The national politics of EU enlargement in the Western Balkans

Abstract

European enlargement has often been viewed from an institutional perspective. The academic literature in the field has tended to focus primarily on how the Commission or the Council has addressed the issue of EU expansion. Relatively little attention has been paid to the role of individual member states. This article considers the way in which domestic political concerns and national politics affects the way in which EU members approach enlargement to the Western Balkans. It does this by examining studies conducted on seven countries: Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Hungary, Greece and Cyprus. It shows that there are in fact a wide variety of factors that shape individual member state attitudes towards enlargement. These factors include economic and commercial goals, ties to the region and to individual accession states, concerns over immigration, general foreign policy priorities and national ideological approaches towards the future shape and orientation of the European Union.     

Discordant Allies: Trans-Tasman Relations in the Aftermath of the ANZUS Treaty, 1951–1955

Contrary to popular belief, the conclusion of the 1951 ANZUS Treaty did little to encourage an immediate closer political relationship between Australia and New Zealand. The Tasman powers disagreed on major strategic issues and cooperation was minimal (and in some cases entirely absent). Focusing on the development of trans-Tasman relations between 1951 and 1955, this article examines Australian and New Zealand views pertaining to the scope and implementation of the ANZUS Treaty, proposals for the Five Power Staff Agency in Southeast Asia, the “United Action” proposal during the 1954 Indochina Crisis and the “Operation Oracle” project during the 1954–1955 Quemoy–Matsu Crisis. This article advances the conclusion that Australia and New Zealand mainly disagreed on these issues due to competing views about their respective political relationships with the United States and Britain. In other words, in the immediate post-treaty period, closer trans-Tasman political relations were ultimately hindered by strong divisions over accepting the United States instead of Britain as the cornerstone of their respective foreign policies.     

论我国外贸代理制的“权责均衡化”

外贸代理作为国际上通用的商事代理行为,在我国经过了二十多年的垄断历程。2004年我国放开外贸经营权后,外贸代理业虽遇挑战,但作为一种贸易趋势仍不失魅力。外贸代理法律制度的完善有助于外贸代理业的规范化管理,能有效协调当事人权责关系,促进我国外贸发展。我国外贸代理制度须借鉴国际外贸代理经验,明确外贸代理人的法律地位及职责,实现我国外贸代理制的真正"和谐利益"。     

民营企业进入金融领域的法律障碍及解围的制度路径——以河北大午农牧集团公司“非法吸收公众存款”案为例

鉴于主流的经济法既往研究过于倚重价值论范式及其所造成的对经济法实践操作能力的消极影响,本文立足于转型中围社会的“共时性”背景,选定其中一个非常具有社会影响和法律分析价值的农村民间金融个案一河北大午农牧集团公司“非法吸收公众存款”案,依循严格的法条主义的实证分析范式,探究了“三农”转型背景下农村民间金融所面临的司法制度困境。其深意在于通过对分别代表私法（民法）和公法（刑法、行政法）两种立场的控、辩双方论证思路的分析实证检视,尝试性地思考与回答了经济法对于类似制度困境的有效破解。     

Public Pension Funds and Alternative Investments: A Tale of Four Swedish National Pension Funds

This exploratory study offers insights into why public pension plans might invest in alternative asset classes at levels inconsistent with modern portfolio theory. Using a case study methodology, the research relies on fieldwork data and in-depth interviews with individuals familiar with four Swedish national pension funds. The findings suggest that alternative assets are perceived as important vehicles for improving portfolio diversification, but that the funds’ propensity to invest in them is constrained by information asymmetry and access to alternatives. The findings also indicate that investment restrictions and political considerations have had limited effects on decisions to invest in alternative assets.     

中外教师联合授课教学方式研究

俄语教学是一个受众多因素影响的十分复杂的工程。教学效果的优劣在很大程度上取决于教学方法的运用和教师的教学理念。黑龙江东方学院俄语专业深入开展教学改革，尝试突破传统的外语教学法的弊端，结合民办高校俄语专业学生和教师的实际情况，推行了中外教师联合授课的新模式，力争全面提高教学质量。     

Evangelical violence: Western Christianity and the use of force against the Third World

Abstract

Recognising the impact of religion on state action, this article identifies two variables that interact to affect the type and level of violence employed by Western states against Third World targets. First, variation in the degree to which the prominent Christian denominations and organisations within these states view evangelisation as either an individual-level or national-level process – Christian individualism vs Christian nationalism – has determined church support for using violence as a tactic. Second, the level of influence that churches and missionary organisations have over their home states affects the ability of Christian actors to directly impact state actions. Western violence against Third World peoples is expected to be lowest when churches and Christian organisations view evangelisation in primarily individualistic terms and have significant influence over the state. The article examines the relationships between concepts of evangelisation, Christian influence over state policies, and levels of violence against the Third World by examining British, French and German colonialism during the late colonial period of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.     

结果加重犯的立法完善

德、日等大陆法系国家对结果加重犯的相关问题进行了深刻的研究,而我国虽然也有不少学者对结果加重犯进行研究,但只是把它作为罪数形态中的一种现象进行理论研究,而没有从立法完善上予以关注。正是因为我国刑法没有对该犯罪形态做出规定,所以导致在处理日常问题的时候出现较大的争议。因此,我们在研究德日刑法的时候,可以取其之长,补己之短,使我国结果加重犯的相关立法得到进一步完善。     

我国外汇政策稳定物价的效果分析

长期以来,我国执行"半开半闭"的外汇政策。这意味着,汇率等外汇政策对国内物价的作用机理和作用效果在我国的表现将明显区别于任何开放经济体。研究发现,在影响国内物价的稳定性方面,汇率政策和外汇储备政策存在相互干扰;在影响国内物价稳定性方面,外汇储备政策的影响程度远高于汇率政策,且影响时间长于汇率政策;我国外汇储备的增加在较大程度上冲抵了人民币升值对国内物价的作用效果;过高的外汇储备甚至会扭转人民币升值对国内物价的作用方向。研究结果表明,人民币升值无助于降低国内物价,因而应通过改变长期以来单纯追求外汇储备增长的政策,有效降低现有的外汇储备政策对国内物价稳定性带来的负面冲击。     

我国外汇储备的规模与风险规避

本文通过分析国家外汇管理局年报中外汇管理形势以及我国外汇储备的规模,指出了在当前全球经济金融形势下我国巨额外汇储备面临的风险,提出应从改善我国内部经济发展模式着手,通过人民币国际化等途径进行风险规避的建议。