Mainstreaming international governance: The environment,gender, and IO performance in the European Union

International organizations (IOs) have moved increasingly in recent years to adopt cross-cutting mandates that require the “mainstreaming” of particular issues, such as gender equality or environmental protection, across all IO policies. Successful IO performance with respect to such mandates, we hypothesize, is determined in large part by the use of hard or soft institutional measures to shape the incentives of sectoral officials whose cooperation is required for successful implementation. We test this hypothesis with respect to two such mandates—gender mainstreaming and environmental policy integration—in a single international organization, the European Union, demonstrating a strong causal link between the use of hard incentives and IO performance in these and related mandates.     

The world trading system: In the fog of uncertainty

The Uruguay Round of trade negotiations was a transformative event in the world trading system in many ways. Most importantly among its unintended consequences were a North–South divide and a catalyst for new actors in the political economy of trade policy—the Non-Governmental Organizations or NGOs. After considerable difficulty a new round was launched in Doha, Qatar in 2001. But the system has changed once again by the “new geography,” an emerging shift of power to the South. JEL codes F13 · F15 · F42 · L31     

Regional integration and (trans)cultural memory

This article asks how we can understand processes of regional integration through the lens of memory. Regional integration, despite its taking place in the here and now, rests on acts of cultural recall. Socially shared versions of history, concepts of identity, values and norms, stereotypes, and prejudices as well as certain modes of behavior are usually formed in long historical processes and become part of a “cultural memory.” Cultural memory is one of the “soft factors” which are inevitably at work in the negotiation of economical questions, energy and power politics—the “hard factors” of regional integration, as it were. It can affect the way in which processes of regional integration function, or fail to do so. And it often does so in ways that social groups are not even conscious of. The article will present theories of cultural memory put forward by Maurice Halbwachs, Pierre Nora, and Aleida and Jan Assmann as well as recent trends in research on “transcultural memory” and ask about their implications for the study of regional integration.     

Regional public goods and international organizations

This article focuses on the provision prognosis for regional public goods (RPGs) and the role of international organizations in fostering supply in developing countries. All three properties of publicness—i.e., nonrivalry of benefits, nonexcludability of nonpayers, and the aggregation technology—play a role in this prognosis. The paper highlights many provision impediments, not faced by national or global public goods. When intervention is necessary, the analysis distinguishes the role of global, regional, and other institutional arrangements (e.g., networks and public-private partnerships). The pros and cons of subsidiarity are addressed. JEL codes H87 · O18 · R58     

Germany and Japan as Newly Declining Countries (NDCs)

This article reviews the structural problems of the political economies of Germany and Japan, their reduced competitiveness, industrial “hollowing-out” of corporate emigration, and their banking crises following past capital misallocations. To this, policy responses have been grossly inadequate as Japan resorted to massive public works programmes and Germany to an expanded welfare state—both entirely debt financed and unsustainable. These policy choices were the result of vested interests embedded in cartelized political structures and conformist public cultures, with growing tendencies towards collusion and corruption. Germany's and Japan's problems are compounded by societal value changes of an eroding work ethic and the rise of a hedonistic individualism, as evident, inter alia in catastrophic demographic data. As the political class and societies at large are still in a denial mode in both countries—after the September 2005 elections in Germany more so than in Japan—the much needed structural reforms are unlikely to be undertaken anytime soon.     

Punctuated equilibrium in the energy regime complex

The concept of a regime complex has proved fruitful to a burgeoning literature in international relations, but it has also opened up new questions about how and why they develop over time. This article describes the history of the energy regime complex as it has changed over the past 40 years, and interprets this history in light of an interpretive framework of the sources of institutional change. One of its principal contributions is to highlight what Stephen Krasner referred to as a pattern of “punctuated equilibrium” reflecting both periods of stasis and periods of innovation, as opposed to a gradual process of change. We show that the timing of innovation depends on dissatisfaction and shocks and that the nature of innovation—that is, whether it is path-dependent or de novo—depends on interest homogeneity among major actors. This paper is the first to demonstrate the empirical applicability of the punctuated equilibrium concept to international regime complexes, and contributes to the eventual development of a dynamic theory of change in regime complexes.     

Commerce and institutions: Trade, scope, and the design of regional economic organizations

The design of current regional economic organizations (REOs) is remarkably diverse. Some REOs address numerous economic issues, while others have only limited mandates. Some REOs have an independent bureaucracy and a legalized dispute settlement mechanism (DSM), while others do not. What determines this institutional variation? Thinking about these institutions as devices that generate credible commitment to a rule-based regional cooperation, institutionalists maintain that the intensity of commercial ties determine regional institutionalization and institutional independence. A number of studies question this logic and argue that it is “naïve.” Empirical evidence on the links between commerce, economic scope, and regional institutions is scant, however. Using an original data set that contains detailed information on the economic activities and institutional structure of twenty-eight REOs over three decades, this paper presents one of the first systematic analyses of these relationships. The empirical analysis indicates that the institutionalist wisdom is right after all. It shows that higher levels of regional trade are associated with greater institutionalization and economic scope, but only if implementation of signed agreements is accounted for, and that regional commerce and greater economic scope are associated with more independent bureaucracies and more legalized DSMs.     

Asia and European colonialism

  The article reviews the effects of “colonial discourse” for the interpretation of national history in colonized Asian nations. Eurocentric perspectives in early Western narratives and historiography were followed by postcolonial myths termed “cultural nationalism” after independence. The native intelligentsia had acquired modern concepts of nation, nationalism, progress, welfare, democracy and technological modernity from their erstwhile colonial masters. Once the “democratic honeymoon” following independence had turned sour the artificially conceived myths of “cultural nationalism” served to justify various dictatorial regimes. Yet this ideology fails at it is presently being challenged by globalization, representing normative and economic pressures to orient towards the one single dominant pattern of Western liberal capitalism in all spheres.     

Socio-cultural aspects of the relationship between the EU and East Asia, with particular reference to China

This paper presents a comparative study about words and about sovereignty; about the ancestry of the words that construct the discourse of sovereignty in the context of China; about the analysis and interpretation of the civic discourse and the rhetoric that construct Chinese sovereignty in the field of international relations and foreign policy, and about the consequences of this analysis and interpretation for the formulation of EU foreign policy with regard to East Asia, especially China, and the United States, as well as the feedback that notions of sovereignty have on the construction of Chinese civic discourse. For many contemporary Chinese thinkers, China should modernise without repeating the process of modernism, should leap over the system of values established by the Enlightenment that seemed to justify imperialism, and develop an economy and institutions that would serve to create wealth and to raise the standard of living of the population, without imposing values that are advantageous to a “West” that is already wealthy. They have identified a cultural dissidence within developed societies that advocates the values of postmodernism as a way of rejecting the values of modernism. In this context, they advocate the possibility of modernising their society without having to accept the imposition of values that originated in societies that have already begun to question them. In this way, China could reach postmodernism in a relatively short period of history without having to pass through the traumas that characterised the development of modernism in the “West” over a period of centuries (it would be difficult not to discern echoes of Mao Zedong’s “Great Leap Forward” in these Chinese versions of the postmodernist paradigm). The communicative strategy to be adopted by the EU in the rhetorical construction of its dialogue with China should be fully cognizant of and sensitive to the criteria of China’s moral order as outlined in this study and specified in the Five Principles (mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; non-aggression; non-interference in each other’s internal affairs; equality and mutual benefit; and peaceful coexistence), the Spirit of Shanghai and the ASEAN Way, with special emphasis on mutual recognition, parity of esteem, and mutual benefit. Any other discourse will be perceived semiotically as unilateralist and exploitative. Respect for diversity is paramount, and the ability to harmonise diversity is a major function of Chinese political and cultural thought. “Harmony” and “peace” are the same word in classical Chinese: hé ( hépíng is the modern word for “peace” and héshēng is the modern word for “harmony”). As a result, any practice that produced harmony, such as music or cooking, was a form of training for maintaining peace, social cohesion and solidarity in society (or among nations).

Asian values revisited

  With Asia's economy still booming in the second half of the 1990's “Asian values” were announced by some politicians (Lee Kuan Yew, Mahatir, Ishihara, Mahbubani etc.) and contrasted with “Western values”. Soon a controversial debate within Asia ensued (Kim, Fidel Ramos ea..), into which also the western democracies joined. The “West” however reacted rather defensively to the new assertiveness of some Asian statesmen, inspite of the fact that the authors of this debate put into question the western dominance in global value setting which has been in existence since the French revolution. But has this debate withstood the test of time, the challenges posed by the recession in Asia and by the ever increasing globalization? Hardly. The crisis has destroyed the notion that “Asian values” had been the main cause and guarantor of Asia's exorbitant growth rates. While in the West Christianity forms the essential basics of culture, in Asia there is a multitude of coexisting - and frequently confronting world religions. There is no other continent which in cultural and political terms is so contradictory and potentially conflict ridden like Asia. “Asianism” as a concept was surely also intended as an instrument to integrate multiethnic Asian societies with weak internal cohesion. At the same time it served to neutralize the human rights issue. In the meantime the debate has become quieter and more dispassionate. In the developed West the notion gained acceptance to abandon “Eurocentrism”. At the same time there is recognition that “Asian values” are not exclusive. Also in Europe the family plays a special role. A debate on values is needed for societal integration – also in the “West” which should become more aware of the need to reassert the origins of its own spiritual foundations. Following September 11th the west is well advised to continue the dialogue on values with Asia. Update and expanded version of an article first published in: Au?enpolitik IV/1996, p. 326 “Beginnt das pazifische Jahrhundert?” I would like to thank Julia Prati for the translation of the updated and expanded version of this article     

The International Energy Agency after 35 years: Reform needs and institutional adaptability

Despite the mounting scholarly interest in processes of institutional change in international organizations, still very little is known about how and when such evolutionary dynamics occur. This article hopes to contribute to this young, yet growing body of literature by process-tracing the changes that have occurred in the institutional setup of the International Energy Agency (IEA). Founded during the first oil crisis of 1973–74, the IEA has had to deal with major environmental changes over its lifetime. In response, the agency has diversified away from its original raison d’être, namely managing an emergency oil sharing mechanism, to become a more proactive policy adviser guiding its member governments toward sustainable energy economies. The article seeks to explain the observed patterns of change and inertia, using a theoretic paradigm that builds on theories of “new institutionalism.” The paper argues that the agency’s institutional flexibility can only be fully explained by taking into account a combination of factors: (1) the member states’ choices, in particular the impulses of the G8-members of the IEA; (2) path dependency, especially the institutional link with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); and (3) agency by the secretariat and the executive bureau of the IEA.     

Perceptions of Asia in Europe

The question of how Asia is perceived by the European Union is becoming increasingly relevant for European as well as for Asian policy makers. The more successful Asia and emerging countries like China and India become, the more vulnerable the European public and all involved stakeholders are to fall victim to old and new stereotypes. A lack of knowledge may result in the EU becoming more vulnerable to developing prejudice towards Asia. The new research project “Asia in the Eyes of Europe” aims to identify, measure and compare public awareness and perceptions of Asia within the European Union. The research is to deliver an analysis of Europe’s cognitive outlook towards Asia. It tracks the existing landscape of perceptions of Asia within the EU and seeks to contribute to, deepen and enhance European–Asian understanding. A study of Asia’s image in Europe can thus help Europeans and Asians to understand in how far their interaction impacts on the shaping of institutions of regional governance that can complement structures of global governance.     

How the indigenous got seats at the UN table

Indigenous peoples are the only distinct segment of national populations having voting membership in UN bodies devoted to defining their rights and advancing their concerns. This unusual result was the result of the confluence of three factors familiar to students of transnational social movement politics: a) presence within UN offices and bodies of supporters opening forums and agendas to indigenous concerns, b) deference to the growing network of indigenous activists by anthropologists—the professional community best placed to serve as advocates speaking on behalf of indigenous communities, and c) indigenous activists' success in developing and projecting a globally-valid indigenous identity as “peoples” simultaneously uniting the various indigenous communities and providing a rationale for establishing voting rights that enough other actors could be persuaded to accept. Comparison with UN treatment of other groups indicates that indigenous voting rights are more likely to remain an isolated success rather than a harbinger of similar practices in other UN bodies.     

Boards of directors in international organizations: A framework for understanding the dilemmas of institutional design

This article develops an analytical framework for studying international organization (IO) boards of directors and applies the framework to a sample of 12 international organizations. It argues that the boards of IOs are asked by their political masters to play four distinct roles: (1) political counterweight, (2) performance police, (3) democratic forum, and (4) strategic thinker. Because there are trade-offs among them, no IO board can play all four roles effectively. Policymakers must therefore choose among them, and they must make choices of institutional design accordingly. The article also shows how in practice, international organizations fall into three governance “models” based on the characteristics of their boards of directors. Each model has a different combination of strengths and weaknesses. The analysis suggests that because trade-offs are inescapable, state actors sometimes willingly surrender a measure of control in order to strengthen other aspects of institutional performance. IO autonomy is often not something that surprises or annoys governments, but rather something that was been built into the institutional design as the result of a conscious trade-off.     

Inter-regionalism in international relations: Comparing APEC and ASEM

  Depending on one's theoretical perspective, inter-regionalism is assumed by IR scholars to have arisen in response to the need to check the exalted power of the United States (and, in the economic realm, also the European Union and East Asia) and/or the growing complexity of world politics (the rise of “interdependence” or “globalisation”). More recently, inter-regionalism has also been interpreted as a way to enhance regional collective identities. This paper looks at the evolution and recent performance of APEC and ASEM in the light of these theoretical assumptions about the origins and the functions of APEC and ASEM. Its principal findings are puzzling: while there are indications that APEC and ASEM were indeed meant by governments to fulfil some of the functions identified by those theoretical perspectives, the evidence that APEC or ASEM effectively served any of them is thin. Their actual functions and their durability against the background of a seemingly poor political track record therefore need to be rethought. RID="*" ID="*" A more extensive version of this paper will be published in: H?nggi H/Roloff R/Rüland J (eds), Interregionalism and International Politics: Stepping Stone to Global Governance? London & New York: Routledge (forthcoming).     

Confucianism and the concept of liberty

Liberty is a concept absent in, and alien to, Confucianism. The term “tsu-you,” (or “cha-yu,” in Korean) is a modern neologism concocted by East Asian thinkers in the 19th century struggling to translate and come to grips with Western political theory. Moreover, the term that they ultimately decided to use was a Taoist, not a Confucian, term. Hence, if this lecture was entitled “Concept of Liberty in Confucianism,” it would have been a very short one. Confucianism has no room for liberty.

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Japan–UK: perspectives of partnership

One of the most remarkable developments that took place in the postwar international order is the relationship between the United Kingdom and Japan, two major world powers. Formerly bitter enemies in war, their relationship is today perhaps at the best ever. They are connected by a network of shared interests in the politico-strategic, scientific-technological and socio-cultural spheres, beyond the economic realm. Nonetheless, as cooperation between Japan and Europe has been the fragile side of the triangle of “Japan–US–Europe” relations, the promotion of Japan–UK ties at bilateral, regional and international levels might have a significant effect. The trilateral structure of “Japan–Britain–EU” relations also creates diverse dynamics that involve all three forces in a broader regional cooperation including the security arena, than would be possible on just a bilateral Britain–Japan level. These impulses might help to facilitate Europe to become a more influential global actor and to serve as a key enabler of the British foreign policy toward the Asia-Pacific region. Under this context, this article strives to explore how Japan–UK bilateral relationship, one of the strongest ties binding Asia to Europe, stands today, by shedding light on the new horizons of their partnerships for global responsibilities.Monir Hossain Moni is a PhD Scholar under the Japanese Government Monbukagakusho: MEXT Scholarship Program at the Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies (GSAPS) of Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan. He is currently on study leave from his position as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences and Japan Study Center of University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh     

ASEAN and Northeast Asia: stakes and implications for the European Union–ASEAN partnership

During the immediate aftermath of the 1997 ASEAN crisis, instead of promoting a further “deepening” of the integration process, ASEAN has preferred enlarging its membership and has opened up to its Northeast Asian partners, Japan, China and South Korea. The mounting economic trade flows among those actors necessitates calls for the coherent creation of effective regional structures. China in particular, among the three mentioned countries, has come to the fore with its diplomatic strategies concerning the regional architecture. As results of these recent changes, the structure of power and the nature of the regional system are altering and ASEAN is going through a decisive transition. Taking into consideration the speed of the evolving framework with the enlargement of an East Asian Community, ASEAN would need a new political vision for the region, for the redefinition of its internal balance of power and for the elaboration of a clear approach toward external partners. Crucial problems affect the entire area such as deficit of democracy, wide development gaps among the East Asian countries, the widespread need for economic liberalisation and need for new human and regional security policies. The EU would play a fundamental role in addressing these problems and would be well inspired to avoid considering Southeast Asia as just a mere periphery of China.     

European civil society

The concept of “civil society” is still the subject of thorough academic research. It emerged, in Europe, in the 18th century and implied a culture of civility which, while emphasising autonomy from established institutions, also emphasised the freedom to associate and a commitment to common good beyond particular interests. A modern definition of the concept makes civil society the sum of “Organisations which are self-governing and constitutionally independent of the State or political parties; do not involve the distribution of profits to shareholders; and benefit to a significant degree from voluntarism”. The emergence of civil society has followed different historical patterns in different EU Member States, and European State institutions have had different ways to accommodate the emergence of civil society and its aspiration to influence policy-making. From the 18th to the early 20th century, civil society associations and networks mostly emerged and operated within local of national frameworks. It is in the second half of the 20th century that the development of civil society acquired a trans-national dimension. The emergence of a truly trans-national civil society in Europe is a rather recent phenomenon which is increasingly taken into consideration in the formulation of policy by the European Union institutions. The EU foreign policy also aims at strengthening civil society in third countries (including Asia) to achieve its objectives, notably in the field of human rights and democratisation.