Should Japan participate in UN peacekeeping operations?

With the end of the Cold War, the UN has increased the number of peacekeeping operations that it undertakes, and many voices call for Japan's participation. Hisako Shimura, a professor in the International Affairs Department at Tsuda College, analyzes Japan's new Peace Cooperation Law, its Constitution, and the traditional principles that govern UN peacekeeping operations. Shimura finds that Japan's law contains safeguards to ensure that Japan could participate in peacekeeping missions that uphold traditional UN principles, and she also suggests that such participation would be constitutional.     

Parliamentary decision making and foreign policy: Sweden's participation in international armed missions and the crucial role of the Riksdag

SUMMARY

The last 20 years have witnessed a marked increase in Swedish participation in major international UN-, EU- and/or NATO-led armed missions mandated according to Chapter VII of the UN Charter. This development reflects the new foreign and security priorities of Sweden in the wake of the end of the Cold War. Decisions on Swedish participation in such missions, however, cannot be taken without parliamentary approval. The Riksdag's role in Sweden's new foreign and security policy is thus crucial. Since the first bill on an international mission was submitted in 1993, the Parliament has gradually elaborated an informal internal working order for handling bills of this type, as well as the establishment of a system of signification for communicating approval or discontent with certain aspects of the bills, in conjunction with the Cabinet. This article is aimed at investigating the nature and content of the Parliament's contribution to the wider process of decision making on Swedish participation in international armed missions.     

The rise and fall of Germany's party of democratic socialism

This article offers a short diachronic analysis of the development and success of Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS), followed by an examination of the explanations cited by academics, political commentators and the party itself for its poor performance in the 2002 general election. A distinction is drawn between factors that are short-term in nature and those that are more fundamental to the party's current predicament, with the analytical emphasis being placed firmly on internal variables – that is, on the party's own capacity (or lack thereof) to act. The conclusion is reached that sympathisers and supporters of the PDS currently have very little reason to be optimistic about the party's future prospects.     

Germany's power and the weakening of states in a globalised world: deconstructing a paradox

It is somewhat ironical to ponder Germany's power at a time when radical changes due to globalisation vastly limit the efficiency of state actions worldwide. Certainly, Germany's resources increased with reunification – though the country also has to bear its costs. An enumeration of the – possible – resources of German power provides us, however, with little understanding of the nature of German power, embedded as the country is in a European system from which it derives its strength. Hence, only an analysis of this system fully renders the picture, contrary to what neo-realists and liberals might assume. While Germany did exercise a semi-hegemony over Western Europe in the monetary area up to EMU, the further integration of the EU has altered the European structure and diffused Germany's power. A particular configuration allowed Germany to devise one-sidedly the rules of EMU. This configuration does not exist in other issue-areas, such as, for example, defence and enlargement. This does not mean that power is absent from Germany's tool-box: political credit in particular is abundant. Yet in a larger Europe, where coalitions are more issue-oriented and hence more volatile than formerly, Germany's power will turn out to be more limited than its demands for recognition may lead us to believe.     

Dialogues,Trialogues and Triangles: The Geometry of Germany's Foreign Policy of Trust-Building

This article explores three formats for interstate relations developed by, or at least significantly influenced by Germany in the post-Cold War period: the Petersburg Dialogue, the German–Russian–Polish Trialogue and the Weimar Triangle. An examination of the form and function of each of these formats is followed by a discussion of what these formats have in common and why they are worthy of further study. The paper addresses whether this ‘variable geometry’ of Germany's foreign policy of trust-building is likely to survive a period of turbulent relations or changes in leadership and, furthermore, how the effectiveness of dialogues, trialogues and triangles might be evaluated.     

Energy Security and Germany's Response to Russian Revisionism: The Dangers of Civilian Power

This article examines the impact of German dependence on Russian gas supplies for Europe's ability to apply effective sanctions against Russia. It demonstrates that by focusing on the environmental dimensions of energy policy and a policy of rapprochement with Russia, Germany has neglected the security of supply implications of its dependence on Russian gas. The article argues that Germany's excessive energy dependence on Russia has limited the ability of the EU to challenge Russian revisionism by targeting its energy sector through sanctions. The article makes a number of energy policy recommendations which will be essential for Germany to avoid undue Russian influence on its foreign and security policies. The article concludes by exploring the utility of Neoclassical Realism in understanding Germany's approach to energy security. In doing so it highlights the dangers of allowing ideology to cloud a sober assessment of the imperatives of the balance of theat.     

The Media Salience of Germany's Bilateral Relations to the United States,France and Britain

This article provides a comparative analysis of the salience of Germany's bilateral relations to the United States, France and Britain in the German media since the end of the cold war. It offers a media content frequency analysis which identifies long-term similarities and differences in media reporting across the three relationships as well as short-term upswings of media interest in each of them individually. This is relevant because the media salience of bilateral relations is a measure of their underpinnings in public discourse and speaks to the significance of domestic drivers in conducting such relationships. The article finds that media reporting on Germany's three bilateral relations under study has significantly increased in the post-9/11 period and that US–German and Franco–German relations attract far more attention in the German media than Anglo–German relations. Short-term upswings in media coverage are triggered by specific types of events, in particular crises in European integration and international military missions.     

The Indian states and the new Constitution

Ben Affleck's film ARGO is a good film, but not all the details are accurate. This article is by Martin Williams, the British diplomat who, contrary to the picture painted in the film, personally escorted to safety the Americans who had escaped when the Iranian Revolutionary guards took over the US Embassy. He sets that episode in the broader context of his personal experience of working during a complicated period during which initially there were major commercial opportunities for British firms, and then the power of the Shah started to wane, and finally he was overthrown. The installation of a very different regime entirely changed the approach which diplomats needed to adopt in Tehran.     

The Constitution of Japan and Constitutional Reform

Although there have been movements to revise the Constitution of Japan, the original text has remained in effect for 70 years. This article examines the rules of constitutional revision, the basis on which the Constitution was drafted, and the ramifications of an unmodified constitution. Japan's Constitution is compared in terms of length and number of revisions with those of other industrialized countries. The article concludes with recommendations for making Japan's Constitution better able to function in a legal capacity.     

Unsecular Politics in a Secular Environment: The Case of Germany's Christian Democratic Union Family Policy

Secularisation theory carried two implicit implications for Christian Democratic parties: either they become secular or they cease to exist. Both implications were wrong. Christian Democracy has neither vanished from the political landscape nor has it become fully secular. To secure its survival Christian Democracy has embarked on a delicate balancing act between the modern and the secular. Following up empirically on the thesis of Christian Democratic politics as being modern unsecular, the paper explores how much of the Christian element is still needed to explain Christian Democratic ideology and policy in the twenty-first century. By scrutinising the struggle surrounding Christian Democratic family policy in Germany, the paper finds that the conflict on the repositioning of Christian Democracy in a new cultural environment not only unfolds between secular modernisers and religious traditionalists. It has also led to the re-eruption of the interdenominational cleavage between Protestants and Catholics within the party.     

日本修宪与民族保守主义思潮

本文通过分析日本近现代宪政发展史及二战后的历次修宪思潮,认为自20世纪80年代以来,日本的民族保守主义思潮作为政治家的执政理念、政策路线和政治主张,已开始影响并逐渐主导日本政坛,并发展成为日本社会和国民中的一种意识.本文指出,日本修宪已呈不可避免之势,安倍晋三执政后,对第九条的修改以及修宪后日本的走向,将成为日本各政治派别论战的重点.     

詹姆斯·威尔逊与美国宪法

詹姆斯·威尔逊是美国独立、制宪时期的著名政治家、法律家,曾担任大陆会议代表,签署过《独立宣言》,并参与了费城制宪,对制定1787年宪法贡献颇大。他还领导了宾夕法尼亚州批准新宪法的斗争,促使宪法顺利通过。宪法生效后,他又出任最高法院大法官,担任费城学院法学教授,解释和传授新宪法。威尔逊在苏格兰长大,深受苏格兰启蒙思想影响。从他对宪法的理解可以看出,苏格兰启蒙思想也是美国宪法的重要思想渊源。     

Political participation in Latvia 1987–2001

Abstract

Political participation is crucial to democracy; we discuss its main features during three stages. The years 1988–91 are marked by anti-regime mobilization and extensive mass activism in support for restoring independence. After a “normalizing” phase between 1992–98 we note contradictory trends in more recent years. Next to conventional political participation one notes increasing protests, referendum initiatives, and corrupt ways of gaining influence.