Publications
The Georgian far right failed its electoral debut. But its season may not be over
Taken together, the emerging groups of the Georgian far right obtained less than 5% in the October 2020 elections to the national Parliament. But limited electoral success does not mean that the far-right has limited political power, in Georgia and elsewhere in the world.
Why Choose to Cycle in a Low-Income Country?
Research on the adoption of the bicycle as a means of transport has been booming in high-income countries. However, little is known about bicycle adoption in lower-income countries where air pollution is high and cycling infrastructure is poor. Understanding the drivers of cycling adoption in developing economies can increase the efficiency of transport policies while reducing local air pollution, improving health, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. The objective of this study is to identify the factors affecting cycling uptake in a low-income country using the city of Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan as a case study. The analysis is based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, a questionnaire-based survey of 900 respondents, factor analysis, and a logit model. In contrast to studies carried out in developed countries, this study finds that students are less likely to adopt cycling than other population groups. Other findings suggest that support for public transport, a desire for regular exercise and perceptions of the environmental benefits of cycling increase the probability of the use of cycling as a mode of transport in a low-income country. The paper also identifies positive and negative perceptions of cycling among cyclists and non-cyclists
Trade and trust: the role of trade in de facto state conflict transformation
De facto states – unrecognized secessionist entities that eke out a living on the margins of the international system – are often heavily dependent on external patron states for economic aid and investment. When the parent state – the state that the de facto state seeks to break away from – responds to the secessionist attempt by imposing sanctions or economic blockades, this further exacerbates such dependency. Moreover, due to their lack of international recognition, de facto states often have limited opportunities to engage with the outside world beyond the patron and the parent state. However, closer examination of one such de facto state, Abkhazia, reveals that de facto states can enjoy some bounded independent economic agency. Abkhazia’s maneuvering between Russia as “patron,” Georgia as “parent state,” and the wider international community (here exemplified by the EU) in the sphere of trade and economic interaction has important implications for de-facto state conflict transformation.
Norway, NATO and the Northern Flank
This chapter discusses Norwegian perspectives on North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and security and defense policy. It begins with a short background discussion about the historical relations between Norway and Russia, and the Norwegian security and defense posture that has resulted in since the World War II. It describes Norway’s relations to NATO, popular support for the Alliance today, and Norway progress concerning the 2 percent target at the Wales summit in 2014. Current Norwegian security and defense policy reflects renewed concerns about developments in Russia, and the desire to enhance NATO and United States engagement in the north, while also strengthening European security cooperation. Norway, as a small state with limited national forces, must rely on NATO for its security and deterrence. Norwegian popular support for NATO is higher than in a long time, and even voters on the far left appear predominantly supportive.
Ingen troverdig leder
US' International leadership was in crisis long before Donald Trump.
Climate, Peace and Security Fact Sheet: Somalia
Somalia is highly susceptible to the effects of climate change and extreme weather. Without anticipatory preventive approaches, these factors are likely to exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and reduce the people’s livelihood options, which in turn may have negative impacts for stability and security in Somalia.
The Security and Defence Aspect of Brexit: Altering the Third Country Balance?
What room is there for inclusion of third countries in EU security and defence initiatives and how does Brexit alter the politics of such inclusion? This chapter turns to the emergent power politics of third country participation in EU security and defence and makes a comparison between past EU practices toward Norway and the emerging question of the UK’s future status as a third country. It argues that whereas the EU internally heads forward on security and defence, how it deals with like-minded third country partners will be characterized by a continuation of the existing modus operandi, or muddling through. The argument is made with a specific focus on (1) the domestic level of politicization and (2) EU affordances.
The Chechen post-war diaspora in Norway and their visions of legal models
This article examines how understandings of the rule of law are shaped in the Chechen diaspora in Norway. Taking as our point of departure studies of legal pluralism and the co-existence of traditional Adat, religious Sharia and Russian secular law in Chechnya, we examine the effect of living in a host country by asking: How do members of the Chechen diaspora, here defined as conflict-generated diaspora, view and internalize legal models in Norway? What type of state governance do they see as ideal for themselves and for Chechnya in the future? Further: what might the underlying explanation for their choices be? We assume that just as different waves of violence in Chechnya created different diaspora communities that today exhibit specific social, cultural and political traits, the latest wave of forced emigration to Europe after the post-Soviet Russo–Chechen wars may have made specific imprints on the legal preferences of this diaspora. The picture that emerges from our in-depth individual interviews and surveys is one of gradual adaptation and adjustment to Norwegian state governance and rule of law, demonstrating the complex and co-constitutive relationships between changing identities and legal preferences.
Conventional Counterforce Dilemmas: South Korea's Deterrence Strategy and Stability on the Korean Peninsula
In response to North Korea's nuclear weapons program, South Korea is quietly pursuing an independent conventional counterforce and countervalue strategy. This strategy is unique. Few, if any, nonnuclear states have sought to rely on advanced conventional capabilities to deter a nuclear-armed adversary. Why is South Korea pursuing a conventional counterforce and countervalue strategy, and what could its impact be on strategic stability on the Korean Peninsula? South Korea's approach should be understood as both a short- and long-term hedge against U.S. abandonment. Its deterrent effect, no matter how uncertain, acts as a short-term stopgap if the United States abandons South Korea. Over the long term, capabilities such as advanced ballistic and cruise missiles bolster South Korea's nuclear latency. At the same time, we highlight that the strategy poses numerous technological and operational difficulties and has negative implications for arms race and crisis stability. Given South Korea's approach and North Korea's response, disarmament efforts focused purely on the bilateral U.S.–North Korea relationship will not succeed. Rather, any agreement will now need to address the growing gap in the conventional balance of forces on the Korean Peninsula.
The Palgrave Handbook of EU Crises
The Palgrave Handbook of EU crises comprehensively explores the European Union’s institutional and policy responses to crises across policy domains and institutions – including the Euro crisis, Brexit, the Ukraine crisis and other foreign policy crises, the migration crisis, the legitimacy crisis and the global health crisis resulting from Covid-19. It contributes to our understanding of how crises affect institutional change and continuity, decision-making behavior and processes, and public policy making. If offers a systematic discussion of how the existing repertoire of theories understand crises and how well they capture times of crises and events of disintegration. More generally, the handbook looks at how public organizations cope with crises, and thus probes how sustainable and resilient public organizations are in times of crisis and unrest.