Regional Actors Research Articles

Integrated Geotechnical Approach and GIS for Identification of Geological Resources Exploitable Quarries for Sustainable Development in Ifni Inlier and Lakhssas Plateau (Western Anti Atlas, Morocco)

The purpose of this paper is to identify, quantify and delineate the areas with suitable aggregate resources in the Precambrian massif of Ifni and the limestone plateau of Lakhssas (southwest Morocco). To fulfill this objective, a study was undertaken on the geotechnical parameters of the various geological outcrops of the region based on the analysis of 42 rock samples (carbonate, magmatic, detritic and volcano-detritic). Initially, we subjected these samples to a series of laboratory tests (impact resistance (L.A), wear resistance (MDE), density, porosity, absorption), to classify them according to geotechnical standards. Then, a geospatial database was created, to exploit these geotechnical data, from a geographical information system (GIS) to produce various thematic maps. Based on the results of this study, all geotechnical classes according to the standards (A to E for the European standard and 1A to 6D for the Moroccan standard) are present with good to very good geomechanical properties (L.A between 12% and 35%, MDE between 5% and 30%). This classification allowed us to use GIS to identify and quantify potential areas for exploitation by assigning five categories of geotechnical suitability levels (high (4), medium (3), low (2), very low (1) and others (0)) and to show that approximately 72% of the study area belongs to the categories high, medium and low. The combination of laboratory results and GIS has allowed us to carry out geotechnical mapping that will be used by regional authorities and actors for good management of the field of quarrying to rationalize the national natural heritage.

Central Asia – Russia: Opportunities and Limitations in Building a Joint Future (Foresight Analysis)

Central Asia now plays an important geopolitical role in the balance of power in Eurasia. Russia's role in the region is evolving, but it remains one of the leading ones. The pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine have shifted the situation out of homeostasis. So it is now important to address the issue of security, support for small and mediumsized businesses, and the preservation and development of cultural and humanitarian links. Based on the Foresight procedure this article draws conclusions about the way forward for multilateral relations in the “Central Asia-Russia” format on the basis of the outcome documents announced by the Heads of the Central Asian States and the Russian Federation after their meeting. Using the rapid Foresight tools (anticipation, design, programming and projection), conclusions are drawn about the important position of the Russian Federation as a regional actor in the external policies of the Central Asian States. Its current position is strong, but not uncontroversial. The thesis of the interpenetration of the Russian and Central Asian economies has also been elaborated, since the backbone of low-diversifcation economies are energy and energy-transit. At the same time, one cannot ignore the powerful resource of soft power. The vast area of frontier communicativeness formed by the Kazakhstan-Russian border is a unique resource that can be exploited in the future. The article was based on the results of a scientifc discussion held at the National Communications Development Research Institution (NIIRC), Moscow, Russia in 2022.

Gone but not forgotten (yet): Interreg in post-Brexit UK

ABSTRACT Territorial cooperation has a long history in the UK. Numerous stakeholders in the UK have a long-standing and active engagement in the EU’s Territorial Cooperation Programmes (also known as ETC and Interreg). Launched in 1990, Interreg is the EU’s framework for territorial cooperation, enabling joint actions and policy exchanges between national, regional and local actors from different Member States. Brexit led to the decision on the part of the UK Government not to participate in EU territorial cooperation programmes after 2021, except for the PEACE Plus programme covering Northern Ireland. This article examines what will be lost because of this decision, especially in terms of what, where and what types of organisations are impacted, and what will be ‘missed’ in terms of the added value associated with territorial cooperation. At a time when cooperation is seen as a key lever to support efforts in addressing major economic, political, social and environmental challenges, and border relations, the article examines what, if anything, is being/can be done to fill the gaps? The article is based on documentary analysis, programme data and engagement with policy, programme and project stakeholders.

Beyond neo-imperialist intentionality: explaining African agency in liberal peace interventions

The extant critical literature on international interventions has not only discussed liberal peace interventions from Western subject positions but has also explained its drivers principally from the intention of Western actors to perpetuate neo-imperialism. This analysis, while not illogical, ignores the non-Western involvement in the liberal peace project and, therefore, cannot offer insights into how and why some non-Western actors equally commit to this enterprise. This article moves beyond Western subject positions of this discourse to focus on how and why African interveners engage in liberal interventions despite its Western neo-imperialist instrumentality. Drawing on official documents, interview data and the framework of hegemony, it uncovers African regional actors as practitioners of liberal peace interventions. It argues that they became involved in this practice mainly because they consented to the hegemony of the liberal world order as the only social vision suitable for maintaining domestic stability. Overall, the study offers a broad lens for understanding why the undertaking of liberal projects in many non-Western societies, especially in Africa, cannot be solely explained from the standpoint of Western neo-imperial intentions.

Cistercian Stories for Nuns and Monks: The Sacramental Imagination of Engelhard of Langheim, by Martha G. Newman

In studies of the long twelfth century, a handful of individuals—Peter Abelard, Bernard of Clairvaux, Hugh of St Victor—have long taken centre stage in discussions of theological, intellectual and institutional change. In recent years, however, there has been a shift away from this focus on big-name celebrities towards a greater interest in the careers of local and regional actors, and the manuscripts that they commissioned or produced. Martha Newman’s study of Engelhard of Langheim’s exempla collection, written for a nearby community of Cistercian nuns, is itself an exemplary contribution to this revitalised micro-historical approach, using episodes and themes from Engelhard’s collection as a way of exploring and unpicking some of the key theological, liturgical and intellectual developments of the twelfth century. The first chapter sketches out Engelhard’s place in the world: after the death of his father he entered the Cistercian house of Langheim where, aside from a brief period as abbot at an unnamed house in Austria, he would remain for the rest of his life, participating in the exchange of books and letters with monks and nuns at other houses in the region. Among his correspondents were the nuns of the abbey of Wechterswinkel, for whom he composed a collection of exempla at some point in the late twelfth century.

Creating adaptive social-ecological fit: The role of regional actors in the governance of Sea-level rise adaptation in San Francisco bay

Sea level rise is one of the most pressing climate adaptation issues around the world. Often, coastal communities are interdependent in their exposure to sea level rise – if one builds a seawall, it will push water to another – and would benefit from a coordinated adaptive response. The literature on social-ecological systems (SES) calls for actors placed at higher levels of governance (e.g. regional government in a metropolitan area) to improve coordination between local managers by serving as brokers. However, we lack empirical insight on how higher-level actors might improve coordination in practice, and theoretical development on the implications of their intermediation. To address these gaps, we study the case of adaptation to sea level rise in the San Francisco Bay Area. We build a social-ecological network of social actors and shoreline segments using original survey data and simulated scenarios of tidal and traffic interdependencies between shoreline segments. We perform a frequency analysis of network motifs that operationalize social-ecological ‘fit’ in the context of the Bay Area. We find that regional actors and non-governmental organizations increase social-ecological fit by providing intermediation between actors who work on different shoreline segments, whether interdependent or not. This shows that these actors provide adaptive social-ecological fit, future-proofing the Bay Area to current and future climate adaptation challenges.

Lessons that Lead to War: Foreign Policy Learning and Military Escalation in the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

ABSTRACT This paper examines Azerbaijan’s decision to go to war in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020. It aims to unveil the lessons Azerbaijan learned from the reaction of major regional actors in the South Caucasus to rising tensions in Armenian–Azerbaijani relations from the mid-2000s to the 2020 July border crisis. The paper argues that the consistent unresponsiveness of the international community emboldened Azerbaijan to proceed with its war preparations. It shows that Azerbaijan perceived the attitude of regional powers as inability and/or reluctance to interfere in the conflict, and this created a permissive environment for an all-out war.

Halting genocide in a post-liberal international order: intervention, institutions and norms

Abstract Drawing on history and International Relations, this article considers how states might respond to genocide in a more realist, post-liberal international order (LIO). It argues that even within an emergent realist international order (RIO) that downgrades normative commitments to fundamental human rights, unchecked genocide will continue to pose a threat to international peace and security and states will be interested in halting it. Within an emergent RIO, many of the non-coercive tools for halting genocide made available by liberal order will be constrained. Yet, scholars have in any case found that where genocidal-type violence has already begun, non-coercive tools are rarely effective (Bellamy and McLoughlin, 2022; Broache and Cronin-Furman, 2021). This article suggests that within an RIO which encourages greater amounts of self-help, regional and local actors will have realpolitik motivations for undertaking military interventions which halt genocides occurring in their neighbourhood. While such dynamics are observable during earlier period of international history, an emergent RIO will also benefit from the persistence of fundamental norms such as the prohibition on genocide. Given these factors, and while it will be highly non-ideal, an emerging RIO might retain the possibility of effectively responding to some genocides.

African Agency in Democracy Promotion: The African Union and Election Observation in Malawi

The African Union is emerging as a prominent actor in election assistance and observation. Considering the continued centrality of the electoral process to democracy-building efforts in Africa, African continental and regional organisations are increasingly monitoring elections and taking the lead in election observation processes across the continent. This paper contributes to the African agency literature by showing how agency is operationalised and implemented through international election observation. Focusing on Malawi’s recent electoral history (2004–2020), this paper argues that the African Union is institutionalising its election observation protocols and challenging the dominant position of western international actors, through enacting the role and agency of continental and regional actors. It critically assesses the African Union’s ability to undertake these efforts and how it has addressed elections, and the politics surrounding them.

Evaluating Cybersecurity Capacity Building of ASEAN Plus Three through Social Network Analysis

The strategic rivalry between the United States and China is out in full swing in Southeast Asia. As the result, ASEAN is emerging both as a key player as well as a playground for pivotal global and regional actors. South Korea, Japan, and China known as ASEAN Plus Three, have strong economic, political, and technological ties with the region, and have leveraged their cyber capabilities to compete for influence in the region. This study evaluates the relative performances of the Plus Three’ cyber outreach efforts to the region by visualizing the complex web of actors and cyber cooperation and assistance activities with network analysis tools and open-source databases. We quantitatively analyze national cyber security cooperation of ASEAN including South Korea, Japan, and China through capacity building indicators and social network methodology. This study (1) analyzes cybersecurity cooperation in ASEAN Plus Three, (2) explores factors that influence cooperation, and (3) lays out a quantitative basis for establishing national information policy and cybersecurity strategy. We find that the Plus Three, despite the outward similarity in their respective regional strategies, are a study of contrasts, with one of them emerging as an influential yet silent power in the regional cyber diplomacy domain.

Turkey’s security role in the Gulf region: exploring the case of a newcomer

ABSTRACT This study explores Turkey as a newcomer to Gulf security. It addresses why Turkish decision-makers want Turkey to play an elevated security role in the Gulf. It offers a holistic yet detailed outlook of Turkey’s potential enhanced security role and develops a systematic argument that assesses Ankara's aspiration, will, and capacity to play such a role. Finally, it adopts a comparative perspective to show how the regional actors (Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, and Iran) might perceive an enhanced Turkish security role in the Gulf; and where Turkey stands vis-à-vis the capacity of other extra-regional actors (the U.S., China, India, and Russia) concerning Gulf security.

1950 India–Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship and Regional Mobilisations in Eastern India

Regional demands for statehood in India have had an aspiration towards a ‘nationalisation’ of their issues in the hopes of accommodation. In the case of the Gorkhaland movement for separate statehood in northern West Bengal, the competition among regional forces to occupy and share a ‘national political space’ from the ‘margins’ has fuelled the increasing employment of debates regarding international treaty obligations. While there are numerous factors that are the causes of regional political mobilisation, the demand for the abrogation of Article VII of the India–Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship (1950) has nevertheless remained as one of its central themes. This symbolises an accentuation in the anxieties of citizenship and belonging to the nation. Examining these amid the important issues relating to unsuccessful invocations from Nepal for a Brihat Nepal (Greater Nepal), and the constitution of the Eminent Persons Group (EPG) for India–Nepal relations, the article concludes that there will not be any radical change in the status quo of India’s international treaty obligations with Nepal despite repeated demands by regional actors in India. This is indicated in an elusive ‘permanent political solution’ declared by the ruling party in India as a response to the regional political mobilisation that will possibly depart from the debates that invoke and demand transformations to India’s treaty obligations with Nepal.

Forging Local Energy Transition in the Most Carbon-Intensive European Region of the Western Balkans

To close an existing literature gap, we explore the conditions critical for the enactment of local energy transition and the shift to decarbonized renewable heating systems in the public sector of the most carbon-intensive European region of the Western Balkans. We select and then analyze the municipality of Priboj, which stands out among 150 municipalities in Serbia due to its effective promotion of local energy transition. The analysis provides a rich empirical illustration of a specific path that enables the local level to embark on a tailor-made energy transformation in an underdeveloped and path-dependent national policy framework. By linking a multi-level perspective of sustainability transitions to accounts of path dependency, we advance the understanding of the critical determinants and frameworks of local energy transition. Our analysis is enhanced with an investigation of the role of key actors and governance modes. A shared understanding of innovative solutions and existing local heating regime problems, and a shared vision of economically and environmentally viable opportunities based on available and unutilized local biomass, encouraged the local leaders to embark on a long and novel journey to decarbonize the local heating system. These observed factors coalesced with local political stability anchored in both the local- and national-level contexts. The effective coordination and cooperation across national- and local-level decision makers, financial institutions, and utilities was facilitated by a specific geographical and political context out of the reach of powerful gas network advocates. With these factors present, the synchronized entrepreneurial multi-level efforts served as the vehicles to develop and implement a shared vision of energy transition that became a learning platform for other regional actors.

Power and politics in a pandemic: Insights from Finnish health system leaders during COVID-19

Power and politics are both critical concepts to engage with in health systems and policy research, as they impact actions, processes, and outcomes at all levels in health systems. Building on the conceptualization of health systems as social systems, we investigate how power and politics manifested in the Finnish health system during COVID-19, posing the following research question: in what ways did health system leaders and experts experience issues of power and politics during COVID-19, and how did power and politics impact health system governance? We completed online interviews with health system leaders and experts (n = 53) at the local, regional, and national level in Finland from March 2021 to February 2022. The analysis followed an iterative thematic analysis process in which the data guided the codebook. The results demonstrate that power and politics affected health system governance in Finland during COVID-19 in a multitude of ways. These can be summarized through the themes of credit and blame, frame contestation, and transparency and trust. Overall, political leaders at the national level were heavily involved in the governance of COVID-19 in Finland, which was perceived as having both negative and positive impacts. The politicization of the pandemic took health officials and civil servants by surprise, and events during the first year of COVID-19 in Finland reflect recurring vertical and horizontal power dynamics between local, regional, and national actors. The paper contributes to the growing call for power-focused health systems and policy research. The results suggest that analyses of pandemic governance and lessons learned are likely to leave out critical factors if left absent of an explicit analysis of power and politics, and that such analyses are needed to ensure accountability in health systems.

The Analysis of Turkish Foreign Policy in Syria: A Neoclassical Realist Perspective

Since 2011, the Syrian Civil War has become an arena of international competition between regional and global powers. As a dominant regional actor, Turkey has important interests in this conflict. However, although great importance is given to civil war factors and power balances at the field level, Turkey’s internal conditions play a role as well as these externalities. Therefore, an analysis of Turkey’s foreign policy towards Syria from a local perspective is needed to reveal some negligible dynamics. In this direction, this study aims to analyse Turkey’s foreign policy towards Syria, taking into account the interaction between Turkey’s external and internal dynamics within the framework of neoclassical realist theory. Within this scope, we ask “how do Turkish external and internal dynamics explain its foreign policy in Syria?” as the leading search question and conduct our analysis using the explanatory case study method. Based on our findings, we provide a broad perspective on the significant impacts of four main internal factors on Turkish foreign policy, from the start of the Civil War to the most recent “Operation Spring Shield” by the Turkish Army and local Syrian armed groups.

Review: Cabotajes Novohispanos: Espacios y contactos marítimos en torno a la Nueva España, by Guadalupe Pinzón Ríos

Review: <i>Cabotajes Novohispanos: Espacios y contactos marítimos en torno a la Nueva España</i>, by Guadalupe Pinzón Ríos

European Integration Processes in the EU GI System—A Long-Term Review of EU Regulation for GIs

Prosciutto di Parma, Bavarian beer and Roquefort—Geographical Indications (GIs) have been systematically protected at the EU level for 30 years and are now an important part of the farm2fork strategy. The article analyses how the integration of the EU GI system can be explained from an institution and discourse theoretical perspective and ties in with the soft spaces debate. In doing so, scalar shifts in competence from a German perspective and the role of discursive spatial relations are examined in more detail. The empirical results are based on a mix of methods that includes the evaluation of secondary statistical data, document analyses, participant observation and expert interviews. The study shows that the European Commission (EC) is increasingly acting as a spokesperson for GIs, but that regional actors are also playing a more important role in implementation and enforcement. This development is fed by the influence of the agricultural policy instrument in terms of competition, but also consumer protection and trade policy. Overall, there are three development layers: protect and systematise, legitimise and expand and open and defend. A more independent development of the EU GI system as an instrument of quality policy and for the development of rural areas could give greater weight to the sustainability-relevant, environmental policy aspects currently demanded by society.

Geopolitics of the Black Sea after the Cold War: State and Prospects

The paper considers the geopolitical situation of the Black Sea after the end of the Cold War. The main stages of changing the geopolitical situation are highlighted: from attempts by new regional actors to build their own course in the 1990s to falling into the sphere of influence of the United States and the EU. The interests of both the Black Sea and non-Black Sea powers in the region, their strengths and weaknesses are analyzed. The growing aggravation of relations between Russia and Western powers in the light of their penetration into the Black Sea region was noted. The ambiguous position of Turkey, its distance from the common Western course towards Russia was noted. It is concluded that without changing the positions of the main actors, stabilization of the situation in the region is problematic. It is noted that the conduct of ITS on the territory of Ukraine will seriously affect the preponderance of forces in the region and will have far-reaching consequences for Russia. The prospects of further cooperation of the countries in the Black Sea region are considered, taking into account the difficulties that arise due to their Prospects for the strategic and economic development of Russia are determined, taking into account the forecast of further developments in the area of the SVO. The author comes to the conclusion that the prospects for the further geopolitical situation in the Black Sea region will directly depend on how the SVO in Ukraine will end.

RUSSIAN-TURKISH FACTOR IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH BASED ON MATERIALS IN RUSSIAN MEDIA

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which erupted in the late 1980s and passed into the military stage in 1991, had been frozen for many years. The sudden hostilities unleashed in Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2020 led to the regional destabilization in the South Caucasus. Unlike previously, this time the conflict saw the active role of Turkey that primarily affected Russia’s national interests and the issues of its geopolitical power in the post-Soviet space. Unlike the West, which failed to solve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem in 30 years, regional actors represented by Russia and Turkey achieved a significant shift in solving the problem in a short period of time. Based on the materials in the Russian media, the article analyzes the key positions of two actors - Russia and Turkey on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The article reveals the interests of the two parties in the conflict settlement, explains Turkey’s support to Azerbaijan in the conflict against Armenia and reflects Russia’s subsequent interests (all according to the materials in Russian media). Special emphasis is laid on factors and related interests which make Russian-Turkish cooperation possible.

Multiple meanings and boundaries of growth in shrinking regions in East and North Finland

Growth stands out as a key development object in contemporary green economy policies. It is particularly interesting in the Nordic context such as in East and North Finland, where many regions are rich in natural resources, but also shrinking and lagging. Therefore, their regional development is simultaneously framed by an expected sustainability transition that alternates between green growth and degrowth agendas, and the socio-economic phenomenon of shrinkage. This article examines how growth is understood and framed among regional development actors, with special interest placed on different meanings, possible critics, and the boundaries of growth. The interviewed actors are positioned as intermediaries who possess special knowledge regarding regional development. The interviews show that the understanding of growth in this context requires various framings that combine global, regional, and local perspectives on sustainable development, as well as the burdens of shrinking and lagging regions balanced against cohesive and inclusive promises of green growth. The hegemonic frame is approached through a lens of green growth, yet the shrinking population remains in the background. Growth appears as a favoured means to tackle societal problems, which reflects a mission-oriented goal setting. Critical statements are directed at growth policies and funding instruments that do not seem to promote cohesive and inclusive growth. The clearest boundary for growth relates to nature, but it is far too early to make interpretations on an intentional degrowth agenda. From the regional actors’ perspective, setting boundaries for growth in a context of long-term shrinkage, sparse population, and extensive natural surroundings seems trivial. Handling the peripheries’ societal problems related to shrinkage and their struggle for resources appears as the more relevant mission that also requires growth in various forms.