Strategic Interests Research Articles

ARCTIC HORIZONS: COOPERATION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND CHINA IN A CHANGING POLAR AND GEOPOLITICAL LANDSCAPE

Recently, the Arctic has become a focal point of geopolitical activity, driven by changes in the environment, resource exploration, and strategic interests. In the Arctic region, competition and rivalry, both military and economic, are intertwined with the pursuit of peaceful and mutually beneficial cooperation. This cooperation spans multiple areas, including economy, politics, security, technological advancements and environmental protection. The focus of this article is to examine how international actors interact in the Arctic, especially in the context of the tensions between the United States and Russia, as well as the growing competition between the United States and China. This study emphasizes the growing partnership between Russia and China and its crucial role as a central axis of cooperation in the region. As Russia views the Arctic as a strategic resource base, both from an economic and security point of view, and as China takes a keen interest in Arctic affairs due to its global status and economic imperatives, the importanc e of partnership between the two countries is increasing.The main points of this study are devoted to defining the strategic interests of Russia and China in the Arctic, their joint efforts in energy and infrastructure projects, and the consequences of their cooperation for the management of the Arctic and international relations. The study also examines the approaches of Russia and China to Arctic governance.

RO e-VAT, the IT System of National Strategic Interest for Combating Tax Evasion and Fraud

RO e-VAT, the IT System of National Strategic Interest for Combating Tax Evasion and Fraud

THE ROLE OF MONGOLIA IN REGIONAL SECURITY

The situation in Northeast Asia is an important topic of international security arena. Political and economic relations between Russia and China, as well as the Korean Peninsula issue, which can have a major impact in Northeast Asia as such powerful actors that can change the world order and security environment. Past decades, the peace policy of mutual trust between the countries of the Northeast Asian region has become the most important issue not only in the regional but also in the international security environment. Therefore, it is important to analyze and assess a strategic interests and international geopolitical ambition of major powers that could directly or indirectly affect Mongolia's national security to develop national strategic solutions to enhance Mongolia’s national security and its security environment. Mongolia has no territorial, economic, military or political conflicts of interest with any of the countries in the region. Such reasons can give Mongolia an opportunity to be a key player in confidence-building measures to prevent hostilities, to avert escalation, to reduce military tension in Northeast Asia. There are many ways and fields to operate as peace player in this region. For instance, Mongolia can be an initiator or a main actor of a regional peacekeeping cooperation organization in Northeast Asia.

Socio-political factors in the emergence of border armed conflicts in Central Asia

This article examines the socio-political causes of border disputes and armed conflicts between states in Central Asia. Socio-political causes of border disputes in Central Asia encompass ethnic tensions, resource allocation conflicts, geopolitical influences, weak governance, cross-border community ties, and strategic national security interests. The article assesses the importance of Central Asia in the world political system and describes interactions between the states of the Central Asian region in the context of the settlement of territorial disputes at the present stage.

Counterinsurgency, forest governance, and the dynamics of change in the forests of South Asia: Transition in Bangladesh's forests

Since the end of the Cold War, attention has increasingly focused globally on the nexus of conflict, natural resources, and governance, particularly in forested regions. This paper presents a comprehensive historical and comparative analysis of forest and biodiversity loss in Bangladesh over the last 50 years, attending to the impacts of counterinsurgency in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) and governance changes in the plains. Drawing on Peter Vandergeest and Nancy Peluso's seminal concept of “political forests,” the study critically analyzes how counterinsurgency, state-led development, and green militarization in the CHT, alongside neoliberal development, commercialization, and land grabbing in the plains, have reshaped forest governance and territorial control in the country. The analysis reveals that counterinsurgencies in the CHT, driven by domestic priorities and strategic interests, expanded colonial-style territorial control over forests, thereby exacerbating biodiversity loss. In the plains, neoliberal governance has promoted forest degradation through commercial exploitation and state-sanctioned land grabbing, with economic growth being pursued at the cost of environmental sustainability. This paper presents a critique of both militarized and neoliberal approaches to conservation, demonstrating how these models prioritize political and economic agendas over ecological integrity and local community needs. In conclusion, the study advocates a paradigmatic shift toward inclusive, community-centered forest governance that empowers local populations and emphasizes environmental stewardship, challenging dominant state-centric and market-driven approaches to forest management.

Islamic diplomacy of Azerbaijan in the context of the Nagorno-Karabakh 2020 war: the role of the organization of Islamic Cooperation

ABSTRACT Since achieving independence, Azerbaijan has employed its Islamic identity in its foreign policy to develop an international Islamic agenda concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) conflict. It has promoted the notion of Islamic solidarity and diversified its strategic interests in the conflict. The study aims to analyse Azerbaijan’s diplomatic strategies to garner comprehensive support from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, focusing on the 2020 war. The paper argues that Azerbaijan has developed Islamic diplomacy and instrumentalized religion as one of the components of its foreign policy against Armenia and the de facto Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. During the 2020 war, Azerbaijan applied the discourse of Islamic solidarity and the Azerbaijani narratives on the NK conflict that have been introduced in the OIC during the last three decades.

The Russian Arctic in the international economic and geopolitical agenda

The article considers the key economic and geopolitical aspects in the activities of states having strategic interests in the Arctic region. Attention is paid to potential challenges that Russia may face in terms of international cooperation, including militarization. The current development of the Northern Sea Route with the assessment of its integration prospects into the global logistics network is considered. The state of the infrastructure in the Arctic is evaluated, along with identification of possible development directions.

Human Rights Promotion and Democratic Allies

Abstracts Do military alliances promote human rights? Scholars and practitioners generally believe they do not because states form alliances largely to advance their strategic interests and thus are not interested in members' domestic policies. I claim that some states may care about their allies' human rights practices. Specifically, democracies are concerned that alliance relationships with rights-abusing governments harm their reputation, and thus urge their allies to improve human rights. However, this rights-promoting motivation is constrained because democracies also need to preserve alliance partnerships with governments that may rely on repression for their internal security. Empirical analyses of alliance relationships between democracies and autocracies provide support for this argument. Autocracies with a powerful democratic ally implement relatively advanced human rights protection; however, this association becomes weaker as the risk of domestic conflict becomes higher. These findings suggest the importance of considering democratic allies in the international promotion of human rights.

Regional Dynamics and Counterterrorism: Pakistan-Russia Collaboration in Central Asia

Pakistan and Russia face threats from terrorist organizations such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP), the East Turkestan Liberation Organization (ETLO), and the Grey Wolves, which have extended their influence into Central Asia. These groups pose serious security challenges for Pakistan, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, with Pakistani intelligence often tracing terrorist incidents back to these organizations. This study explores the geostrategic dynamics and security challenges in Central Asia and the potential for a strategic partnership between Pakistan and Russia. To investigate the potential and implications of a strategic partnership between Pakistan and Russia for regional security and stability. The research involves a comprehensive literature review and analysis of efforts by the Counter Terrorism Implementation Task Forces (CTITF) under the United Nations and the United Nations Center for Regional Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNCRPDCA). It examines their impacts on Russia-Pakistan relations within the context of regional dynamics and strategic interests. The study finds that a Pak-Russia strategic partnership could enhance regional security and stability through improved counterterrorism efforts, including intelligence sharing and joint military exercises. It highlights the mutual challenges and geopolitical tensions that may affect this partnership. The paper provides valuable insights into the potential strategic partnership between Pakistan and Russia to address shared security threats and the role of international organizations in facilitating counterterrorism initiatives in the region.

Meet Me in the Middle: Evaluating Middle Power Cyber Doctrine and Strategic Culture Through the Cases of Canada and Australia

The global expansion in reliance on information and communication technologies has thrust the digital world of cyberspace into the forefront of strategic security discourse. Meanwhile, the responsibilities, capabilities, and strategic interests of middle powers have been fraught with ambiguity and debate in international relations literature. While existing studies examine how the cyberspace domain has become an increasingly competitive arena for geopolitics and strategic competition between and among great powers, there remains a dearth of literature evaluating cyberspace objectives and behaviour for middle powers. This paper aims to fill this gap, drawing on prior frameworks of analysis used for great power cyber studies, alongside extant middle power literature, to employ the theoretical lens of strategic culture toward evaluating the unique behaviour of middle powers in cyberspace. This paper thus suggests that cyberspace presents scholars with an outlet to further examine and define middle powers in the international realm, as well as middle powers with opportunities to assert and potentially expand their position in the global order, while protecting and promoting their distinct interests. This paper also incorporates a synthesis of quantitative and qualitative cyber data, and the deployment of a Most Similar Systems Design to assess two middle power case studies: Canada and Australia. The findings help to challenge and refine our understanding of what roles, capabilities and objectives define middle power behaviour in cyberspace, as well as provide insight into the implications that the rise of cyber operations and security considerations might have for Canadian and Australian grand strategy, and middle power strategic culture more generally. Ultimately, this study serves to refine past theoretical assumptions in the context of a novel and expanding domain for statecraft and competition, and identify a foundation from which the principles of a more coherent and effective cyber doctrine for middle powers might be pursued.

Different nightmares, shared dreams? Australia and New Zealand's intuitive alliance

ABSTRACT What does this apparent relegation of the strategic significance of Australia’s relationship with New Zealand to a partnership in Australia’s 2023 Defence Strategic Review tell us about the status of the Australia-New Zealand alliance? Based on interviews and roundtables with leaders, officials, and academics in both countries in late 2023 and early 2024, we argue that the depth and breadth of Australia and New Zealand’s defence, economic, regulatory, and people-to-people cooperation and integration has made their relationship ‘intuitive’. That is, Australia and New Zealand’s relationship has come to be seen as part of the natural order of things, so that the two countries see each other as a natural, permanent partner, parting company with whom is unthinkable. But we also argue that this may prevent the two neighbours from recognising and responding to tensions. To address this, we examine differences between the two countries’ perceptions of themselves, their strategic interests, and their alliance, and find that the management of expectations will continue to generate tensions. While we conclude that these tensions will not fundamentally undermine the relationship, we acknowledge that it has not yet been seriously tested, for example by conflict in East Asia.

THE CONFLICT OF INTERESTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST: THE ROLE OF THE USA, RUSSIA AND CHINA

With its vast energy reserves, strategic location, and complex socio-political landscape, the Middle East has been a central arena of global power struggle for centuries, attracting the attention of international powers. Today, the region is witnessing significant geopolitical competition between the United States, Russia, and China, each vying for influence and seeking to shape the future of the Middle East according to their strategic interests. The roles and interests of these three countries in the Middle East are manifested in the following directions.

Strategic and Economics Interest of China in Balochistan: The Role of Natural Resources and Geopolitical Implication of Gwadar Port in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)

Strategic and Economics Interest of China in Balochistan: The Role of Natural Resources and Geopolitical Implication of Gwadar Port in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)

Can Jihadis’ Strategic Interests Trump Their Ideology? Foreign Support and Insurgent Survival in Syria

The role of ideology in civil wars is particularly contentious, especially when it comes to Jihadi insurgents. Ideology is one of these groups’ defining characteristic, which questions what happens when Jihadis’ ideological commitments contradicts their strategic interests. This article explores these tensions with a particular focus on the issue of foreign support for the Syrian insurgency after 2011. The article argues that ideology matters and has contributed to division and infighting between Syrian insurgents for most of the conflict. But this research also contends that armed groups – including Jihadis – can adapt their ideological positions in line with their strategic interests as long as they manage to implement such changes without jeopardizing their internal cohesion. This careful balance explains the operational strategies of numerous armed groups in competitive environments such as Syria’s. The article draws on extensive interviews with Syrian insurgents over the past few years, including leaders and commanders of Ahrar al-Sham and Jabhat al-Nusra as it transformed into HTS.

The Way the U.S. Balances Ideology and National Interest in Foreign Policy from the Perspective of Encouraging and Restricting Foreign Investment

In recent years, the US has imposed a series of initiatives such as high tariffs on China and even its Western allies, etc. Especially in 2018, the US introduced the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act, which further strengthened the security review of foreign investment, resulting in non-US companies with advantages being restricted from investing in the US. This paper argues that whether the US encourages or restricts local investment by companies from different countries is still a direct reflection of its foreign policy towards different countries, which has always oscillated between idealism and realism. Whether or not to pursue the ideological attitude of foreign investment, mainly depends on its security and economic goals, values of the goal of maximizing the interests of the integrated consideration, and its pursuit of strategic interests is above the pursuit of ideological goals. This paper will cite decades of U.S. treatment of investment enterprises in different countries, as well as whether the technological level of different enterprises let the U.S. feel the pressure of specific cases to analyze how the U.S. balance of ideology and national interests. Therefore, the consistency and conflict between foreign investment and U.S. national interests determine the realist position of the U.S. in the security review of foreign investment, i.e., to maximize U.S. national interests by seeking to obtain a balance between national interests and the transmission of ideology in the review.

Analyzing Pakistan’s national curriculum textbooks in religious-based construction and demonisation of ‘other’ for high schools

ABSTRACT This study analysis the role of Pakistan’s National Curriculum textbooks in normalising religious-based construction and demonisation of the ‘other’. Specifically, it examines textbooks issued by Federal Textbook Board for high school students using thematic content analysis. The research aims to investigate the portrayal of religious-based construction and demonisation of the ‘other’ in sample textbooks projected ‘legitimate knowledge’ across various subjects. In addition, it also analyzes that how the textbooks deviate from their supposed educational purpose to serve the vested interested of the ruling elites. The analysis employs a theoretical framework based on Apple’s concept of ‘legitimate knowledge’, and N. Kalyvas and Frankfurter’s notion of the ‘normalisation of violence’ as both a process and an outcome. By employing this theoretical framework, the study reveals that the presentation of ‘legitimate knowledge’ in textbooks plays a crucial role in normalising religious-based construction and demonisation of the ‘other’ by depicting them as enemies, spies, cruel, uncivilised, hypocritical, and deserving severe punishment. Furthermore, the textbooks construct binary structures such as ‘Believers/Muslims vs. Non-believers/non-Muslims’, portraying various groups in a hostile manner. The analysis also sheds light on the factors influencing the textbooks’ role, which primarily serves the strategic and political interests of the Pakistani state, particularly during post-9/11 which significantly contributed to regional violence.

The new era of turbulence: Peacemaking trends in post-carbon times

Based on an empirical comparison of peace processes in carbon-dependent economies over time, this article investigates the impact of decarbonization and the related declining availability of political finance on peacemaking. While the period of high oil prices in the mid-2000s saw a small number of peace deals that attempted comprehensive settlements, the decline of oil prices in the years from 2014 resulted in a new era of turbulence. The turbulence is characterized by a high number of peacemaking attempts that strongly lean toward conflict management rather than resolution. The reasons for this new turbulence are twofold: the available means for substantial “buy-in,” into a political marketplace by ruling elites in carbon-dependent conflictive political marketplaces have vanished while, at the same time, the strategic interest of international powers in geopolitical stability and their willingness and capability to invest in such stability has declined.

Revisiting Veto Power in the Context of Atrocity Crimes: the Syrian Conflict as a Case Study

The excessive, abusive use of veto power during the war in Syria has prompted the international community to seek ways to overcome this veto power, mainly when doing so is necessary to prevent atrocities. The use of veto power to advance the national or regional interests as well as the economic, political, or strategic interests of a Security Council’s permanent member state on a way that impair a vital humanitarian interest of a state under conflict or the international community as a whole, undermines the Security Council’s role to maintain the international peace and security. This usage may also affect other states’ compliance with the veto power. In other words, the veto system could eventually lose its effectiveness if the international community continues to find justifications to non-compliance with the veto. This paper sheds light on events that have occurred during the Syrian war that give rise to Grotian Moments, or have the potential to do so, to create new customary international law rules governing the use of the veto power. Furthermore, this paper sorts out the principles invoked during those events as legal justifications to restrict or overthrow the veto power. Moreover, this paper identifies legal circumstances to facilitate any discussions regarding setting limitations on or obstructions to veto power in the context of atrocities. This research stresses the importance of determining a proper environment to overcome the veto power. This environment consists of unified, clear, and fair circumstances acceptable to all states, regardless of whether they are permanent or non-permanent members of the Security Council. Therefore, this proposal seeks to advance the legal system governing the use of the veto power for fighting brutality. Keywords: International criminal law, human rights law, universal jurisdiction, veto, customary international law, international organizations.

Assessment and Spatio-Temporal Evolution of Marine Fisheries’ Carbon Sink Capacity in China’s Three Marine Economic Circles

With the increasing pressure of resource decline and environmental pollution faced by the green transformation of marine fisheries, marine fishery carbon sinks are an increasingly close link to national strategic interests and economic lifelines. It is, therefore, necessary to explore paths for the enhancement and development of the carbon sink capacity of marine fisheries. Based on the economic data of marine fisheries from 2002 to 2021, this paper measures the capacity and characteristics of marine fishery carbon sinks in provincial areas, applies the kernel density estimation method to depict the dynamic evolution of the distribution of absolute differences in marine fishery carbon sinks, and at the same time, identifies the factors influencing the spatial imbalance in the development of marine fishery carbon sinks as well as the spatial spillover effects. The results show the following: (1) From the total amount, the fishery carbon sink capacity of China’s three marine economic circles has fluctuated and increased over the past 20 years, with obvious differences among different circles, and the marine fishery carbon sink capacity of the eastern, northern, and southern marine economic circles has risen sequentially. This trend corresponds to the economic disparities among the three circles, demonstrating a transition from economic to industrial driving effects. (2) From the spatial point of view, the fishery carbon sink capacity shows a trend of increasing year by year, concentrating in the circles, and overflowing between the circles. (3) The results of a partial derivative test further show that among the main influencing factors of marine fishery carbon sinks, capital, labor, and market openness have direct positive effects on marine fishery carbon sinks, and the direct effect of innovation is the strongest, and the significance of the indirect effect of the three circles is weaker compared to the direct effect and total effect. As a result, the carbon sink of China’s marine fisheries has a large room for improvement, and in order to promote the high-quality development of China’s marine fisheries, it is still necessary to accelerate the circulation of resources within the marine economic circle, accelerate the research of fishery technology, actively develop the carbon sink fishery, and enhance the specialization of aquatic product processing.

Instrumental councillors? On the strategic interests that drive local councillors’ legitimacy perceptions of citizen participation

ABSTRACT Lately, municipalities in Western democracies have become increasingly more participatory. Local councillors have a fundamental role therein as they can either enable or block citizen participation. In that vein, their legitimacy perceptions towards different participatory arrangements seem key. This article analyses to what extent instrumental motivations steer these attitudes. Specifically, we distinguish between collective power (belonging to the governing majority or not) and individual influence (level of self-perceived political efficacy) as explanatory variables. Results based on a large-scale survey among local councillors in Flanders (Belgium) show that instrumental motivations indeed play a significant role: councillors with high levels of influence perceive traditional forms of decision-making (classic decision-making and consultative participation) as more legitimate. At the same time, majority councillors evaluate decisive forms of citizen participation as less legitimate than their colleagues in opposition. Additionally, feeling more powerful seems to be linked with an overall enthusiasm irrespective of participatory designs.