Caring and Carers: Diplomatic Personnel and the Duty of Care
This article deals with the duty of care that states hold in relation to their citizens abroad — more specifically, the double role of diplomatic personnel, as both providers and recipients of care. The focus of discussion is states’ duty of care for diplomatic personnel, raising questions of how this care can be balanced with the duty of care for citizens and how far this duty stretches. The article first emphasizes the threats, before focusing on the means of protection: evacuation; physical structures; and psychological care. A tension remains, for as states fulfil their duty of care towards personnel through increasing security, they might at the same time reduce their personnel’s capacity to provide care for citizens. One solution for this tension — outsourcing and local personnel — tests the limits of care.
The Norway-China Relationship: For Better, For Worse, For Richer, For Poorer
This book seeks to explore Nordic approaches to China and the idea of sub-regional diplomacy. China’s multi-tiered approach to Europe can be seen vividly in the Nordic sub-region, which has been engaging Beijing through a variety of different means corresponding to the political and economic structures found in the Nordic states. In some areas, a specific Nordic approach can be observed, including areas related to economic cooperation, Arctic diplomacy, and institution-building. However, the Nordic states also have widely differing historical experiences with China leading up to the present day. Each of the Nordic states has also had to balance their China relations with those of the EU and other major players such as the United States. With case studies on the EU, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, this volume addresses the question of a specifically Nordic approach to Chinese relations. It explores not only the contributions of the Nordics to China relations, but also adds to the greater study of sub-regional approaches to Chinese diplomacy at a time when Sino-European relations are arguably at their most complex. This book will be of much interest to students of Chinese politics, Nordic politics, diplomacy and IR in general.
China and Nordic Diplomacy
This book seeks to explore Nordic approaches to China and the idea of sub-regional diplomacy. China’s multi-tiered approach to Europe can be seen vividly in the Nordic sub-region, which has been engaging Beijing through a variety of different means corresponding to the political and economic structures found in the Nordic states. In some areas, a specific Nordic approach can be observed, including areas related to economic cooperation, Arctic diplomacy and institution-building. However, the Nordic states also have widely differing historical experiences with China leading up to the present day. Each of the Nordic states has also had to balance their China relations with those of the EU and other major players such as the US. With case studies on the EU, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, this volume addresses the question of a specifically Nordic approach to Chinese relations. It explores not only the contributions of the Nordics to China relations, but also adds to the greater study of sub-regional approaches to Chinese diplomacy at a time when Sino-European relations are arguably at their most complex. This book will be of much interest to students and researchers of Chinese politics, Nordic politics, diplomacy and IR in general.
Norway’s security framework in a new era
This project is going to look closer at Norway’s closest allies and partners in a new and more uncertain world. ...
Chinese Investments in Norway: A Typical Case Despite Special Circumstances
Chinese investments in Norway have increased, and remain moderate but substantial compared with the situation in Europe overall. The Norwegian case is both typical and somewhat unique. Transactions made in the 2000s coincided with China’s boom in outbound natural resource- and energy-related investments. Subsequent deals have demonstrated an increasing interest in specialized and high-tech companies. There has been diversification among actors, but state-owned enterprises remain the main source. Moreover, the debate surrounding Chinese investments in Norway has been limited and largely positive. What makes Norway a special case is the six-year freeze of bilateral political affairs that followed the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. Although the suppression of some investor interests and opportunities is to be expected, several major investments were completed during this period despite the dysfunctional political ties. After the normalization of bilateral relations in December of 2016, actors on both sides are signaling increased economic interest and negotiations for a bilateral Free Trade Agreement are back on track.
Afghanistan: A Political Economy Analysis
This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the current state of Afghanistan, arguing that the Afghan state is fragile, and sustained through constant negotiations over power, resources and ideology. What began as a radical state-building and democratization project in 2001 was soon captured by elites. Some of which engages in semi-formal and informal governance structures to further their influence. Distribution of state revenue, largely from external donors, has been used to secure loyalty and maintain control. This has contributed to extreme state centralization, hampered development of state institutions, failed justice sector reforms, high levels of corruption and reduced government legitimacy, and lately an increase in poverty. On the positive side, access to education and health services has improved, partly due to the strong emphasis placed on the rights of women. The security situation has deteriorated since 2014. At present the government control less than 60 percent of the country and civilian causalities are steadily increasing. Conflicts in Afghanistan are exacerbated by the involvement of its neighbors. To improve security, as well as economic and social development, a negotiated peace settlement is needed. If the conflict is left unresolved (in fear of regional and international security concerns), a slow and steady deterioration of security, and economic and social development, is to be expected.
The Making of a Classic: On Diplomacy 30 Years On.
In this article, Halvard Leira makes the case for On Diplomacy (published in 1987) being a classic in the making of International Relations, and engages the central notion of diplomacy understood as "the mediation of estrangement".
Une volonté partagée de façonner un nouvel ordre mondial
In the West, the rise of nationalist populism reached a tipping point in 2016 when it generated both the UK vote for Brexit and the election of President Trump in the US. In contrast, over the same period, the BRICS have invested in strengthening inter-BRICS cooperation and the group’s commitment to the United Nations, global governance and economic globalisation. Their primary focus has been on financial, trade and economic cooperation. However, their ability to develop a shared analysis of the political and security dimensions of the global order seems to have come to a turning point in 2017, when they opted to focus their annual Summit on developing strategies to defend global governance, economic globalisation, free trade, and joint action on climate. How did we get to the point where it seems to be up to the BRICS to rescue globalisation ?
Outsidership and the European Neighbourhood Policy. The case of Norway
This paper examines how and to what extent Norway adapts to and is affected by the European Union’s policy towards its neighbours in the East. In line with the overall topic of the special issue of Global Affairs, it investigates how Norway handles its ‘outsidership’ when formulating its policies towards Union’s Eastern partner countries that have signed Association Agreements with the EU (Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova). While Norway is not an EU member, it is still highly integrated in to most of the Union’s policy areas. It even has the habit of signing up to most of the EU’s declarations on foreign policy. However, the European Neighbourhood Policy is one of the policy areas where Norway is not participating. This means that it has the liberty to choose a different approach than the EU in its bilateral relations with these countries. Thus, this paper investigates what kind of balance Norway seeks between autonomy and integration in relation to the ENP partner countries. As this article shows, Norway seem to align itself to the policies of the EU also in this area, sometimes even without the Norwegian officials being fully aware of the extent to which this is happening.