Regions

Hamas in Power

Jonno Evans • Feb 10 2011 • Essays

Hamas, ‘Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya’ (The Islamic Resistance Movement), has evolved over time from its humble beginnings as a faction of the Muslim Brotherhood, to an arguably legitimate political body, controlling much of the occupied Palestinian territories. This paper will reflect on the key factors in its development and features of the movement, and will conclude with a discussion of Hamas’ future as both an agent of armed struggle and a legitimate political body.

Should the EU develop into a United States of Europe?

Patrycja Skurzak • Feb 8 2011 • Essays

The present-day image of the EU can be defined as a political, economic, social and legal hybrid with a combination of federal, confederal, supranational and intergovernmental features. Whether it should proceed through the development of a U.S.E will remain a matter for deep reflection, for how it really works will never match one vision of how it should work.

From Westphalia to Tehran: International Secularism and Iran’s Theocracy

Ryan Morrow • Feb 6 2011 • Essays

International Relations is currently facing a global religious revival. Tehran’s foreign policy reflects the pluralism of the regime’s political-theological discourse. Westphalian assumptions promote an ignorance of this pluralism and lead to the incorrect assumption that a theocratic Iran is incompatible with international stability.

Can China be Defined as an Authoritarian State?

Patrick Ervine • Feb 4 2011 • Essays

The People’s Republic of China was formed in 1949 from a country crippled by poverty, internal and external conflict, and has grown into one of today’s economic superpowers. Modern China can be defined as an authoritarian state. However, socialism with Chinese characteristics is a far better way of describing China’s unique system of government and economy

‘Diaspora’? The Case of the Russians of Central Asia

anon • Feb 2 2011 • Essays

Russians living in Central Asia and Russians returning to the Russian Federation cannot be considered to be diasporas

Arab Exceptionalism? Tunisia’s Islamist Movement

Alex Stark • Jan 31 2011 • Essays

The notion of “Arab exceptionalism” has become a popular explanation for the notable lack of democratic governance in the Arab world. Written before the recent revolution, this paper explores whether or not the Tunisian Islamist movement is committed to a true democratic transition.

Entitlement to Eat: Explaining the Ukraine Famine of 1932-1933

Alex Stark • Jan 20 2011 • Essays

Scholars do not agree on the causes of the Ukrainian Famine of 1932-1933, popularly known as the Holodomar (“murder by hunger”). Recent research suggests Stalin used “food as a weapon” to subdue Ukrainian national movements. This analysis poses significant challenges to the existing larger body of famine scholarship.

Is ‘Europeanization’ a Useful Concept?

Richard J. Vale • Jan 17 2011 • Essays

This essay will argue that the existence of a number of ‘Europeanizations’ is imperative in understanding specific instances of change and integration between EU and member states that differs ‘from policy sector to policy sector’. Furthermore, the sum of these theories amounts to a detailed understanding of how the different causes of Europeanization merge and result in a more unified European Union.

Great Power interventions and the Arab-Israeli wars of 1967-1973

anon • Jan 12 2011 • Essays

This thesis will argue that two pivotal moments in the Middle Easts recent history, the Six Day War of 1967 and the October War of 1973, whilst not inherently conducted or directly propagated by the Great Powers, stemmed from their irresponsible interference.

Environment Law and Underdevelopment in the Niger Delta Region

Emmanuel Duru • Jan 6 2011 • Essays

There is no ecological zone which has been so degraded and laid waste to than the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The bounties of nature bestowed on this geographical area have gradually been turned into its instruments of poverty and squalor, and the area remains grossly underdeveloped.

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