International Security

This paper details the media misinformation that justified the "Humanitarian Intervention" in Libya. It demonstrates how news reports followed the lead of Hillary Clinton, Samantha Powers and Susan Rice as they orchestrated the "regime change" that was not part of the UN resolution based on the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) provision. The war left Libya in ruins, and further destabilized the Middle East, and has ultimately led to the Slave Market in Libya.

This dissertation contextualizes Egypt’s six decades of military-style governance, which has historically constructed a reputation of regional leadership from the state’s notorious presidents. Presidents Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak all contributed to over half a century of Egyptian leadership within MENA politics, namely of political, economic and security manners. However, the last decade of the Mubarak Administration and the years leading into the 2011 popular protests, regional and international actors have questioned the stability and overall influence the state contributes to contemporary MENA politics.

This paper observes the past domestic and foreign policies of the Egyptian state, a comparison study, which can be utilized to observe an unprecedented shift in contemporary Egyptian policy. For the current Sisi Administration, the president seeks to address the dwindling influence of Egypt from regional politics through the innovating of domestic and foreign policies, and in doing so, reinstituting the state as an influential actor within the MENA.

This article offers a novel understanding and theorization of humanitarian disarmament regimes and their related prohibition politics. In doing so, it utilizes a power-analytical framework and puts in use four conceptions of power: productive, structural, institutional, and compulsory. Empirically, two potent humanitarian prohibition regimes that have been formed during the last two decades are examined. The ban of anti-personnel landmines (APLs) in 1997 marked a significant shift in humanitarian disarmament. Consequently, a humanitarian disarmament model emerged, consisting in bypassing permanent arms-control fora (''The Ottawa Pro-cess''). The ascent of the model to the arena traditionally dominated by power interests of major powers and ossified lowest-common denominator consensus was confirmed in 2008 when cluster munitions (CMs) were prohibited in a very similar fashion (''The Oslo Process''). The main contribution to the topic is the application of the power-analytical framework specifically developed to suit an analysis of formation and workings of global prohibition regimes, including heterarchy-of-power discussion of the relationship between states and non-state actors. Then, instead of the usual—and flawed at best—heroic discussions of victories of global civil society in relation to the establishment of regimes, rise of moral International Relations, and supposed progressivist teleology, a more complex picture with many contradictions, artefacts, and their layering inside and about those regimes looms large.

The rapid rise of Central Asian jihadists both on Syrian battlefields and on the international scene in 2016 and especially in 2017 forced researchers to reconsider and renew the notion of the radical Islamic threat coming from the region. The paper examines the historical background which paved the way for the rise of local jihadism, the roots, nature and specifics of the Central Asian foreign fighters phenomenon, as well as current trends and risks for international and national security.

Since the end of the Cold War, peacekeeping operations have gained importance as an essential part of UN peace activities. The present-day transformed security environment for peacekeeping operations requiring more pro-active resilient security structures and the ability to intervene in security hotspots. It is argued in this article that 'Law Enforcement Forces with Military Status'(LEFMS) provide an effective operational force for dealing with emerging threats. Having examined their national and multinational status there are positive indications that gendarmerie-type forces can indeed be a supportive force in partnership with the peacekeeping abilities of international actors. The research findings are exploratory with descriptive statistics used to support the arguments presented.

—eHealth mobile technologies are becoming increasingly prevalent in both the personal and medical world, assisting healthcare professionals to monitor the progress and current condition of patients. These devices often gather, transmit and analyse personal data. Healthcare data has rigid requirements for security, confidentiality, and availability, whilst access traceability and control, and long-term preservation are also highly desirable, particularly when exposed to cloud computing environments. This article explores some of the security and privacy challenges eHealth devices currently face. Legislative implications of data breaches are considered, as well as service provider accountability. The work also provides numerous security and privacy recommendations, in order to improve future implementations.

Detecting shifting State-Society Relations in Qatar. Anticipation of the current nationalistic sentiments in Qatar. State survival,  had argued, would eventually depend on cultivating, as in producing, the citizen of the Futuristic State . Predictions in 2013 of the current Qatar crisis and the impasse within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries. Saudi Arabia, today, is only following the same conceptualization I put forth about what it means to be a "Futuristic State," who depends on cultivating citizens for its own state survival, beyond the classic welfare state and rentier economy. Both Egypt and Turkey are the main players influencing Gulf politics, one way or another.

Since the appearance of the states, it became necessity for mutual communication in order to satisfy a variety of their interests. They established certain rules of behavior in communication between states over the centuries, which have gradually become part of customary international law. Later, these rules are transformed into legal norms of international low and make the scientific discipline of diplomatic and consular law. On the other hand, each state defines the organization and jurisdiction of the bodies dealing with the foreign policy by its own national legislation, of course, in accordance with accepted international legal obligations. Strengthening interdependence, especially in the contemporary globalize world politics and gradually abandoning state centric approach to security, has caused growing need for sending the representatives of the security system abroad. Earlier, all the issues in the field of security and defense were traditionally under the jurisdiction of the Office of Military-diplomatic Representatives. Serbia, like other states, is increasingly sending police attachés and representatives of the Security Information Agency in the diplomatic and consular mission abroad. The aim of this paper is to analyze the legal regulation and practice of jurisdiction of the representatives of the security system in diplomatic and consular missions. Although, at first glance, it seems simple to determine jurisdiction of specialized representatives, this is not the case because beside our regulations and state structure, it depends on the legislation and organization of the receiving state. The globalization process in the field of international relations led to unimagined interdependence and thus fully justified the platitude that "the world has become a global village". This resulted in an accelerating of the chain of events on the international scene. At the same time, the concept of nation-state, that has been established since the Peace of Westphalia suffered a significant changes. Specifically, the power and sovereignty of nation states has become increasingly questionable, and suffering great challenges that are caused by activities of transnational subjects of international relations, such as international government organizations, private multinational companies and others. On the other hand, there are the subjects of international relations, which operate in fields that are known as non-governmental organizations, but also the phenomenons of today that organized crime are connecting and outside national framework, and even regional level. Thus, it can be said that in the sphere of organized crime occurred kind of globalization that increase interdependence and cooperation among them in order to gain illegal profit. To these illegal actions, we must add the monster of the modern era, international terrorism, which has become a global threat for almost all world societies after 11 September 2001. The irrationality in the choice of targets of terrorist attacks and the national territory in which it is performing, necessarily pointing to the cooperation of state authorities in charge of prevention of functioning of terrorist organizations. The great migration processes, which we have witnessed in recent years, only further complicate the engagement of specialized state authorities and pointing to a higher level of international cooperation. Because of these key factors, the nation states are forced to act jointly more frequently in order to eliminate common security challenges, risks and threats. In addition to the functioning at the multilateral level, or within the international organizations such as Interpol, the International Organization for Migration and others, there is a clear tendency for increasing international cooperation on the plan of bilateral cooperation of representatives who have responsibilities in the field of security and defense. In terms jurisdiction in the functioning of diplomatic and consular missions accredited to international organizations, there is no major problems, since the operations are implemented according to The Founding Treaty of the international

This edited collection highlights the different meanings that have been attached to the notion of energy security and how it is taken to refer to different objects. Official policy definitions of energy security are broadly similar across countries and emphasize the reliability and affordability of access to sufficient energy resources for a community to uphold its normal economic and social functions. However, perceptions of energy security vary between states causing different actions to be taken, both in international relations and in domestic politics.

Energy Security in Europe moves the policy debates on energy security beyond a consideration of its seemingly objective nature. It also provides a series of contributions that shed light on the conditions under which similar material factors are met with very different energy security policies and divergent discourses across Europe. Furthermore, it problematizes established notions prevalent in energy security studies, such as whether energy security is ‘geopolitical’, and an element of high politics, or purely ‘economic’, and should be left for the markets to regulate.

This book will be of particular relevance to students and academics in the fields of energy studies and political science seeking to understand the divergence in perspectives and understandings of energy security challenges between EU member states and in multilateral relationships between the EU as a whole.

In the face of increasing difficulties in sourcing sufficient supply at favourable prices, the GCC countries are expected to grow even more reliant on gas as a result of increasing domestic demand for power and desalinated water and plans for industrial diversification. Over the past three years, LNG imports into the region have grown by more than 380%, at a time when deliveries to traditional demand centers have been relatively stagnant or in decline. In light of these developments, many analysts have questioned why given Doha’s enormous resources and relatively small domestic needs, sought supply relationships on an international level while leaving regional demand unmet? This analysis shall determine that price and politics both play a significant role in explaining the rationale behind Qatar’s aversion to meeting this regional demand. On one hand, the proclivity for conflict in the region, alongside the fear of domination by its larger rivals have influenced Doha’s perception of its own insecurity leading Qatari policymakers to utilise its vast reserves of natural gas in order to achieve foreign policy objectives. In addition to these strategic considerations, gas-short GCC states have historically been unwilling to pay what Qatar considered a reasonable price for its gas.  As a consequence of both these factors, Doha has sought to ‘rise above’ the export of natural gas to its Gulf neighbours and instead sought to cultivate a range of international stakeholders (particularly Washington) with a vested interest in safeguarding the Qatari regime from the belligerence of its larger Gulf rivals.

The CINT's Special Issue 'Global Cities, Global (in)Securities' invites for an attentive overview of the relationship between cities and security issues. We selected articles that represent a comprehensive collection of analytical and thematic perspectives related to our main problem. By doing so, we intend to offer various theoretical and methodological approaches to this question that empower our readers to go beyond in their own research questions. We also would defend the relevance of the ‘urban problematique’ within International Relations academia, in general, and within security studies, in particular. We believe the readers will find a useful conjunct of reflections with potential capacity to enlighten further analysis. We would like to thank Contexto Internacional’s Editors, peer-reviewers and, especially, the authors for the interest and hard work. We wish our dossier could stimulate innovative and potent studies on the quotidian challenges that defy us along the vibrant, violent and vivid borders and paths of world’s urban spaces.