Sporting Relations: Diplomacy,Small States,and Germany’s Post-war Return to International Sport

ABSTRACT

Germany’s post-war return to international sport was not uniform across all federations. The nature of each sport—summer versus winter, team versus individual—influenced the speed with which each international sport federation dealt with the issue of Germany’s return. Some federations allowed German participation even before they formally re-admitted the country to federation membership. However, sporting relations were not the only issue considered by international federations. The historical political relations between Germany and its smaller European neighbours were as important. The combination of the historical relationship amongst European states—especially memories of the Second World War—and internal sport federation dynamics affected state relations within the broader international system. The actions taken by the international sport federations provided examples—in areas that would not result in another world war or destroy Western alliances—of how Germany could return as a full member of the international community. The debates regarding Germany’s return across a number of international sport federations reveal the complex interaction among memory, politics, and practical matters.     

Editor’s Note

正This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Shanghai Communiqué. In his article contributed to this issue that is entitled"Firmly Promote the China-U.S.Cooperative Partnership",Vice Foreign     

Editor’s Note

This New Year issue marks the 21st birthday of Contemporary International Relations,the English journal of CICIR.Its growth from an infant into an adult has benefited from the engaged feedback of our readers.Thus our heart-felt thanks go out to all of you for your support and favorable comments during these years,and,hopefully,your continuing patronage in the future.     

Asia’s and Europe’s energy policy challenges: introduction

We bring together a collection of papers that were presented at the inaugural event of the Asia‐Europe Energy Policy Research Network (AEEPRN), held at Singapore in May 2012. The idea for creating AEEPRN was in response to the growing importance of energy in Asia and Europe’s relations and to our shared belief that energy will become a more significant aspect of these relations over the forthcoming years and decades. The papers presented here cover the following themes: wind energy, biofuels, natural gas and gas pipelines, exergy and manufacturing, green energy co‐operation, coal, unconventional gas and solar energy.     

Myanmar’s National Elections

Myanmar held its first national elections in two decades on November 7,2010.The incumbent government-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party (later re-named USDP) captured 77％ of parliamentary...     

China’s Strategic Choices

A number of significant events in 2008-2009, such as the Russia-Georgia conflict, the Beijing Olympics, the global financial crisis, the continuing threat of international terrorism and the worldwide spread of the H1N1 virus, may herald the close of the post-Cold War era. A new epoch is dawning, characterized by the collective rise of emerging powers and by increased global cooperation in response to the common concerns of the planet. America, Europe, Japan, Russia, India, Australia and other world powers are contemplating new strategic options to meet these changing circumstances. As a major driving force behind this phenomenon, China faces pressures for self-change and global change at the same time. It is obviously a task more formidable than that confronting the rest of the world. It requires China to redefine its role in the new era and make its strategic choices more rational and multi-directional in nature.     

Europe’s Leadership Deficit

The European Project is currently experiencing the most serious crisis in its sixty year existence. Past crises have produced transformational leaders who used them to build more Europe. Today transformational leadership at the European level has been replaced with transactional and laissez faire leaders and is being challenged by charismatic populist ‘strong men’ who oppose more Europe. The structure of the EU, the rise of new media, the large flows of immigrants and refugees combined with economic stagnation and the decline of traditional ideologies have undermined the ability of leaders to shape effective policies. Emerging leaders will be grounded in the nation state and in a more Gaullist Europe.     

Impediments to Abe’s Proposal to Cast off Japan’s Postwar System

A fundamental change in Japanese politics means that neo-conservatives now are meeting fewer obstacles. The wide margin enjoyed by the Liberal Democratic Party led by Shinzo Abe in Japan＇ s July 2013 election for the upper house （House of Councillors） was a second resounding victory for the LDP,     

Recognizing the Global Economic Order’s Restraint on China’s Peaceful Development

China’s economy has soared to be world’s second largest, while its peaceful rise has been increasingly constrained by the global economic order. Regionally, directed by the U.S.’s rebalancing policy in Asia, the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is changing the direction of economic cooperation in Asia.     

China’s anti-terror strategy and China’s role in global anti-terror cooperation

Anti-terrorism has become an important part of Chinas domestic and diplomatic agenda. This has its historical roots and theoretical basis. Chinas anti-terrorism campaign started even before 9/11, but it was only after 9/11 that China participates fully in the international anti-terror cooperation and becomes a significant player in the efforts. This paper attempts to make an analysis from the Chinese perspective.     

Evolution,retreat or rejection: Brazil’s,India’s and China’s normative stances on R2P

This paper outlines the development and evolution of the normative positions of China, Brazil and India on issues surrounding the responsibility to protect (R2P) by charting their engagement in the ‘institutionalized conversation’ within the United Nations. In doing so, it seeks to dispel characterizations of these states as having adopted individual or common positions that either wholly reject or accept R2P. The nuances of the adaption and adoption of their postures need to be appreciated. Indeed, of the three component ‘pillars’ of R2P, they find themselves in general accord regarding Pillar One (state responsibility) and Pillar Two (prevention and assistance). It is on Pillar Three (reaction and response) that they diverge from each other and find themselves most at variance with ‘Western’ agendas of intervention and regime change. This divergence is most sharply drawn at present, in light of the Libyan and ongoing Syrian experiences.     

China’s National Security Strategy

China has set four goals in its national security strategy in the coming decade. These are focused on safeguarding 1) sovereignty, security and territorial integrity; 2) the socialist system and related core values; 3) development interests by sustaining the current period of strategic opportunity in avoidance of unnecessary distractions; and finally 4) regional and world peace.     

China’s Rebalancing towards Europe

Chinese leaders tend to think strategically about Europe. By following the process of European integration closely in the last decades, they have succeeded in identifying at different historical junctures those European integration initiatives that would serve China’s national security and foreign policy objectives. EU policymakers, instead, appear unable to think strategically about China as EU member states tend to focus on bilateral relations with Beijing, thus undermining Brussels’ capacity to fashion a clear and coherent China policy. There is thus a glaring disparity between Beijing and Brussels when it comes to strategic thinking. With China’s economic and political rebalancing towards Europe underway, there has never been more need for an adequate response from the Union.     

Saudi Arabia’s Reluctant Regionalism

Saudi Arabia’s turn to regionalism during the past three years, principally in partnership with Egypt, is an expression of both its weakness and its power. Its role as the world’s swing producer in the global oil markets makes it an international power. This economic power, in turn, has allowed the Kingdom to help stabilize weaker economies in the region, like Egypt, that have been hard hit by global recession, inflation, and food insecurity. On the other hand, its military failure in Yemen and the US’s attenuating security commitment have forced it to build regional and inter-regional partnerships for protection and defense. Under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), Saudi Arabia would prefer to impose its will on the region without having to build a regional consensus for its initiatives. But its lack of independent military power has constrained the Kingdom. The Saudi-Egyptian partnership therefore represents a mutual recognition of the limits of their respective power. It also raises the question not merely about who leads whom, but whether the carefully cultivated interdependency between them will hold.     

On China’s Marine Safety

The rising incidence of Somalian and Malaccan piracy has sounded an alarm bell for countries around the world. In order to ensure the safety of global shipping lanes, at least in the short term, it is necessary for countries to unite to combat these pirates. However, dealing with pirate     

On Obama’s Asia-Pacific Strategy

In 2011, there were three new developments in Northeast Asia: the much heralded return of the U.S. to the Asia-Pacific region; newly-growing tensions in the South China Sea;     

China’s Future Security Environment

A U.S.military strategy report published in 2009 provides an assessment of China's overall national security environment and regional issues over the next 25 years.China's future international strategi...     

Inscribing the victor’s land: nationalistic authorship in Sri Lanka’s post-war Northeast

This article examines the nationalistic authorship of space in Sri Lanka’s post-conflict Northeast as part of the state’s nation-building strategy and as a continuation of a post-colonial process of Sinhala-Buddhist nationalistic revival. Exploring issues of historiography, conflict resolution, physical vehicles of ideology and collective memory, the article demonstrates how land policies, development and the tourism industry in a post-conflict context can go hand-in-hand with dispossession, militarisation and the humiliation of a ‘defeated’ minority community.     

China’s Employment Situation and Policy

Employment constitutes the basis of people’s living and the means to ensure the stability of a country as well. Realizing relatively full employment is the important prerequisite and basic way to improve people's life. Being the most populous country in the world, China has abundant labor resources and faces an arduous and urgent task to tackle the employment problem. Therefore, providing more employment is a major issue directly bearing on people's living that China will have to face for a long time.