Seminar paper from the year 2006 in the subject Politics - Political systems in general and in comparison, grade: 2,0, Free University of Berlin, language: English, abstract: The process of development of the major European states’ sovereignty after the sixteenth century is characterised mainly by different internal struggles for political authority. In comparing the international order of the Cold War period to the international system in the years after 1989, the analysts observe enormous, far-reaching changes which influenced to a great extend the foreign policies and in particular the strategies of the majors states in pursuing relations with the three significant international organizations - NATO, UN and EU. After the end of World War II Winston Churchill envisioned Great Britain as “a global power with global interests” (White, 2002). During the Cold War Period its foreign policy was largely defined by the three “concentric circles of the world politics (The British Empire/Commonwealth, the Atlantic community, and a United Europe)” (White, 2002). Identity and sovereignty were seen as essential foreign policy values. But nowadays Britain faces the need to adapt its policy to the fast changes in the modern international system. The developments in the global environment during the Post-Cold War Era have put many demands on British policy makers and have thereby defined Britain’s place in the world of today. Contemporarily Britain can be clearly seen as a “less sovereign” state, if it is described in terms of realism (Reynolds,1991). However, it is also a state that has always behaved in a sovereign manner and has actively exercised its sovereignty, rather than renouncing it. Britain today is in a situation in which its functions and the way in which it formulates its external relations are affected dramatically by the new international environment, thus challenging its status as a sovereign state. The unilateral strategy of Britain and its commitment to NATO have made it difficult for the country to be an active member in other forms of international organisations (where Transatlanticism does not play such an important role). Despite these challenges for the country’s foreign policy strategies, however, we can also observe a change in the state’s orientation towards Europe. British policy makers are reflecting about the future role of the United States in Europe, not only in terms of security matters but also economic and social development. [...]

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

The emergence of a common security and foreign policy has been one of the most contentious issues accompanying the integration of the European Union. In this book, Michael Smith examines the specific ways foreign policy cooperation has been institutionalized in the EU, the way institutional development affects cooperative outcomes in foreign policy, and how those outcomes lead to new institutional reforms. Smith explains the evolution and performance of the institutional procedures of the EU using a unique analytical framework, supported by extensive empirical evidence drawn from interviews, case studies, official documents and secondary sources. His perceptive and well-informed analysis covers the entire history of EU foreign policy cooperation, from its origins in the late 1960s up to the start of the 2003 constitutional convention. Demonstrating the importance and extent of EU foreign/security policy, the book will be of interest to scholars, researchers and policy-makers.

Presenting a thorough examination of critical aspects of twentieth century history this book explores how the events of the twentieth century still cast a shadow over relations between Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic.

International Security Studies (ISS) has changed and diversified in many ways since 1945. This book provides the first intellectual history of the development of the subject in that period. It explains how ISS evolved from an initial concern with the strategic consequences of superpower rivalry and nuclear weapons, to its current diversity in which environmental, economic, human and other securities sit alongside military security, and in which approaches ranging from traditional Realist analysis to Feminism and Post-colonialism are in play. It sets out the driving forces that shaped debates in ISS, shows what makes ISS a single conversation across its diversity, and gives an authoritative account of debates on all the main topics within ISS. This is an unparalleled survey of the literature and institutions of ISS that will be an invaluable guide for all students and scholars of ISS, whether traditionalist, 'new agenda' or critical.

This text reviews a variety of approaches to the study of the European Union's foreign policy. Much analysis of EU foreign policy contains implicit theoretical assumptions about the nature of the EU and its member states, their inter-relationships, the international system in which they operate and the nature and direction of European integration. In many instances such assumptions, given that they are not discussed openly, curtail rather than facilitate debate. The purpose of this book is to open up this field of enquiry so that students, observers and analysts of EU foreign policy can review a broad range of tools and theoretical templates from which the development and the trajectory of the EU's foreign policy can be studied.

After 9/11, which triggered a global debate on public diplomacy, 'PD' has become an issue in most countries. This book joins the debate. Experts from different countries and from a variety of fields analyze the theory and practice of public diplomacy. They also evaluate how public diplomacy can be successfully used to support foreign policy.

In the 1990s there was a wave of multilateralism in the Asia Pacific, led primarily by ASEAN. Since the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, however, many non-ASEAN states have attempted to seize the initiative, including the USA, Japan, China, South Korea, and Australia. Kai He and his contributors debate the reasons for this contested multilateralism and the impacts it will have on the region’s security and political challenges. Will the "Indo-Pacific turn" be a blessing or a curse for regional stability and prosperity? Using a diverse range of theoretical and empirical perspectives, these leading scholars contribute views on this question and on the diverse strategies of the great and middle powers in the region. This collection will be of great interest to scholars and students of international relations in the Asia Pacific and of great value to policy makers in the region and beyond.