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Католическият празник Тяло и Кръв Христови в българско и полско село (Съпоставително изследване)

Author(s): Natalia Rashkova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 4/2020

In the thirteenth century, in the calendar of the Catholic Church, a special day is established to honour the Holy Communion – the bread and the wine, turned into the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. The feast is celebrated everywhere in the Catholic world with a solemn liturgy and a procession. The article presents in a comparative perspective fieldwork observations and documentation of this Catholic feast in two villages in Bulgaria and in Poland: the village of Oresh, Svishtov region (in 1995 and 2015) and the village of Złaków Kościelny, Łowicz district, Łódź voivodeship (in 2016). The author outlines the specific characteristics in performing of the feast in the two communities (Corpus Christi in Oresh; Boże Ciało in Złaków Kościelny), conditioned by differences in the confessional and cultural history as well as by different conditions of practicing the religious traditions.The comparative study shows the significance of local identity, expressed through elements of inherited traditional culture. For the Bulgarian Catholics, cultural identity is affirmed mainly through their religious affiliation, which is different from the official Orthodox religion, predominant in the country. The revival of the festive Catholic processions in modern times is an expression of the desire for a sustainable connection with the restored family and community confessional tradition. An essential expression of the local specificity in the religious festivity of the inhabitants of the Polish village is the adherence to traditional elements of the folklore culture, which have cultivated the local religious tradition.

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Историческа памет и образи – различният подход към миналото

Author(s): Valery Stoyanow / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2021

Book review

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Tsvetelina Dimitrova. Popular History between the Oral and the Written. Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Publishing House of BAS, 2013. 218 p.[Цветелина Димитрова. „Народната история“ между устност и писменост. София: Издателство на БАН „Проф. Марин Дринов]

Author(s): Petko Hristov / Language(s): English Issue: Special 2/2020

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POST-PULWAMA INDO-PAK CONFLICT: RECONNOITERING THE ROLE OF SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANIZATION

Author(s): Bawa Singh,Aslam Khan,Jagmeet Bawa,Balinder Singh / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Terrorism has emerged as one of the major challenges for the Eurasian regional peace, security, and cooperation. Keeping these challenges in perspective, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was established to eliminate the menace of terrorism, fundamentalism, and secessionism. Against this background, the main objectives of this paper are to examine how terrorism emerged as a major determining factor in the Indo-Pak relations and how the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), was failed to play its effective role in the Indo-Pak conflict given the Pulwama terror attack. For this research, descriptive and analytical methods were used and the data was collected from secondary sources. The major findings of this article are that terrorism has emerged as one of the major determinants of Indo-Pak relations and the same has become a major challenge for the SCO to resolve the issue. Against the background of terror attacks, it was anticipated that the SCO would play a crucial role to pacify the situation. However, the role played by the SCO in this situation proved marked as a Whack-a-Mole.

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Działania przeciwpowstańcze specjalistycznych jednostek Armii Brytyjskiej w Irlandii Północnej na przykładzie MRF

Author(s): Janusz Liber / Language(s): Polish Issue: 1/2021

The article aims to present the specificity of counterinsurgency operations carried out by specialized units of the British Army in Northern Ireland. It describes the principles of operations of the first specialized unit conducting anti-guerilla operations in Belfast and Londonderry. The article also shows the failure of the MRF activities which contributed to the decommissioning of the unit. Additionally, the study answers the question did Brigadier F. Kitson's counter-insurrection strategy, developed during the operations in Kenya, proven successful in Northern Ireland? What kind of elements were crucial for the failure of COIN activities in the initial period of ‘troubles’?

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The image of the Russian Enlightened monarch in the Romanian culture at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth century

Author(s): Alexandra Chiriac,Ana Catană-Spenchiu / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

This paper aims to reconstruct the way in which the Romanian written culture from the second half of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth gradually built the image of the Russian Enlightened monarchy with three of its most famous representatives: Peter II, Catherine II and Alexander I. By means of translating from Italian and German historiography, these texts served a double goal: on the one hand they satisfied the reader’s need for knowledge and understanding of the contemporary events, and on the other they contributed to a political discourse that viewed Russia and the Russian Orthodox monarchy as potential saviours of the Romanian principalities from the oppression of the Muslim Ottoman Empire. By means of translation analysis, we have attempted to illustrate how the Western image of an Eastern monarch, guided by a blend of Western philosophy and Eastern Orthodox tradition, was transferred in the Romanian culture as a scientific base for political and cultural decisions.

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ANALYSIS OF THE INTEGRITY INDEX FOR PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN THE ALBANIAN DEVELOPING REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY

Author(s): Andon Kume / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

This research aimed to analyze the Albanian parliamentary elections held in 2013, 2017, and 2021 in order to evaluate the process of development of representative democracy in Albania, one of the post-communist countries of the Western Balkans. The analysis was based on assessing the dynamics of the Electoral Integrity Index (PEI) as a quantitative indicator that reflects the level of fulfillment of international standards for democratic elections. The PEI was evaluated using the average perception values for 11 indicators reflecting the election process. Based on the value of the PEI2013 (54.1 scores), PEI2017 (53.3 scores), and PEI2021 (57.7 scores), the parliamentary elections in Albania were considered as processes that do not exceed the ‘moderate’ level. The non-significant difference between 2013, 2017, and 2021 PEI (p>0.05) demonstrated low progress in developing democratic performances in Albanian society.

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TERRORISM AND ABRAHAMIC RELIGIOUS TRADITION: A FOCUS ON BOKO HARAM ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM IN THE NORTH-EASTERN NIGERIA

Author(s): Theophilus Oyime Adejumo,John A. Adams,Gabriel T. Abumbe / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

This study examines the normative hypothesis explaining the nexus between terrorism and Abrahamic religious tradition, particularly the Boko Haram Islamic fundamentalist sect in North-Eastern Nigeria. It is methodologically structured in quantitative and qualitative methods, where data and information are retrieved from primary and secondary sources. These were presented in a tabular form and analyzed descriptively within the context of the subject matter under investigation. The findings reveal that, beyond the classical arguments usually provided by the Abrahamic religious tradition school, the real reason behind global terrorism is for some overzealous religious bigots to establish a caliphate that will enable them to influence the international system. Based on these findings, the study concluded that the war against global terrorism would be a mirage unless national governments and international organizations fully address these fundamental issues.

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CHINA’S GEO-ECONOMIC INTEREST IN AFRICA: A SHORT OVERVIEW

Author(s): Jajati K. Pattnaik,Chandan K. Panda / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

The article examines China’s geo-economic interest in Africa. China intends to exercise its leverage over both coastal frontiers for trade and defense and its hinterland for rich mineral, metal, and fossil deposits. Furthermore, the debt trap seems to be one of the methods through which China intended to bargain with Africa to bag as much advantage as it could gain. The question that emerges from this critical engagement with China-Africa relations is to look into how the reality of Africa’s narrative of development is projected both from outside and within and the contradiction embodied in that projection. China used the narrative of development to set its feet on African soil. This paper discusses China’s penetration into Africa by offering interest-free loans and its gradual emergence as a neocolonial power through expanding its network. The method used in the study to establish China’s monopoly and interfering streak in African affairs through BRI is the analysis of available data based on which the objectives and the conclusions are drawn.

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TURKEY’S SOFT POWER POLICY TOWARDS THE BALKANS: CHALLENGES AND PERSPECTIVES

Author(s): Muhamed Ali / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

The Balkans is considered a vital area in international relations. It has always attracted and is still attracting the interest of global and regional powers and factors on the international stage, including Turkey. Besides the political, economic, and defense aspects, the soft power of Turkish multidimensional diplomacy represents one of the most important segments of the relations between Turkey and the Balkan countries. Turkish government institutions like the Diyanet (Presidency of Religious Affairs), Yunus Emre, Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB), TIKA, Turkish State Media, Maarif education institutions, and various non-governmental organizations represent some of the most vital segments of the cultural, religious and educational expansion of the Turkish state in the Balkan countries. This paper is mainly based on the following research methods: historical, descriptive, and in-depth analysis. This study aims to answer the main question of this research - Do the above-mentioned soft power policy tools play a vital role in the further development of Turkey-Balkan countries relations? This paper concludes that the Turkish soft power policy in the Balkans faces a series of challenges that affect its expansion's functionality and success.

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UKRAINE AMIDST THE WAR: MAIN IMPLICATIONS

Author(s): Aram Terzyan / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

This paper explores the challenges that Ukraine faces during the Russian invasion, focusing on the political and economic implications of the war. Apart from the humanitarian crisis, the war has produced political, economic, and social tribulations, which must be addressed. The more stubborn the Ukrainian resistance becomes, the more likely Russia will implement more aggressive tactics. Ukraine has already acknowledged its inability to join the transatlantic alliance, and recent peace talks with Russia have become more realistic and plausible for its future. Early planning of post-war recovery gained significance against this backdrop, as it proved to be successful when led by ‘indigenous drivers’. While this approach placed local actors, institutions, and resources at its center, it also recognized the crucial role of external aid. This paper argues that the war is a ‘resilience test’ for European solidarity and the EU’s crisis management competency. This paper inquires into the challenges of Ukraine’s post-war recovery and concludes that national consolidation, along with Western solidarity, is critical to addressing the ‘Russian problem’ of Ukraine.

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Малцинствената политика на ранната Tурска република (20-те и 30-те години на ХХ в.)

Author(s): Kalina Peeva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 4/2022

This article highlights the politics of the early Turkish governments towards various ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities living on the territory of the Republic of Turkey in the light of the principle of nationalism, which became one of the fundamental principles of the new Turkish state. Based on the achievements of modern historiography and the archive documents in the records of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religions kept at the Central State Archives –Sofia, it makes a review of the typical practices aimed at assimilation of the Muslim linguistic, ethnic and denominational minorities, on one hand, and, on the other hand, at the exclusion of non-Muslims from the concept of the “Turkish nation” and the adoption of discriminatory, and even repressive practices, encouraging their emigration from the Republic of Turkey.

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Resettlement of People of Russian Descent from Bulgaria to The Ukrainian SSR (1946 – 1947)

Author(s): Oleksandr Potylchak,Mykhailo Zhurba,Viktor Dotsenko / Language(s): English Issue: 4/2022

The article examines one of the little-known and unexplored episodes of Soviet government campaigns for the re-emigration of Bulgarian citizens of Russian descent, who were deported to the Soviet Union in the autumn and winter of 1946 – 1947 and settled in the southern, south-eastern and western regions of Ukraine. The demographic statistics of the contingent of migrants, the circumstances of the transportation of ‘re-emigrants’ to Ukrainian ports, their distribution in the regions of the Ukrainian SSR, resettlement, housing and employment locally have been analyzed. The main sources of the study are the documents of the Department for Repatriation of the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR, which are stored in the funds of the Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine in Kyiv. They include records, directives, instructions, resolutions, reports, information, notices, letters and telegrams of the authorities of the USS Rand the Ukrainian SSR at various levels. These documents reveal the details of the preparation and implementation of the resettlement of hundreds of Bulgarian citizens of Russian descent to Ukraine in the autumn and winter of 1946 – 1947by the Stalinist authorities and provide statistics on the number, gender, age and occupation of ‘re-emigrants’, information on their transportation to Ukrainian ports, reception and accommodation of people in their new places of residence, the reaction of migrants to the actual living and working conditions in their new homeland. The vast majority of immigrants were associated with the Soviet Union only by the Russian descent of their ancestors, so one cannot call these people “repatriates”, as the Stalinist government did. Given the nature and consequences of this action of the Soviet totalitarian regime, we can rather talk about forced displacement on ethnic grounds.

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Ruch Supraciu a rządy Aleksandra Łukaszenki – charakterystyka i metody działania

Author(s): Aleksander Kazak / Language(s): Polish Issue: 1/2022

The article presents the methods of influencing particular groups of the revolutionary “Supraciu” movement in Belarus. The subject of the research is to verify the goals of the "Supraciu" movement as an opposition to the Belarusian regime and to define its status in the structure of national liberation organizations. The main research method is the analysis of materials from various media, including social media. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the activities of these groups. The adopted thesis is that the "Supraciu" movement is a national liberation movement that uses terror to weaken the dictatorial regime of Alexander Lukashenka. Following this assumption, the methods and effectiveness of group members of the "Supraciu" movement were presented, and the prospects for the development of this movement in Belarus were assessed.

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Включване на общностите в процеса на опазване и социализация на наследство – правнонормативни документи на водещи международни организации

Author(s): Plamena Zayachka / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 3/2021

This article explores the changing approaches to the preservation and socialization of cultural heritage. The analysis of the normative documents of the leading international organizations in the field of cultural heritage – from the 50s of the twentieth century to the present day – shows a slow transition to the integration of people and communities in the processes of its preservation. This transition has three main phases: from separation of people and communities from the heritage, through awareness and access to it, and finally, to inclusion in the decision-making process concerning cultural heritage protection. The article also examines where Bulgaria is in this process and how these changes in cultural policies affect the mechanisms of protection of our cultural heritage.

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DEMOCRACY STATE AND AUTOCRATIZATION FEATURES IN THE REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA

Author(s): Dorina Bërdufi,Afrim Krasniqi / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

This article examines the Albanian political regime, as a single case study, for the period 2013-2021, as part of the Western Balkans' experience of democratic backsliding, by investigating the framework of factors linked with the formidable challenge posed by the emergence of a hybrid regime of Albania in these years. For the first time in Albania’s post-communist history, the incumbent Socialist Party of Albania won for the third time in a row the parliamentary elections of April 2021, thus making the bid for the power of the leading opposition parties much harder. This paper uses country-expert statistical data from V-Dem and qualitative data analyses. The study reveals that the over-reliance on strong leaders, the growing government control over public life, fragmentation of the opposition, its lack of appeal, organization and mobilization, the boycott of the parliamentary mandates, combined with the weakening role of media and distrust of the citizens in democratic institutions, led to the resurgence of the authoritarian mechanisms, making the liberal democratic transformation in Albania an increasingly challenging task.

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THE MIGRATION STRATEGIES AND POSITIONS ON THE EU MIGRATION AND ASYLUM AGENDA: EVIDENCE FROM THE VISEGRAD GROUP COUNTRIES

Author(s): Tomáš Kajánek / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

At the time of the outbreak of the migration crisis in Europe, the Visegrad Group gained the status of the EU troublemaker due to its opposition to the solidarity and cohesion mechanisms adopted on the European level. The migration strategies (not only) of the individual states of the grouping proved insufficient and unfeasible in times of crisis. However, in the case of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and the Slovak Republic, the absence of national mechanisms and solutions was partially replaced after 2015 by joint declarations and statements rejecting active cooperation in resolving migration and asylum pressures within the EU Single Market. Despite failing to manage migratory pressures since 2015, four Central European countries have not learned their lessons and will face unprecedented crises in 2022 again. This time, however, Visegrad countries became the first-line countries affected by the refugee crisis. The migration and asylum agenda is thus becoming an extremely complex problem within the Visegrad Group region due to the initially intense politicization of the topic by the government elites in individual states. The paper analyses the migration strategies of individual states and the migration and asylum management-related positions after the migration crisis in 2015 and the sequence of events associated with the outbreak of armed conflict in Ukraine in early 2022.

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INDIA-CHINA STRATEGIC COMPETITION IN THE INDIAN OCEAN

Author(s): Anh Chuong Nguyen,Tuan Binh Nguyen,Tran Xuan Hiep,Mi Le / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

The XXI is considered by major countries in the Asia-Pacific region as ‘the century of sea and ocean’ and is accompanied by fierce competition among the nations to gain interest in the sea regions. On the basis that previously only considered the competition for military objectives, geostrategic bases and traffic channels through the straits, nowadays, countries worldwide have stepped up the competition for economic interests and marine resources. The development of military power and the competitive activities for resources at sea show clear the tendency to use the sea to contain the continent. In that context, the Indian Ocean, as the world’s third largest ocean, has an important geographic location and rich and diverse natural resources; the arterial sea route is gradually becoming the center of new world geopolitics and an important area in the strategic competition between two ‘Asian giants’ - India and China. The competition between these countries in the Indian Ocean is growing and profoundly impacts the region’s stability and security. This article focuses on the position and important role of the Indian Ocean in the policies of India and China, the fierce competition between the two countries in nearly two decades of the XXI century.

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CHINA’S UNILATERAL CLAIM IN THE SOUTH CHINA AND EAST CHINA SEA: AN ANALYTICAL STUDY

Author(s): Baidyanath Mukherjee / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

The increased territorial conflicts in the center of the maritime South and East China Seas have ramifications for Asian regional stability. The area is resource-rich, strategically placed along waterways, and has indisputable oil and natural gas reserves. There had also been a perceived change in the international system built by the United States during World War II, with China attempting to replace it as the regional power. China's behavior toward the remaining claimants, as well as to some extent toward other foreign parties in the conflicts, is examined using ideas from International Relations and case studies from International Law. Employing a qualitative research design, the author attempted to analyze the territorial dispute in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. This paper explains how the islands are strategically located near commercial fishing grounds, major shipping channels, and undiscovered oil and gas potential and how the issue is linked to China's preservation of national sovereignty, while the remaining claimant states perceive it as an incursion by the approaching menace of China. Whoever gains control of the islands eventually gains control of a major portion of East China and South China Seas' economic resources.

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THE POLITICS UNDERPINNING THE BRICS EXPANSION

Author(s): K Thangjalen Kipgen,Sukalpa Chakrabarti / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

The cooperation of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, or BRICS, is a vital organization founded in 2009. In the politics of the modern world, there is no denying the significance of this international institution. Throughout its history, the organization has been a strong supporter of developing nations and has earned the reputation of being a guardian. The announcement that BRICS leaders had agreed to expand their organization during the fourteenth BRICS summit, which was held in Beijing, China, in 2022, garnered a great deal of attention from many different regions of the world. This article examines the reasons behind the BRICS’ considerable involvement in global politics, the expansion policy, and how the BRICS outreach and the BRICS Plus summit or meeting play a role in this sector.

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