ended questions were conducted. Female academics in Bosnia and Herzegovina hold that women play a pivotal role in post-conflict societies and that they should be actively engaged in peace-building and state-building processes. Women themselves should be the leaders of positive changes and female empowerment through education and by providing support to other women.

Making markets ‘decisive’: a firm-level evaluation of state-led development in the China–Myanmar border region

This article critically assesses state–market relations through a comparative firm-level study of state-led development in the China–Myanmar border region. It develops a framework that foregrounds how market building is a contingent and multi-scalar process that underpins the reproduction of stable state rule. The framework is utilized to examine state-led attempts in Ruili, a border city in Yunnan province, to attract Yinxiang, a privately owned firm, and Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corporation (BAIC), a state-owned enterprise (SOEs), to launch flagship manufacturing projects. The contrasting performance of these firms—Yinxiang successfully captured its target market in Myanmar while BAIC did not even commence production—foregrounds a pronounced tension in the ongoing market reforms. On the one hand, attempts at giving market actors more autonomy in resource allocation through supply-side structural reforms continue to be shaped by the institutional legacy of reciprocal accountability. On the other hand, the Chinese state’s willingness to allow BAIC’s investment to fail suggests it is serious about subjecting both local governments and SOEs to demand-side discipline. These findings collectively generate one distinct contribution to existing research on state–market relations: market activities are embedded within state-building processes in place-specific and often unpredictable ways.

Women identity crisis in Northeast India

Women are essential to the advancement and development of society, and there is no development tool more effective than the empowerment of women. Despite this, the world continues to waste a precious resource due to the hysterical underrepresentation of women in leadership roles, which frequently results in the exclusion of women's talents and skills in political life. Even though they have made outstanding progress in many fields and are frequently considered to be more privileged than other Indian states, Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Mizoram are marginalized in the most crucial areas of life because their absence is considered in state-building processes like decision- and policy-making in government since the States' formation. Social identities and human rights violations are brought on by gender exclusion. The marginalized group, which includes minorities, women, and children, is largely excluded, which is regrettably a multifaceted phrase that encompasses social, economic, political, and cultural sectors.

Revival of Russian Language in Central Asian Republics in the Twenty First (21st) Century

Russian language went into a decline during the 1990s when Central Asian Republics (CARs) simultaneously embarked on the process of nation and state building along with economic transition. The CARs desired to diversify their political and economic relations and to lessen their dependence on Russian Federation during their early transition period. Due to its own economic and political problems associated with its transition, Russia could not pay full attention to its former Soviet states during the immediate post-Soviet period. However, due to the Tsarist and particularly Soviet legacies, the economic connectivity and interdependence of former Soviet states on Russian Federation proved long lasting. The revival of Russian language in former Soviet Central Asian Republics is mainly due to the theory of Economics of Language which explores mutual effects of language and economic variables. It says that fluency and command over a dominant language i.e., a language of science and technology and trade provides more dividends. The CARs are still heavily dependent on trade and remittances of their nationals working in Russia. A large number of workers from the countries of Central Asia work in the Russian Federation. Their remittances contribute immensely to the Gross Domestic Product (GDPs) of these countries. The CARs re-started promoting Russian language in their countries due to a significant role of this language in their economies and economic relations with Russia. Since 2000, the Russian economic revival has naturally strengthened its political and economic role in the former Soviet space which also includes Central Asia. Consequently, the Russian language also received fresh emphasis.

Colonial Legacies and (In)security in Africa: A Cameroonian Civil War Perspective

Background: This article systematically analyzes the extent to which British and French colonial legacies influenced the outbreak of the Cameroonian civil war. Drawing on a theoretical argument that associates the likelihood of civil war with the tensions that arise from the challenges of state formation and state-building, this article revisits the process of state formation in Cameroon and argues that the Cameroonian civil war is an artifact of conflicting British and French colonial legacies.
 Purpose: This research aimed at examining the link between the British and French colonial legacies and the Cameroonian civil war.
 Methodology: This study was desk research. Secondary data sources like journal articles, databases, newspaper articles, blogs, monographs, and other internet materials were consulted. These materials were subjected to content validity before being considered and analyzed qualitatively in the study. Tilly’s warfare theory on modern state formation was used as an explanatory tool to deepen the understanding of the links between war and state formation and to better appreciate the impact of British and French colonial legacies on the processes of state formation and state-building in Cameroon.
 Findings: This paper demonstrated that although governance crises heightened tensions between British and French Cameroons, conflicting British and French colonial legacies constitute the root cause of the civil war. Anglophones have been disgruntled with the relatively low rates of investment in the Anglophone regions, political marginalization, the domination of the French language over the English language in official matters nationwide, and the ‘frenchification’ of the Anglo-Saxon education and judicial systems.
 Unique Contribution to Practice and Policy: This article suggests that it is necessary for peacebuilders and policy experts to address colonial factors when designing policies aimed at resolving the Cameroonian civil war. Dealing only with governance crises without addressing the colonial roots of the problem runs the risk of relapse to conflict in the future. Also, because the British and French colonial legacies are at the center of the crisis, there is a need for Britain and France to revisit their terms of relations with Cameroon, galvanize global resources, and harmonize efforts to influence and foster the resolution of the conflict.

Storing data on the margins: making state and infrastructure in Southwest China

ABSTRACT Examining the emerging data center industry in Guizhou, Southwest China, this article investigates the infrastructure-making processes that are initiated to implement cloud infrastructures, and how they are mobilized to reconfigure Guizhou’s nature. It discusses how these processes have come about in tandem with the expansion of China’s cloud geography, and how they are impacting the region. Contextualizing and historicizing these processes, this article argues that the developing data center industry in Guizhou is part of the broader process of state-building. These processes of implementing cloud infrastructure in Guizhou lead to the co-production of further state legitimation and continued marginalization of Guizhou, thus calling into question the common claim that technology bridges economic disparities and enhances connectivity.

The PLO’s political communication arena; Arafat and the struggle for media legitimacy

ABSTRACT The Palestine Liberation Organization has been extensively studied and researched in a variety of disciplines and perspectives. However, little attention has been paid to its media and/or political communication strategies that went hand in hand with its political evolution and aims from 1969 to 1982, a period marked by flux and political uncertainty as well intensive PLO state-building processes. This paper seeks to partially fill the gap by addressing political communication not only as a fundamental political practice and strategy but also as an arena in which political elites compete to achieve media legitimacy and ensure support for their objectives and ideologies. Drawing on archival research of the PLO mass media platforms during the period under review, primary sources and interviews with former PLO media personnel, the paper begins with an overview of the PLO’s investment in mass media institutions and other cultural genres before discussing its political communication strategy and its aims in the period from 1969 to 1982. The paper then addresses how the late PLO chairman Yasser Arafat actively competed in the political communication arena to achieve media legitimacy and secure public consent for the PLO’s ideologies and aims. In doing so, the paper does not suggest Arafat achieved total domination of the political communication space nor that other guerrilla leaders, Arab and other actors did not compete in this arena. Rather, the approach emphasizes the relationship between political agency and structure during moments of flux and change, thus complementing dominant approaches in political communication research that focus on framing and discourse.

Understanding Contemporary Middle East

What do we mean by the Middle East? How should we study the political ambitions of nearly half a billion people? To what extent are their destinies linked to the politics of great powers, and why? Why is the Middle East in a state of permanent conflict, foggy, and a region filled with local and international attention? This paper aims to analyse the contemporary Middle East and look at the connection between the situation in the region and its colonial legacy. Building a substantial legacy of progressive political and economic institutions in the evolution of the region were gradually rooting both the rule of law and commercial, agricultural, and industrial developments in native soil, in the shadow of colonialism. The paper discusses the weight of the Middle East in global politics (world powers) and how each of these powers defined the Middle East according to their interests. It reveals various historical stages of the creation of the artificial states in the Middle East and the role of the colonial powers in the state-building processes. The paper examines the theoretical approaches and their underlying assumptions concerning the changes in the region (borders, nation-building, patriotism, anti-western culture movement) and the role of colonialism in the emergence of different movements. The paper is based on strategic documents, clarifying the world power policy towards the area. It provides a close look at liberal tradition and its reflections on international relations.

UNDERSTANDING THE STATE BUILDING OF MOUNTED PASTORAL NOMADS ON SEDENTATION AND MERCANTILE ACTIVITY OF KHAZAR KHANATE AND VOLGA BULGARS

The mounted pastoral nomadism was the dominant socio-economical system in Desht-i Kipchak steppes for thousands of years. However, the state building methods and effectiveness of state building apparatus of mounted pastoral nomadic people were subject of debate for researchers. The commerce and sedentation were two important factors in understanding the debatable subjects of this sedantation processes of mounted pastoral nomads. Khazar Khanate and Volga Bulgars were taken as foundations of this study for analyzing and these two factors; sedentation and commerce. After giving very brief historical background about mounted pastoral nomads, Khazar Khanate and Volga Bulgars, this study focuses on describing mercantile activity of these two states as well as their roles transcontinental trade roads. The Islamic sources and material findings are taken into consideration while describing the relation between commercial activity and state building process of Khazar Khanates and Volga Bulgars. Finally, the study concludes the research on the efficiency of commercial activity, and how this efficiency determined the state building as well as sedentation of mounted pastoral nomads. Key words: Mounted Pastoral Nomads, Sedentation, State building, Commerce

From National to Cosmopolitan Hydrocarbons Resource Space: Hydrocarbons, Transnational Politics and the State in Greece

Abstract In this paper, we historicise the co-production of regional visions and governing practices for hydrocarbon explorations in the particular case of Greece. The paper aims to contribute a new understanding of state-building processes by studying how visions and infrastructures steered energy policies, (re-)configured hydrocarbon resource spaces and shaped technopolitical order in the Eastern Mediterranean. Chronologically, the storyline is divided into three distinct periods, in which visions and related practices shaped the hydrocarbon space: the first period in which the hydrocarbon space was constructed, the second period in which a non-commons truce was maintained to avoid conflict, and the final period in which a cosmopolitan common in the Eastern Mediterranean emerged.

State-Building 101: Hard Lessons From Afghanistan

The American war in Afghanistan was originally an act of retaliation and retribution. Over time it assumed the moral burden of state-building. The state-building effort however was undermined by inadequate planning, inadequate knowledge, and inadequate understanding of the complexity and difficulty of the state-building process. Ultimately, the Afghanistan state-building effort failed. The commentary assumes the premise that even in an era of great power competition, the West cannot escape the challenge of state-building as fragile and failing states will continue to threaten global security. The commentary suggests a set of considerations for those responsible for the inevitable state-building challenges of the future.

Latecomer State Formation: Political Geography and Capacity Failure in Latin America

As of late, political scientists have ventured into studying the historical dynamics of state building in Latin America, a trend that has not gone unnoticed among historians. Such works have focused on the capacity of states to wage war and their bureaucratic development but have thus far abstained from offering a general theory regarding state formation in the region. Sebastián Mazzuca takes this leap by offering a wide theoretical approach that seeks to analyze the diverse political geography of Latin American countries and to understand why, in Mazzuca's words, these “states were born weak” (p. 1).Mazzuca eloquently argues that in Latin America, early success regarding state formation meant failure at state building. Unlike Max Weber's and Charles Tilly's “pioneer” European states—where the processes of state formation and state building ran in parallel—Latin American “latecomer” countries first formed states, which in turn inhibited their state-building capacities (pp. 29–32). With states already in place, Latin American leaders did not become strong through conflict with their neighbors. Rather, statesmen opted to establish coalitions with their peripheries, which maintained autonomy as they were never subdued militarily by the center. The will to pursue—or reject—such coalitions was determined by the desire to pursue what Mazzuca terms “trade-led state formation,” as countries sought to increase their revenues not through taxation but by inserting themselves in the global economy, an opportunity offered by the nineteenth-century Pax Britannica.Within this framework, both geography and politics determined the three different “pathways of state formation” taken by the region's various countries, summarized by Mazzuca as “port-driven” (Argentina and Brazil), “party-driven” (Colombia, Mexico, and Uruguay), and “lord-driven” (Central America, Peru, and Venezuela). The pathways chosen explain why some states emerged as “colossuses” and why others were geographically smaller or, indeed, why other political units never came into existence or disappeared altogether. For the port-driven pathway, “entrepreneurs” incorporated unruly peripheries to foster a favorable climate for foreign trade. The party-driven pathway had an “expansionary” tendency via the establishment of coalitions to widen the basis of party support. Finally, the lord-driven pathway shows a “reductionist propensity,” as caudillos did not wish to weaken their power by enlarging their territories.Mazzuca's theory of “trade-led state formation” is intriguing, and not only for political scientists. After all, few historians will decisively argue that Latin American states devoted more time to war than to trade. Likewise, his exploration of potential “alternative” states (the Republic of Tucumán and the Republic of Piratini, among others) that faded from history also illustrates how the different pathways available to Latin American leaders determined the region's current political geography. It also offers historians the opportunity to study these forgotten political relics.Yet the book's organization is problematic. Argentina generously receives two extensive chapters in which a conventional political narrative is employed to ground Mazzuca's arguments, while Mexico and Brazil receive one chapter each, equally characterized by such traditional histories. Colombia and Uruguay are combined into a single chapter as states driven by party dynamics, although the difference in size and capacity between them is not decisively explained by this pathway. Finally, Central America, Peru, and Venezuela are lumped together in the final pages of the book. Latin American historians will be disappointed to see such disparate countries put together; furthermore, in the case of port-driven states, an interesting but limited way of looking at geography prevails.More importantly, by relegating some states to a second tier, Mazzuca loses a golden opportunity to further explore his theory. Peru is a good example of this. Barely ten pages are used to analyze the only Andean country in his study. Following the lord-driven pathway, Ramón Castilla is primarily seen as a “state-breaker” due to the collapse of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation (p. 380). This conclusion will be surprising to experts on the period, for whom Castilla is seen as a state maker (who also had access to a port, albeit a Pacific one). Castilla was a secondary figure during the years of the confederation, with no power to break states. Furthermore, by centering his analysis on that failed political union, Mazzuca forgoes the chance to fully analyze the arrival of the guano boom, which would strengthen his trade-led state formation theory.In his conclusion, Mazzuca ventures the ambitious remark that the colonial legacy ought to be “deemphasized but not ignored,” as it was essentially obliterated after independence (p. 399). This might be true in the peripheries of the Spanish empire, such as Argentina, but for the centers few will decisively argue that colonial structures—material or psychological—had the limited impact that Mazzuca argues. Despite these controversies, the book provides a solid theory from which one can build on—or against—Tilly's famous dictum. If approached with nuance, it offers a useful conceptual framework to explore future histories of the Latin American state.

SOCIAL ACTIVITY OF YOUTH DURING RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN WAR

The Russian-Ukrainian war, which began in 2014 in the East and continued on February 24, 2022, with a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, gave impetus to the development of the social activity of young people in general and volunteering in particular. In the article, based on these surveys, the indicator of social activity of Ukrainians is determined, and the level of volunteer activity during the war is determined separately.
 The data of the polls of the sociological group "Rating" (Rating Group Ukraine) are presented that 80% of Ukrainians according to the results of the poll on March 8-9, 2022 help defend Ukraine in one way or another: information resistance, continue to work in critical infrastructure, are participants in territorial defense, financial, etc. An important fact is that in the second poll on April 6, 2022, this figure remained constant - 80%. 42% of young people aged 18 to 35 are engaged in volunteering, on March 8-9, 2022 the figure was slightly higher than 46%. However, the rate of financial assistance increased significantly from 45% to 51%, especially among this age group. 
 Young people, as a social group, are not only the bearer of new values, ways of life, and social ideals, but also a group that directly influences the state-building processes ensuring the smooth operation of volunteer organizations, and the work of our army. As of March 19, 2022, 53% of young people have an active life position according to the sixth nationwide survey conducted by the Sociological Group "Rating". 47% of Ukrainians in difficult times of war are ready not only to stay in Ukraine but also to act actively, helping to bring our victory closer.
 A table with a sample of seven resources is presented, thanks to which you can show your social activity and join volunteering in many areas from fundraising to zoo volunteering. The most important features of volunteering are considered according to the Note of the UN Secretary-General addressed to the Commission on Social Development of the UN Economic and Social Council. The features that, in our opinion, are the most relevant in the situation of the Russian-Ukrainian war are highlighted.

Swedish Lawyers’ Studies Abroad During the Seventeenth Century: A Mix of State-Building Process and Personal Ambitions

This article delves into the studies abroad of Swedish lawyers during the seventeenth century. It discusses what universities were especially popular and at what times, the social backgrounds of the students and their career paths. Studying abroad was connected to the ongoing state-building process in Sweden as well as to the personal ambitions of the students. Furthermore, the connection between studying abroad and the development of the Swedish legal profession, as well as how studies abroad contributed to the reception of foreign law, are discussed.

Capital accumulation, territoriality, and the reproduction of state sovereignty in China: Is this “new” state capitalism?

The portrayals of “new state capitalism” in both the popular media and policy-making circles have become a potent geopolitical category. This politically realist categorization is understandably popular because of its simplicity—states proactively participating in capital accumulation are construed as threats to institutions underpinning the “free market”. This paper complicates this portrayal by framing what appears to be a “rise” of state capitalistic maneuvers from China as a dynamic sovereignty–accumulation nexus. Specifically, Chinese state capitalism—and arguably state capitalism in general—constitutes the reproduction of sovereign rule. Underpinning this tension-filled process is territoriality: the use of territory for political, economic, and social ends. This dynamic relationship will be illustrated through an examination of how and why Yunnan, a southwestern Chinese province that was economically marginalized for several decades, emerged as a geostrategic platform for facilitating new rounds of capital accumulation. Through large-scale infrastructural investments in Yunnan, the Chinese state generated new territorial configurations that (a) enabled the positioning of Yunnan as a “bridgehead” of Chinese economic statecraft and (b) encouraged investments aimed at capturing new growth opportunities. While this state-led developmental process partially resolves tensions generated by previous rounds of capital accumulation, it also generates new tensions. Building on this case study, the paper demonstrates how Chinese state capitalism more accurately exemplifies a state-building process that is embedded in and is constituted by a central contradiction between the territorial and capitalistic logics of power. It concludes by presenting two directions for future research on Chinese state capitalism.