Why Germany Wanted EMU: The Role of Helmut Kohl's Belief System and the Fall of the Berlin Wall

In light of the current Euro-crisis and seemingly erratic German response to it, the question of why Germany wanted EMU has gained new relevance. While EMU entailed economic and political benefits for Germany, this article indicates that taking into account the German shared historical consciousness, and the combined effect of Chancellor Kohl's beliefs and 1989 Eastern European revolution provides a more adequate answer to this question. More specifically, such an explanation provides an answer to remaining questions concerning the timing of the German acquiescence, and the ambiguous and inconsistent behaviour of the Kohl government on the road to Maastricht.     

The allure of global games for 'semi-peripheral' polities and spaces: A research agenda

Exploring the increasing propensity of 'semi-peripheral' polities and spaces to host major games as a pivotal strategic response to the exigencies of globalisation, it is contended that pursuing such events is intimately connected to the perceived expansion of 'marketing power' on the one hand, and to the legitimisation and celebration of conceptions of national identity and political orders, on the other. Given that various contingencies bear upon these sought-after outcomes, this analytical framework underscores the significance of questions about global inequality, power and identity to explain the apparent allure of global games. Hence, to determine whether major games deliver the kind of benefits proclaimed by proponents, requires asking questions about (1) identity building and signalling; (2) development and (3) political liberalisation and human rights.     

Metaphors of Governance in Central and Eastern Europe: Multi-level,Asymmetrical or Variable Geometry?

Theories of multi-level and network governance have been applied to changes derived from processes of Europeanisation. These theories reflect vertical and horizontal interdependencies which may erode the power of the central state vis-à-vis supra-national and regional layers of governance. This paper suggests that through the enlargement process institutional adaptation has been uneven and led to the creation of a democratic deficit. It suggests that metaphors of asymmetry or variable geometry better reflect the reality of fluidity and dynamism in the distribution of powers at differing territorial levels in accession states.     

Re-thinking Myanmar's political regime: military rule in Myanmar and implications for current reforms

The Myanmar military has long dominated national politics as well as the state apparatus since first coming into power in 1958. Despite a series of challenges to its rule, the military has been able to constantly re-invent itself while re-asserting its dominance over society. Cycles of popular protests and dissatisfaction with military rule have not led to regime change nor weakened the military as a unified institution. The latest incarnation of the nominally civilian government has introduced a series of liberalising reforms that have dramatically opened more socio-political space for opposition and non-state actors to participate in national politics. Despite the somewhat optimistic outlook of a more liberalised Myanmar in the future, the institutional design and historical legacy of the military's role in state-building have ensured that it has enough ‘reserve domains’ to maintain its prominent role within any foreseeable future governments in Myanmar. By tracing the historical development of the Myanmar military regime, this paper argues that current reforms were introduced as a strategy for the military to ensure its continued survival as the primary political actor in Myanmar.     

The Impossible Challenge of Deterring “Nuclear Terrorism” by Al Qaeda

Deterring Al Qaeda from using a nuclear weapon, should it acquire one, is a harder challenge than analysts have argued. Suggestions for “deterrence based on punishment” have severe limitations. Al Qaeda is not a state, has no clear command authority, and has no clear nuclear weapons–employment doctrine. Most analysts also ignore the dynamic of “crisis instability” (“use it or lose it”): should the West believe Al Qaeda has an improvised nuclear devise, it is unlikely (regardless of whether Al Qaeda leadership claimed the weapon would be held as a deterrent only) that the West would accept a mutually-assured-destruction relationship with the group. The West would hunt the weapon down, forcing Al Qaeda's hand. The best counter–Weapons of Mass Destruction–Nuclear Terrorism defense, therefore, is good counterinsurgency policy to starve it of recruits until the group dies.     

What is a region? Towards a statehood theory of regions

This article presents the outline of a statehood theory of regions with the aim of contributing to a better understanding of what regions are, how they function and how they emerge. First, a definition of region is introduced that starts from the use of the concept of region in everyday language. It is argued that ‘region’ is a discursive tool used to refer to governance units that are not states but have some statehood properties. Second, a comparative framework is developed that allows to present theories of regions in a systematic way. Third, this framework is used to outline a general theory of regions at the supra-national, sub-national or cross-border level. This theory can be labelled as a ‘statehood theory of regions’ as it underlines the statehood properties of regions as well as the complex relationships between states and regions. According to this theory, regions are in a double relation to states: they are to some extent supportive to the state(s) that created them, and they have a tendency to gain autonomy from their creators. The whole paper can also be regarded as an exercise in interdisciplinarity as it brings in perspectives from psychology and personality theory in order to transpose the Hobbesian metaphor of states acting as persons to the understanding of regions.     

Mao Zedond’s Xunwu Country Report of 1930: A Long-lost Document from a Critical Year in Jiangxi Reappears

From 1922 to 1927, an alliance between the Guomindang (GMD) and the Soviet Communists advanced a mass-media campaign aimed at wresting control from a regime dominated by warlords and unifying the Chinese nation. Soviet-inspired propaganda posters then flourished during the Northern Expedition as a novel approach to engage with the masses and facilitate the state's policy. By analyzing the symbolic expressions in these political images, this paper examines the differences and similarities between the earlier printed political images and later propaganda posters and argues that both the GMD and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regimes relied on propaganda networks and personality cults in order to maintain power. In the aftermath of the Qing dynasty, China endured instability and turmoil as warlords and political factions predominated. By the time of the Northern Expedition, the leaders of the GMD and CCP had become convinced that only rigid party organization with military discipline could achieve the goal of national unity.     

Subnational Lobbying and Structural Funds: A French–Scottish Comparison

This article examines subnational actors’ engagement with the European Union's structural funds, and whether these actors are significant in this policy sector. It examines this question by comparing one French regional council with one set of Scottish local authorities. It concludes that there are considerable similarities between the subnational actors studied, in spite of differences in their location and the constitutional structure within which they are located. The subnational actors have unilaterally developed a capacity for engaging in the policy sector. In both cases, however, this engagement is not evidence of a ‘by-passing’ of the central government. Instead, the subnational authorities have worked alongside central government departments to achieve their goals.