This timely work offers a clear and thorough assessment of how Roma make sure their voice is heard and addresses the difficulty in determining who legitimately represents this heterogeneous transnational minority community. The book argues that Roma are a transnational minority that, as such, requires transnational representation structures to complement domestic political representation structures. After explaining the relationship between representation and political participation within the context of ethnic mobilization, the book then evaluates representation structures and Roma participation in Romania, Hungary, and in the transnational political context. Analytically, the book presents a multidisciplinary approach that draws from the literature on minority rights, citizenship, international relations, and social movements. Empirically, it describes two domestic political contexts and a transnational one. An engaging, informative, and accessible text, Who Speaks for Roma? sheds light on the key challenges facing Roma across Europe today and will be a timely reference for anyone interested in minority politics, political participation, political representation, and human rights.

This book focuses on the recent rise of new regional economic institutions such as the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralisation, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which were established, in part, as a result of dissatisfaction of dynamic emerging markets with global economic institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank, and the GATT/WTO. The latter were formed by advanced economies in the West, after the historic Bretton Wood Conference of 1944. In doing so, the book addresses how this recent round of decentralisation, defined as the co-existence of "senior" global institutions and a plethora of newly-established regional institutions, has affected global economic governance, and the delivery of global public goods. It also poses the question if this has led to the fragmentation of global economic governance. The book adds value to existing literature by using a benefit-risk analytical framework to study the decentralisation process. Unlike the "contested multilateralism" argument used by some authors which focuses on the costs of decentralisation, the authors argue that benefits must also be considered. It also describes and analyses the establishment of global and regional international economic institutions and the evolving relationships between the two. Third, the authors argue that this decentralisation process will continue in the postpandemic period and recommend policies to reset the relationship between global and regional institutions. And lastly, the book discusses proposals to reform the international monetary system including the global reserve system with a view to reducing the hegemony of the US dollar. Throughout the book, the role for Asia is also identified, and elaborated on.

The United Nations Security Council is meant to be the central international organ for maintaining international peace and security, and it has a profound impact on the rights and duties of states under international law. However, it has been severely criticized throughout its existence. This book examines the role of international law in its decisions and decision-making process since the end of the Cold War, with the principle of legality as theoretical framework. It explores the limits that international law places on the Security Council, i.e. what it is allowed to demand of and impose on states. More importantly, however, this study provides great insight into how states use international legal arguments in the Council's decision-making process, and whether the Security Council has in practice respected and observed these legal limits. Selected case studies include Iraq, the former Yugoslavia, Haiti, East Timor and international terrorism.

This book examines the political costs of monetary union in Europe. It does so by gauging the degree to which four small European states - Iceland, Latvia, Hungary and Ireland - employed their monetary policies in response to the financial crisis. Contrary to popular and academic perception, Moses finds that small states in Europe still enjoy monetary policy autonomy, and this autonomy was used to prioritise the needs of domestic constituents over those of international markets. Eurozone member states, by contrast, pursued policies that prioritised the (long-term) needs of international lenders and European institutions, at the (short-term) expense of their own constituents. By illustrating the degree to which monetary policy autonomy still plays an effective role in responding to economic shocks, this book documents the substantial sacrifices that states have made in joining a suboptimum currency area. These are the political costs of monetary union in Europe.

Singapore is America's closest security partner in Southeast Asia. The United States has decided to help India become a major world power in the 21st century, an objective that is furthered by the nuclear agreement between them. Singapore's relationship with India is an increasingly pertinent feature of Southeast Asia's political and strategic landscape. Whether these three realities, taken together, lay the basis of a triangular relationship among Singapore, America, and India is the question that this book seeks to answer. The book begins with a review of the notion of Pax Americana and goes on to describe the state of bilateral relations among the three countries as they have evolved since the end of the Cold War. Subsequently, it analyses three core issues - the Global War on Terror, the rise of China, and the agency of democracy in international relations - that play a defining role in relations among Singapore, the United States, and India. The book concludes by suggesting some directions in which these relations might move.

In 2009 and 2010, the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights underwent significant reforms to their respective judicial appointments processes. Though very different judicial institutions, they adopted very similar - and rather remarkable - reforms: each would now make use of an expert panel of judicial notables to vet the candidates proposed to sit in Luxembourg or Strasbourg. Once established, these two vetting panels then followed with actions no less extraordinary: they each immediately took to rejecting a sizable percentage of the judicial candidates proposed by the Member State governments. What had happened? Why would the Member States of the European Union and of the Council of Europe, which had established judicial appointments processes that all but ensured themselves the unfettered power to designate their preferred judges to the European courts, and who had zealously maintained and exercised that power over the course of some fifty years, suddenly decide to undermine their own capacity to continue to do so? This book sets out to solve this mystery. Its point of departure is that it would be a mistake to view the 2009-2010 establishment of the two vetting panels in isolation from other European judicial developments. Though these acts of institutional creation are certainly the most notable recent developments, they actually represent but the crowning achievement of a process of European judicial appointments reform that has been running unremittingly since the 1990's. This longstanding and tenacious movement has actually triggered a broad set of interrelated debates and reforms, encompassing not only judicial appointments per se, but also a much wider set of issues, including judicial independence, judicial quality, judicial councils, the separation of powers, judicial gender equity, and more.

Highly topical and with an interdisciplinary focus, this book explores the recent political and social developments in EU citizenship. Bringing political scientists, sociologists and law scholars together, this book analyses the implications of identity categorisation regarding gender and generations in the EU and what this means for the realisation of citizens?' rights, particularly of women, young adults and migrant care workers throughout the EU. Established researchers explore the stories of social and civil rights in the EU, covering family mobility and migration issues, the precarious positions of female migrant workers across member states and the EU?s promotion of diverse family rights. Moreover, the book focuses on the prominent issues facing the new generation of young adults: particularly social mobility, civil rights and political parties?' differing views on gender and family issues. With insight into national and regional perspectives on these significant topics, the authors argue that the European Parliament is currently striving for a new consensus to unite member states and dissipate current divisions. An important read for academics and students from across the social sciences, specifically public and social policy, gender studies and European studies, interested in the future direction of the EU surrounding gender and generational division. Contributors include: G.M. Dotti Sani, J. Gal, T. Knijn, A. Krizsan, D. Lepianka, J. Long, M. Luppi, M. Naldini, R. Oomkens, L. Rolandsen Agustin, A. Santero, B. Siim, J. Sipic, D. Sirinic, C. Solera, L.J. van den Braken, M.A. Yerkes

Middle East Studies after September 11: Neo-Orientalism, American Hegemony and Academia will show the long-term implications of current approaches to Middle East scholarship on the internal transformation of Middle Eastern societies. It describes the complex relationship between American academia and state government: a relationship which has influenced and restructured the state, society and politics in the Middle East as well as in the United States. It engages the disciplines of Sociology, Political Science, Anthropology, History and International Studies, while maintaining the epistemological, methodological, and ontological insights of a sociological approach to the Middle East. Contributors are: Beyazit H. Akman, Mahmoud Arghavan, Dunya D. Cakir, Emanuela C. Del Re, Babak Elahi, Manuela E. B. Giolfo, Shah Mahmoud Hanifi, Merve Kavakci, Tugrul Keskin, Seyed Mohammd Marandi, Ameena Al-Rasheed Nayel, Staci Gem Scheiwiller, Francesco L. Sinatora, Zeinab Ghasemi Tari

This concise introduction to the growth and evolution of geopolitics as a discipline includes biographical information on its leading historical and contemporary practitioners and detailed analysis of its literature. An important book on a topic that has been neglected for too long, Geopolitics: A Guide to the Issues will provide readers with an enhanced understanding of how geography influences personal, national, and international economics, politics, and security. The work begins with the history of geopolitics from the late 19th century to the present, then discusses the intellectual renaissance the discipline is experiencing today due to the prevalence of international security threats involving territorial, airborne, space-based, and waterborne possession and acquisition. The book emphasizes current and emerging international geopolitical trends, examining how the U.S. and other countries, including Australia, Brazil, China, India, and Russia, are integrating geopolitics into national security planning. It profiles international geopolitical scholars and their work, and it analyzes emerging academic, military, and governmental literature, including "gray" literature and social networking technologies, such as blogs and Twitter. Biographies of major current geopolitical scholars and descriptions and listings of their works Maps of geopolitical crisis areas, such as Afghanistan/Pakistan, the South China Sea, and the Straits of Malacca Quotations from various government and military primary source documents A glossary of geopolitical terms A bibliography of international scholarly resources, including government and military documents

Questions of European economic and political integration have been placed firmly on the policy agenda as we enter the late 1990s. The Economic Emergence of a New Europe? explores the arguments and forms of analysis deployed by those who have been pressing for closer integration since the early 1980s.Although events in Denmark and the United Kingdom have thrown the future of the post-Maastricht European Community into some confusion, the agreements already reached will propel the Community along a path of ever closer economic co-operation. Casting a sceptical eye over much of the economic analysis used to explore the effects and implications of the integration process, this book critically examines the reasons behind the contemporary imperative for greater integration among the European states, and assesses the likely limits of this programme.

The complex inter-relationships between Japan and the two Koreas are thoroughly assessed in this authoritative new book, which concentrates upon developments since the late 1980s and the prospects for the 1990s.Japan and Korea in the 1990s examines the historical legacies, the current perceptions and the policy making processes. It then details the recent trends in the economic, political-strategic and cultural dimensions of the relationships. The involvement and influence of the other interested powers, China, the former Soviet Union and the United States, as well as the broader regional context, are considered. A separate chapter concentrates on the current Japan-North Korea negotiations Brian Bridges has written an enlightening study of this important area in international relations. As the only up-to-date study of Japan-Korea relations available in English, it will be welcomed by teachers, students and policymakers alike.

What major long-term factors will shape the European Community post-1992? Who are the central actors, how will they exert influence on Europe's future, and what are their expectations and intentions?In seeking to answer these questions, The European Challenges Post-1992 offers a multidisciplinary, qualitative approach, throwing new light on the aspirations and preoccupations aroused by the promise of the Community. Centring on socio-political and cultural concerns and their interplay with economic phenomena, this important book combines expert opinion from 12 large European research institutes - each of which provides an analysis of the major factors shaping the future of their own country - with the views of leading industrialists and business leaders. The editors bring together these different views and interpretations to offer a comprehensive assessment of the Community's future. The European Challenge Post-1992 includes contributions by the former Commissaire du Plan (Brussels), the Institute of International Economics and Management (Copenhagen), Commissariat General du Plan (Paris), Kiel Institute of World Economics (Kiel), Foundation of Economic and Industrial Research (Athens), Economic and Social Research Institute (Dublin), Centro Studi Investimenti Sociali (Rome), Institut Universitaire International (Luxembourg), Scientific Council for Government Policy (The Hague), Instituto de Prospectiva (Lisbon), Fundacion Empresa Publica (Madrid), McKinsey & Co. and the Policy Studies Institute (London). The product of a major research project, this distinguished book is an invaluable reference point for all those concerned with the future of the European Community.

In World Trade Systems of the East and West, Geoffrey C. Gunn profiles Nagasaki's historic role in mediating the Japanese bullion trade, especially silver exchanged against Chinese and Vietnamese silk. Founded in 1571 as the terminal port of the Portuguese Macau ships, Nagasaki served as Japan's window to the world over long time and with the East-West trade carried on by the Dutch and, with even more vigor, by the Chinese junk trade. While the final expulsion of the Portuguese in 1646 characteristically defines the "closed" period of early modern Japanese history, the real trade seclusion policy, this work argues, only came into place one century later when the Shogunate firmly grasped the true impact of the bullion trade upon the national economy.

This book examines the political economy of the states of Pacific Asia, stretching from Japan to Burma since the end of WWII. "Governance in Pacific Asia" offers a comprehensive account of the diverse experiences of the states in Pacific Asia. Organized thematically around government and business relations in the main sectors of the economy, chapters cover the historical, social, and cultural contexts for such policies as well as the social and political consequences of rapid economic development. They also discuss the increasing economic integration of the region as well as its impact on global affairs and the reverse effect of globalization upon particular political systems. Each chapter contains case studies and examples from anywhere in the region, with some countries appearing more regularly, such as China, Japan, newly industrialized economies, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam. "Governance in Pacific Asia" provides an in-depth comparative survey of a key region in world politics and political economy. An essential text that includes sources from the region in at least three languages (Chinese, Japanese, and Indonesian/Malay), it will be of interest to students and faculty in international relations, developmental politics, Asian politics, and political economy.

The Center for Complex Operations (CCO) has produced this edited volume, Convergence: Illicit Networks and National Security in the Age of Globalization, that delves deeply into everything mentioned above and more. In a time when the threat is growing, this is a timely effort. CCO has gathered an impressive cadre of authors to illuminate the important aspects of transnational crime and other illicit networks. They describe the clear and present danger and the magnitude of the challenge of converging and connecting illicit networks; the ways and means used by transnational criminal networks and how illicit networks actually operate and interact; how the proliferation, convergence, and horizontal diversification of illicit networks challenge state sovereignty; and how different national and international organizations are fighting back. A deeper understanding of the problem will allow us to then develop a more comprehensive, more effective, and more enduring solution.

China's rise to global economic and strategic eminence, with the potential for achieving pre-eminence in the greater-Asian region, is one of the defining characteristics of the post-Cold War period. This work offers a basic understanding of the military-strategic basis and trajectory of a rising China, provides background, and outlines current and future issues concerning China's rise in strategic-military influence.

The next decade may witness China's assertion of military or strategic pressure on Japan, the Korean Peninsula, India, the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, Central Asia, or even on behalf of future allies in Africa and Latin America. While conflict is not a foregone conclusion, as indicated by China's increasing participation in many benign international organizations, it is a fact that China's leadership will pursue its interests as it sees them, which may not always coincide with those of the United States, its friends, and allies.

Until now, no single volume has existed that provides an authoritative, comprehensive, and concise description of China's evolving geo-strategy or of how China is transforming its military to carry out this strategy. Fisher examines how China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) remains critical to the existence of the Chinese Communist government and looks at China's political and military actions designed to protect its expanded strategic interests in both the Asia-Pacific and Central to Near-Asian regions. Using open sources, including over a decade of unique interview sources, Fisher documents China's efforts to build a larger nuclear force that may soon be protected by missile defenses, modern high technology systems for space, air, and naval forces, and how China is now beginning to assemble naval, air, and ground forces for future power projection missions. His work also examines how the United States and other governments simultaneously seek greater engagement with China on strategic concerns, while hedging against its rising power. Although China faces both internal and external constraints on its rise to global eminence, it cannot be denied that China's government is pursuing a far-reaching strategic agenda.

The twin categories of the state and nature collectively embody some of the most fundamental reference points around which our lives and thinking are organized. Despite their combined significance, however, the complex relationships that exist between modern states and nature remain under-theorized and are relatively unexplored. Through a detailed study of different sites, moments, and framing strategies The Nature of the State challenges the ways in which geographers and social scientists approach the study of state-nature relations. The authors analyse different instances of state-nature interaction from all over the world, considering the geo-politics of resource conflicts, the operation of natural history museums, the organizational practices of environmental departments and ministries, the regulation of genetic science, and contemporary forms of state intervention within issues of climate change. Introducing original research into the different institutional, spatial, and temporal strategies used by states to frame the natural world this book provides a critical overview of the latest political and ecological theories and addresses a wide range of pressing socio-environmental debates.

This book focuses on the implementation of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure development project intended to connect Asia with Europe, the Middle East and Africa. By introducing a new analytical approach to the study of economic corridors, it gauges the anticipated economic and geopolitical impacts on the region and discusses whether the CPEC will serve as a pioneer project for future regional cooperation between and integration of sub-national regions such as Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and Gilgit-Baltistan. Further, it explores the interests, expectations and policy approaches of both Chinese and Pakistani local and central governments with regard to the CPEC's implementation. Given its scope, the book will appeal to regional and spatial sciences scholars, as well as social scientists interested in the regional impacts of economic corridors. It also offers valuable information for policymakers in countries participating in the Belt-and-Road Initiative or other Chinese-supported development projects.

This book represents a unique endeavor to elucidate the story of Kosovo's unilateral quest for statehood. It is an inquiry into the international legal aspects and processes that shaped and surrounded the creation of the state of Kosovo. Being created outside the post-colonial context, Kosovo offers a unique yet controversial example of state emergence both in the theory and practice of creation of states. Accordingly, the book investigates the legal pathways, strategies, developments and policy positions of international agencies/actors and regional players (in particular the EU) that helped Kosovo to establish its independence and gradually acquire statehood. Although contested, Kosovo, and its quest for statehood, represents a unique example of successful unilateral secession. The book therefore explores and analyses patterns of state formation and nation-building in Kosovo, and its transition to democracy. It presents a three-level assessment. First, seen from a historical perspective, the book examines the validity of the right of Kosovar-Albanians to self-determination and remedial secession. Second, from a legal positivist perspective, it scrutinizes all of the legalist arguments that support Kosovo's right to statehood, and claims that both traditional and legality-based criteria for statehood remain insufficient to determine whether Kosovo has achieved statehood. Third, from a post-factum perspective, the book analyzes the scope and extent to which the internationally blended element was decisive in Kosovo's state-formation and state-building processes. It explains how the EU's involvement as an 'internationally blended element' in Kosovo's efforts to achieve statehood was instrumental and played a crucial role in shaping the emerging state. In particular, the book elaborates on how the EU was able to streamline its mode of intervention in the context of state-building and reform.

Since the 1990s, private military and security companies (PMSCs) have intervened in civil wars around the globe. International, legally registered corporate actors have assisted governments with a myriad of tasks including combat support, logistics, army and police training, intelligence analysis, and guard services. However, reports that such contractors have been responsible for human rights abuses have spurred the need to evaluate the industry's impact on conflicts. Are these contractors effective in curbing violence or does emphasis on profit and lack of accountability get in the way? And how can governments improve PMSCs' commitment to contractual obligations, including adherence to international humanitarian laws? This book identifies two market forces that impact PMSCs' military effectiveness: local or conflict-level competition and global or industry-level competition. Specifically, Seden Akcinaroglu and Elizabeth Radziszewski challenge the assumption that interventions by profit-driven coporations are likely to destabilize areas engaged in war, and provide data that private contractors do contribute to conflict termination under certain circumstances. They argue that competitive market pressure creates a strong monitoring system and that the company's corporate structure and external competitive environment in a given conflict help to explain the variance in accountability to clients. Including an analysis of data on international PMSCs' interventions in civil wars from 1990-2008, Akcinaroglu and Radziszewski show the impact of competition on companies' contribution to the termination of different types of civil wars.