北极治理模式的国际探讨及北极治理实践的新发展

近年来,北极成为国际热点之一,国内外学术界围绕北极治理进行了大量探索,提出种种方案,主要有"南极模式"、"制度综合体模式"和"海洋法公约模式"等,但这些方案本身即存在问题,且面临着实施层面的各种挑战。北极治理的国际探讨虽然没有结论,但相关实践已然向前迈进:以北极理事会为代表的区域性国际机制不断强化;冰区航运管理规则的制定取得突破性进展;北冰洋核心区的渔业管理讨论向国际社会开放。凡此种种表明,北极国家与其他重要利益相关体在很多领域存在着诸多共同利益,具体领域的治理可能优于全面的综合涵盖,"领域化"比"区域化"更具可行性。     

从渔业问题看北极治理的困境与路径

除去一般性的科考研究,关于北极问题的战略研究趋于强调国家主导和现实博弈,对于治理的路径与绩效评估较少,缺乏对全球层面制度因素的讨论。本文以北极渔业问题为案例,通过分析需求与供给、自由与管控、普遍性和特殊性之间存在的治理失衡现状,总结出以权力扩张、责任混淆、执法赤字和价值观缺失为主要特征的治理困境,从而归纳以制度为依托的软性治理、半封闭式的互补性竞争治理以及相互约束的排他性治理框架,为北极治理的路径选择提供思考。     

北极治理的国际制度竞争与权威构建

国际制度能够推动国家围绕某一北极治理议题进行合作与协调,从而规范国家行为。随着北极治理的实践理念从自助式的“丛林法则”向合作式的“制度法则”演变,国家面临遵循何种国际制度的选择困境,而对国家行为的约束力则是国际制度权威性的基础,这促使北极治理国际制度的主导国和参与国,都致力于提升国际制度的权威性,以维护本国的北极利益。“国际合法性”“国际认可度”与“制度刚性”是判断国际制度权威性的重要指标,而权威性差异造成北极治理国际制度体系呈现出层级结构。北极治理国际制度竞争分为国际规则竞争、国际组织竞争、国际秩序竞争三个阶段,当前北极治理国际制度竞争主要处于国际规则竞争阶段。由于北极治理具有议题局限性,国际规则供给呈现出相对过剩状态,这必然导致国际规则之间、倡导国际规则的国际行为体之间进行竞争,这亦是北极治理国际制度体系变迁的核心动力。未来权威型北极治理国际制度体系构建包括域内自理模式、公约治理模式和协商治理模式。北极利益攸关方之所以围绕国际规则设置权和国际组织主导权展开竞争,既是源于捍卫本国北极权益的考量,更是为了构建符合本国长远战略利益的国际秩序。     

环境非政府组织参与北极环境治理探究

作为北极核心问题之一,环境问题始终备受关注。而在应对日益复杂的北极环境危机中,以主权国家、政府间国际组织及区域组织为代表的传统治理主体的局限性日益凸显。环境非政府组织开始在北极环境治理中崭露头角并发挥着日益重要的作用,业已成为北极环境治理的重要行为体。以绿色和平组织和世界自然基金会为代表的环境非政府组织通过知识建构、游说、抗议等方式参与此项事务,努力推动北极环境治理体系从传统的单一功能逐步走向多元功能,为北极环境治理提供了新的契机。然而,环境非政府组织在相关工作的开展中也存在着自身建设、同各国政府及社会关系的协调等方面的问题,其解决途径在于加强自身建设,同北极国家和国际组织形成建设性的互动关系。     

约束与突破：中国在北极理事会的规范性话语权提升路径探析

北极理事会作为最具影响力的北极地区国际组织,其规则制定行为深刻影响了北极秩序的演变。中国不仅是北极事务的"利益攸关方",也是北极治理的后来者。要融入以西方国家主导的北极治理格局,就需要借助北极理事会来维护中国的北极利益。获取并提升规范性话语权,是中国制度性参与北极治理的重要目标。随着国际地位的提升与北极治理环境的转变,为了护持合理的北极权益,中国有必要提升在北极理事会中的规范性话语权。当前,中国可以通过充分利用参会权来提升对北极理事会建章立制的知情能力,从而逐步突破身份与权益限制,以及北极国家对北极治理规范性话语权的垄断。     

"冰上丝绸之路"视域下中国参与北极航 运安全治理的考量因素

北极航道因为北冰洋的加速融化与全线通航的美好愿景,将对世界海运格局及国际安全态势产生巨大影响,其日益国际化的趋势使得各国纷纷调整本国的北极战略。航运利益是中国最现实、最直接的北极利益,不仅较容易实现,而且政治敏感度较低。以北极地区国际组织为主导的国际协调机制,调节着国际共同利益与国家利益之间的矛盾,维护北极经济发展的有序运行,有助于"冰上丝绸之路"的顺利推进。推动航道安全合作将是北极国际治理的主要内容,亦是中国介入北极事务的最佳切入点之一。制度性参与北极航运安全治理机制的建章立制过程,是中国优化"冰上丝绸之路"外部环境、护持中国北极利益的核心问题。     

美国北极战略新动向及对北极治理的影响

在北极地缘形势复杂化背景下，美国北极战略在认知、议题、合作三方面呈现出新的特点。美国北极战略调整旨在应对北极地区日益凸显的安全风险，确保美国在北极区域和全球秩序中的领导地位，增强自身参与北极治理的能力建设。美国北极战略新动向将对北极安全治理、发展治理及以北极理事会为核心的区域治理机制走向产生关键性影响。中国应妥善处理与美在北极的竞合关系，维护在北极的合法权益。     

北极治理机制的构建与完善:法律与政策层面的思考

在全球气候变暖、北极海冰消融的推动下,北极治理问题日益突出。《海洋法公约》、北极理事会等相关治理机制的不足与缺陷使得构建与完善北极治理机制成为国际社会广泛关注的议题。在北极治理机制的构建上,国际学界目前存在两种不同的模式,一种是自上而下地拟制《北极条约》,另一种则是强化现有治理机制在领域性与功能性问题上的治理。对此,中国应立足于实现本国利益和各国共同利益的统一,从而推动该地区国际合作和治理机制的完善,并最终为北极的和平开发和利用做出应有的贡献。     

北极地缘政治的多尺度特征——兼论北极问题与南海问题的本质不同

随着北冰洋海冰融化速度的加快,北极的国际关注程度逐渐增加,北极权益的争夺也愈演愈烈。由于北极地区的特殊性和复杂性,北冰洋沿岸国和非北冰洋沿岸国都试图寻找符合本国利益诉求的战略定位,因此导致目前北极地区的相关概念混乱不清,不利于北极问题的可持续性解决,也有可能演化成地区冲突。本文探讨了北极地缘政治的多尺度特征,包括地理区域尺度、地缘安全区域尺度、地缘政治区域尺度和地缘经济区域尺度的特征,并在此基础上辨析了北极地区的北冰洋沿岸国与北极国家、"近北极国家"与北极利益攸关者、大北极国家与泛北极共同体等相关概念;并对北极问题和南海问题进行了正确区分,阐述了北极问题和南海问题在本质上的不同之处。明确北极地缘政治的多尺度特征及相关概念,才能更加有利于我国的北极可持续发展建设实践,也能够避免其他国家将北极与南海相提并论,避免干扰我国南海权益的正当维护和北极权益的正当争取。     

北极国家新北极政策的共同取向及对策思考

北极变暖在给北极地区及其居民带来新的发展机会的同时,又造成许多新的和未知 的挑战,并引起国际政治的深刻变化,发展出新的和复杂的国际关系。北极国家纷纷出台新北极政 策,其政策取向的共同出发点是资源利益、环境利益、地区经济与社会发展的需要,其中美国和俄 罗斯等国还包含深远的安全利益的考虑。各国在加强竞争的同时,还提出了进行“国际治理”的主 张,但范围通常局限于北极国家内,显示其国际合作的有限性和排他性。对此,中国应该尽快开展 在北极地区的国家利益评估,加大对北极地区科学研究和调查的力度,加强同北极国家以及北极 理事会等国际组织的交流与合作,谋取并扩大在北极事务中的参与权     

Population, Prophets, Pensions, and Politics

As immigrant populations in Western welfare states grow at a faster rate than the native populations, whose birthrates have declined dramatically in recent years, Europe's tradition of democracy and tolerance is threatened. The reasons for the birthrate decline and the resultant aging of the native population are many and complex, but one important contributing factor is the pay-as-you-go pension system, which reduces people's immediate dependence on children. Moreover, the payroll and social security taxes that support the welfare state reduce the earnings capacity of men and women of the traditional age for having children, thus pushing down the birthrate. It is time to consider whether modern Europe's small-size families and high pensions are sustainable     

Terrorism,counter-terrorism,and critique: opportunities,examples, and implications

This article explores the parameters, value and limitations of different critical strategies for those dissatisfied with the contemporary politics of terror. It argues, first, that the prominent (counter-)terrorism paradigm – in which terrorism is approached as a ubiquitous and very specific security challenge meriting appropriately exceptional responses – is far more critiqued than we might anticipate. And, second, that such critiques – which can be found across political language, popular culture, everyday life, and beyond – employ distinct critical resources to serve varying ends. Reflecting on these, the article offers a new heuristic distinguishing five critical strategies which seek to: (i) repudiate; (ii) question; (iii) subvert; (iv) replace, or (v) deconstruct the prominent counter-terrorism paradigm. This typology, it argues, offers scope for optimism and strategic resources for those attracted to a critical terrorism studies project going forward.     

Pakistan,India, China,and the United States: Energy,Climate Change,and National Security

This article focuses on the interplay of energy, climate change, and national security issues in Southwest Asia, using the newer definition of “national security” to include energy security, economic development, and climate change, as well as traditional security focusing on the military aspects.     

Norway,Spitsbergen, and America, 1905-1920

In the Spitsbergen treaty of 1920, Norway acquired sovereignty over the Spitsbergen Islands. Rather than Woodrow Wilson, the American president, the architects behind the treaty were Robert Lansing, Wilson’s secretary of state, and, behind the diplomatic scene, the mining investor, John M. Longyear. In 1906, Longyear established a mining company to exploit the coal deposits at Spitsbergen. He induced Congress, the State Department, and the White House to forge an American policy for the European Arctic, including the appointment of Lansing, an international lawyer, as a counsel in the State Department. Lansing was a leading expert on both international law and the lack of state authority at the terra nullius, Spitsbergen. In 1915, he became secretary of State and, at the Paris Peace Conference, decided American policy regarding the Spitsbergen question. This analysis shows how the outcome of the Spitsbergen question was a result of American mining interests, supplemented by Norwegian-American shared interests in conflict resolution based on international law.     

Indigeneity,Ethnicity, and the State: Australia,Fiji, and New Zealand

This article draws on the politics of indigeneity to distinguish the claims of first occupancy from simple ethnic identity politics, illustrating that relative political marginalization in Australasia is not so much a function of minority status but of indigeneity itself. The politics of indigeneity's aim is to create political space for self-determination and a particular indigenous share in the sovereign authority of the nation-state itself. The Australasian states are compared with Fiji to demonstrate that the significance of historical constraints on political authority transcend the withdrawal of a colonial power and the restoration of collective indigenous majority population status.     

International relations in Malaysia: theories, history, memory, perception, and context

The article makes a preliminary survey of the teaching of internationalrelations (IR) in Malaysia. It starts by describing the originsof the field, and the emergence of an IR epistemic communityjoining both academia and government. This account is necessarilyderived from the experiences of the four most established Malaysianuniversities distinguished by length of existence and officialfavor. Subsequently, the survey would describe course contentand influences going into their design. The penultimate sectionswould attempt to place the evolution of Malaysian IR teachingwithin a historical context. This survey nonetheless concludesthat nationalist aspirations continue to remain a secondaryinfluence when compared with intellectual dependence upon theWest in the design of IR education in Malaysia. Received for publication August 28, 2008. Accepted for publication October 2, 2008.     

Culture,liberation, and 'development'

Most of the socio-economic changes taking place in Africa and much of the South are externally driven. External agencies, often in league with the State, by-pass working people and do not involve them in the decision-making processes. Their economic approaches ignore people's cultures and their world view. This denies working people a creative capacity to adapt new techniques and knowledge to their own concrete reality. This article argues for the importance of the historical frame of reference and for the centrality of culture in socio-economic processes. The author argues against approaches which are not culturally familiar to working people.     

The roles of,and relationships between,expatriates, volunteers,and local development workers

This article reports on exploratory research based on interviews with expatriate and local aid workers employed by local and international NGOs in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Thematic analysis of the interviews found that personnel were placed in groups based on their job category – consultant, volunteer, or permanent staff – regardless of experience. These categories logically reflect each worker's pay level, purpose, and role, but they may also have an implicit power meaning which reinforces group differences and inhibits inter-group relationships. Relationship building was reported to be the most important factor contributing to the success of capacity-development initiatives. Four sub-themes were identified: communication, friendship, reciprocal learning/teaching, and confidence.     

Britain,France, and America's Year of Europe, 1973

Britain's entry into the European Community in 1973 coincided with an American initiative aimed at redefining relations between the United States and Western Europe. This confronted British diplomats with a serious dilemma. They wished to maintain close collaboration with Washington and, for the sake of European unity, to expand on their recently achieved reconciliation with France, a country whose Gaullist elite rejected any further institutionalization of transatlantic relations. French reluctance to engage in a constructive dialogue with the Americans resulted in a fractious debate over the drafting of two seemingly innocuous declarations, and this was exacerbated by the mixed response of the Europeans to the outbreak of the fourth Arab–Israeli war and the ensuing energy crisis. Finally, at the Washington energy conference of February 1974, the British chose to work with the Americans, rather than the French, in seeking to mitigate the economic impact of OPEC's oil policies.