The current status of the North-Western Romanian border 100 years after the Treaty of Versailles. Research report – Radu Baltasiu

Author(s): Narcis Rupe,Narcis Rupe / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2023

Following the First World War, Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia, territories with apredominantly Romanian population, were united with the “Mother Country”. The union, sealed bythe Treaties of Versailles, made it possible to advance the Romanian frontier in the west of “GreaterRomania”, a frontier very different from the old ethnocratic one under Austro-Hungarian dualism.Professor R. Baltasiu, director of the European Centre for Ethnic Studies (Romanian Academy),coordinated research that examined the current status of Romania’s western border, which underwenttransformations a century ago. The results of this study have been published in the book “The currentstatus of the north-western Romanian border 100 years after the Treaty of Versailles”. The authordemonstrates how Romania’s western neighbor’s border is advancing while Romania’s border isretreating, even if the administrative border remains unchanged. The consequences of this geopoliticalmovement are felt by both the dominated minority (Romanian) and the dominant minority (Hungarian).The Carei-Satu Mare area, where the study was conducted, is becoming pauperized, and the Romanianidentity is suffering. The Romanian community is discriminated both objectively (the emergence of anew infrastatality) and subjectively (“being Romanian” has become discreditable)

The Political and Historical Identity of the North African Mediterranean Region. A Case Study: Tunisia

Author(s): Jelisaveta Blagojević,Marijan Premović / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2022

The paper outlines the importance of historical identity in the Southern Mediterranean region through a case study of Tunisia. It explores Tunisia’s political development up until the fall of the Ben Ali regime in January 2011, and its influence on the post-Arab spring period of constitutionalism of the new democratic government system. The theoretical framework of this paper involves a strategic approach to transition, emphasizing the influence of the historical relationship between religion (Islam) and politics on the role of the Islamic party in transition. The influence of the historical relationship between the military and politics on the role of the military in transition is also evaluated. These transition actors are chosen for a deeper investigation because of their historically negative image in Arab societies. In line with all available data, this article shows that the pre-independence ‘twin tolerations’ between the State and religious citizens as well as the civilian control over the military positively influenced Tunisia’s contemporary democratic development. Post-independence Bourguiba’s ‘state-controlled Islam’ and Ben Ali’s ‘zero tolerance’ towards Islamists, somewhat paradoxically, contributed to the reaffirmation of Tunisian Islamic values and Ennahda’s concept of Muslim democracy. The political and economically marginalized position of the military determined its promotional role in the democratic transition. Applying the single case study as comparison method developed by Landman and Linz-Stepan, we came to the conclusion that, due to the positive role of Ennahda and the military, Tunisia achieved a successful democratic transition even though its democracy is not yet fully consolidated.

Le Culte des héros de la Grande Guerre dans la Roumanie de l’entre-deux-guerres Quelques représentations et appréciations faisant référence aux monuments commémoratifs érigés en Transylvanie

Author(s): Mihaela Grancea,Valeria Soroştineanu / Language(s): French Issue: 4/2022

After the end of the First World War, one of the pressing issues in Romania and other involved states was the organization of military cemeteries and mausoleums as a tribute to those fallen during the war. In the Romanian case, the cause was supported and popularized by the state and the community, as well as by the journal Cultul Eroilor Nostri (The Cult of Our Heroes) (1920–1935). Alongside cemeteries, monuments were the most powerful and suggestive symbols of remembrance for a lost generation. The biggest issue with the military monuments was the financial dependence on the community that had the initiative. On the other hand, it was expected that the artistic aspect would not play such an important role. The typology of these monuments is difficult to establish, despite the fact that the Cultul Eroilor (The Cult of Heroes) Society did its best to impose a certain typology.

Loránd L. Mádly (Hg.) Siebenbürgen zwischen Großungarn und dem österreichischen Gesamtstaat

Author(s): Corina Cioltei-Hopârtean / Language(s): German Issue: 2/2024

Review of: Loránd L. Mádly (Hg.) Siebenbürgen zwischen Großungarn und dem österreichischen Gesamtstaat. Der Briefwechsel von Guberniumpräsident Ludwig Folliot von Crenneville und Hofkanzler Franz von Nádasdy (18611863) Berlin, Frank & Timme, 2023.

Panslavismul - influențele avute asupra ultimelor acțiuni ale Federației Ruse

Author(s): Adelina MARIAN,Denis‐Manuel DOBRE,Cristian Burdea,Voicu TONENCHI,Horațiu GUȚĂ / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 18/2022

The aim of this article is to highlight the historical component of the recent conflicts provoked by the Russian Federation, placed in the context of the phenomenon called "pan‐Slavism". In essence, pan‐Slavism and the idea of one nation, one language, under one banner may be, to some extent, the explanation for Russian slippage in relation to the former Soviet Union countries and, in particular, in relation to Ukraine. The concept of pan‐Slavism was one perhaps forgotten by civil society, or even completely unknown, until Vladimir Putin justified his invasion of Ukraine by saying that: 'the purpose of the invasion of Ukraine is not to occupy the country, but to protect the Russian‐speaking population of the Donbass region, which for the past eight years has had to suffer the humiliations of the government in Kyiv'. So Putin is arguing using one of the current concepts of "pan‐Slavism" ‐ one people speaking one language.

România, stat rezilient în fața amenințărilor din regiunea Mării Negre

Author(s): Florina Popa,Ramona GRUBACKI,Bogdan TULBURE / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 18/2022

European security architecture cannot ignore the Greater Black Sea Region, which, since 2008, when Russia invaded Georgia, became a point of interest on NATO's agenda, and then a priority in 2014, when Russia occupied Crimea, highlighting Vladimir Putin's intention to turn the Black Sea into a "Russian lake." The role of the Black Sea in Romania's security strategy is essential, given that it is located at the confluence of the economic, military and political interests of nations and states located on three continents: Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Romania must become a resilient state, able to respond adequately to the evolutions of the security environment, a goal captured in the National Strategy for the Defense of the Country of Romania for the Period 2020‐2024 issued by the Presidential Administration.

Terorismul în contextul globalizării. Considerații privind evoluțiile și manifestările recente ale fenomenului terorist în Afganistan

Author(s): Flavius Cojocaru,Raul Nistor,Antonio Mircea IANCULESCU,Gheorghe Oargă,Rareş Bogdan BĂTRÎN / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 18/2022

Afghanistan has been an independent state for exactly 100 years. But the past century has been a succession of ups and downs. The next collapse is already on the horizon. The history of the country could not be presented more succinctly than it was by an old Afghan man I met in 2006 in Kabul – Alexander the Great came and went, as did the British and the Soviets. Why shouldn't the Americans leave one day too?

Double Standards and Dissonance: Women’s Rights and Freedom of Religion in the Global North

Author(s): Rola El-Husseini / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2024

In this article, I explore the complex intersection between women's rights and religious freedom in liberal democracies, particularly focusing on the Global North. I demonstrate how both religious freedom and women’s rights have been instrumentalized by Western powers, often as tools of foreign policy. I highlight the dissonance between Western nations’ rhetoric, which promotes these rights globally, and their domestic practices, which sometimes impose restrictions, especially on Muslim women. Through case studies, including countries in the Middle East, France, and the United States, the article underscores the hypocrisy of Western democracies that criticize religious restrictions in authoritarian regimes while enforcing their own limitations on women’s religious expression. In the conclusion, I emphasize the importance of consistent application of human rights to avoid reinforcing cynicism and authoritarian practices.

HABERMASOV USTAVNI PATRIOTIZAM KAO OKVIR ZA POLITIČKI IDENTITET U CRNOJ GORI

Author(s): Dragana Delic / Language(s): Montenegrine Issue: 2/2024

This paper examines the possibilities of reconciling ethnocultural pluralism and democratic legitimacy in Montenegro, with a special focus on the construction of political identity. It begins with the thesis that the political identity of Montenegro, as a multi-ethnic state, should be based on the political structures of society and the principles arising from the constitutional order, and not on the ethno-cultural features of the majority ethnic group. In the end, Habermas's constitutional patriotism is proposed as an adequate normative solution and framework for political identity in Montenegro. Through a brief overview in this paper, it is concluded that constitutional patriotism is a suitable model for plural, divided societies such as Montenegrin society, and that the process of consolidation of political identity in Montenegro largely depends on the actions of political leaders. Finding the basis of political unity in the principles derived from the constitutional order, and not in the pre-political sphere, would enable long-term democratic development.

THE NEED FOR A SOFT POWER STRATEGY FOR ROMANIA. ELEMENTS

Author(s): Matei BLĂNARU / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

The importance of soft power strategies in recent decades has been both overstated in some cases, and understated in others. Both approaches have come with negative effects for the initiators, as well as the recipient societies. We can still encounter both approaches in contemporary societies, but we also encounter more moderate and more balanced successful approaches as well. Our assessment is that a balanced, professional, realistic approach and, above all, having as its final goal collective benefits for several states, for an entire region, not only for the initiating state, a soft power strategy that does not conceal hard power goals behind it, would be extremely welcome for Romania, and we propose several elements for it. It would be even more necessary in an area like ours, where different soft power strategies are seen in action, and they have broader strategies concealed behind them, usually characteristic of hard power, with revisionist aims, namely to resuscitate old empires. We can give the example of neo-Ottoman strategies of Recep Erdogan’s Turkiye, Vladimir Putin’s strategies or Viktor Orban’s. In some cases, the hard power strategies disguised in soft forms have been revealed, in others, not yet.

Psychological analysis of the problem of post-truth in Bulgaria

Author(s): Desislava Damyanova / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2018

The subject of this article is the dichotomy between reality and falsehood (information vs. disinformation) in the media environment of Bulgaria and its effects on society, public governance and crowd psychology as a whole. Where is the truth behind the loud titles? How did we reach the age of the so called “post-truth”? Why are modern media and social networks abounding in misleading messages that spread like a virus in society? We will also try to answer the question: why did the public image of the European Union suddenly become so unattractive in some East and Central European countries? And another key issue - why is the ‘nationalist trend’ in the political psychology so profitable in Bulgaria as well as in other East-European countries?

WHY ARE RICH COUNTRIES DEMOCRATIC?

Author(s): Richardo Hausmann / Language(s): English Issue: 7/2014

Institucija hrvatskoga člana Predsjedništva Bosne i Hercegovine i legitimacijske praznine 1996. – 2022.

Author(s): Gordana Iličić,Anita Lukenda,Katica Jurčević / Language(s): Croatian Issue: 1/2023

The configuration of the institution of the collective head of state in Bosnia and Herzegovina was originally designed to represent the three constituent peoples, yet Croats have been repeatedly prevented from presenting themselves in that institution, either by extorted shifts of legitimate representatives or by illegitimate representation. The paper discusses the impact of illegitimate representation on destabilization of the political system through the deprivation of Croats' rights to political subjectivity. It is concluded that all three mandates of Željko Komšić provoked deep political crises, primarily between Bosniaks and Croats, which further aroused the interests of the scientific and the political public in reforming the system of government.

Dobrodušni Albanac: Bajram Murati i zaštitnici Islama - drugi dio

Author(s): Abdullah Drury / Language(s): Bosnian,English Issue: 1/2024

This article analyses the biography of Bajram Murati (1930-2013), an Albanian refugee to New Zealand, and the contentions over symbolic spaces and meaning within the New Zealand Muslim community over the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. At the centre of the analysis stand the ongoing negotiations between Murati, as director-general of the New Zealand Council of the World Muslim Congress, and other Muslim community representatives over leadership. Such an examination reveals much about the wider immigrant experience and the nuanced evolution of Islam inside a secular society of Anglo-European Christian heritage. The author contextualizes the cultural and social setting of his life, highlighting both his commercial interests outside the religious organisations and his extensive discussions on faith issues. As should become obvious, the notion of a simple Albanian-Muslim rivalry with Asian-immigrants does not suffice to explain in depth the complex mechanisms at work. Altogether intra-Muslim communal competition, the reshaping of Islamic identities and solidarities across the country, and variegated political discourse have generated differences and loyalties that go well beyond one-dimensional ethnic conditionalities.

Međunarodna politička uloga dogmi Rimokatoličke crkve

Author(s): Milan Veselica / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 2/2024

The paper investigates the political role of the last Catholic dogmas proclaimed (or renewed) in the 19th and the first half of the 20th century: the immaculate conception, the papal primacy and infallibility (ex cathedra), and the assumption of Mary. The paper aims to explain their political role in the concrete international context. The dogmatization of certain church teachings comes as a consequence of socio-political challenges, and the political role of dogmas is interpreted from the perspective of the theoretical concept of norm entrepreneurship and the transnational soft power of religious actors. The historical method was used in the work. However, the presented findings point to the long-term importance of studying the relationship between dogma and politics: in order to expand knowledge about the political behavior of the Roman Catholic Church (scientific salience) and to understand the nature of normative entrepreneurship directed at the global Catholic society in all historical moments (social salience).

ГРЧКА ДЕСНИЦА НАКОН ПУКОВНИЧКОГ РЕЖИМА (1974–2024)

Author(s): Marko Pejković / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 192/2024

This work has a dual purpose. Firstly, it explains the specificity of the Greek right in comparison to the European right. Secondly, it provides a concise overview of the programmatic ideas and electoral dynamics of Greek parties belonging to the right during the specified period. These topics are largely unfamiliar to Serbian political science. Following the introduction, the first part of the paper establishes the spatial-temporal framework of the research by identifying the parties that constitute the Greek right during the relevant period. The second part of the paper delves into the reasons behind the Greek right’s oscillation between anti-Semitism (anti-Zionism) and philo-Semitism (philo-Zionism). It explores whether this oscillation was influenced by foreign policy considerations, particularly in the context of Jewish-Turkish relations, rather than domestic politics (the question of integrating the Jewish community into a given nation as it was in other parts of Europe). It particularly investigates why the “Golden Dawn” party stands out as the only right-wing party that does not conform to this trend? The third part of the paper traces the ideological and electoral trajectory of Greek right-wing parties. Despite a highly volatile party landscape, there is a notable continuity in the ideas promoted by these parties.

“The Bolshevik” and “The Martyr”: Mapping the Romanian Far-Right’s Rehabilitation of Mircea Vulcănescu through Digital Memory Activism

Author(s): Adina Marincea / Language(s): English Issue: 17/2024

Despite legal condemnations of the Romanian war criminals and the existing – but poorly implemented – legal sanctions, we see an increasing rehabilitation of historical figures responsible for the Holocaust in Romania. A reframing and rewriting of history are taking place through the whitewashing of the most radical interwar fascist criminals and ideologues as “martyrs” and anti-communist “prison saints”. Antisemitic, ultranationalist ideas and discourses of the Romanian interwar far-right are being repackaged with the help of the online environment, and a reversal of the victim/perpetrator roles occurs. This is done by a network of actors, ranging from grassroots neo-legionary, Orthodox fundamentalist and ultranationalist groups, right-wing football ultras and “alternative” media up to the highest fora of representative democracy. The 2020 legislative elections marked a historical turn through the access to power of “radical return” parties and politicians reviving fascist inter­war symbols, for the first time after 1989. As a result, far-right senators are livestreaming political declarations honoring war criminals such as Mircea Vulcănescu and downplaying the Holocaust, normalizing such revisionist, denialist attitudes. The current study maps the contemporary far-right network of actors who actively contribute to this process of rehabilitation, rewriting, and circulation of fascist interwar memory through digital videos, memes, blog articles, social media content, and public chats. The study employs a network analysis and a qualitative content analysis, starting from a corpus of posts extracted from 28 Romanian far-right Telegram channels. The analysis uncovers the discursive mechanisms employed in this process of far-right digital memory activism.

Analyzing Compensation Files: A Quantitative Study of Holocaust Victims under Romanian Administration in Buzău County

Author(s): Petre Matei / Language(s): English Issue: 17/2024

This article examines 286 compensation claims submitted in the summer of 1970 by survivors from Buzău County, Romania. The analysis encompasses three categories of claims: from Jews (169 compensation forms), from either sedentary or nomadic Roma (109), and from “political prisoners” (8). The study’s objective is to assess to what extent, and under what conditions, this collection of compensation claims can contribute to our understanding of the Holocaust in Romania. Given that the primary purpose of these claims was to secure West-German compensation, rather than to provide historical information (which was consequently presented and filtered by both the claimants and the Romanian authorities), the article concludes that this collection of compensation claims can only prove useful, if considered within its specific context and approached with caution. The study thus offers insights into the complexities of using such compensation claims as historical sources and their potential limitations in Holocaust research.

Liviu Neagoe Eutopia. Concepte, identități și istorii românești Cartier, Chișinău, 2023, 208 pp.

Author(s): Laurențiu Vîju / Language(s): English Issue: 17/2024

The book Eutopia, written by Liviu Neagoe, came out in 2023 and was published by Cartier, a prestigious publishing house from the Republic of Moldova, that has been a strong presence on the local market for some time now. The study was released by Cartier Istoric, an imprint of Cartier, dedicated to historical studies.

What Can Money Do? How Budget Expenditures Influenced Terrorism in the North Caucasus

Author(s): Nikolai Silaev,Ekaterina Arapova,Nikita Neklyudov,Vasiliy Taran,Natalya Samoylovskaya / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2024

Over the past decade, Russia has experienced a notable decline in the incidence of terrorist attacks, coinciding with the Russian government’s pursuit of socio-economic development in the North Caucasus region, which has historically been a focal point for such attacks. This paper uses Granger tests to determine whether government economic policies have played a role in reducing terrorist activity in three North Caucasus republics: Dagestan, Ingushetia, and Kabardino-Balkaria. The results of this analysis reveal a direct causal relationship between budgetary expenditure on the national economy and the frequency of terrorist attacks, with higher expenditure correlating with an increase in attacks in two out of the three republics, namely Dagestan and Kabardino-Balkaria. In contrast, public investment in human capital, as operationalized by spending on education and health, is shown to contribute to a decrease in terrorism in one of the three republics, namely Kabardino-Balkaria.