The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Turkish foreign policy towards the Western Balkans

The scientific aim of this paper is to analyse and evaluate actions taken by Turkey’s leading politicians with regard to the Western Balkan states (i.e. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the Justice and Development Party came to power in 2002, Turkey has attempted to increase its international influence through diplomatic, economic and cultural measures. Western Balkans region, with which Turks have historical and ethnic ties, is one of the key areas in AKP’s doctrine. Adopting image theory in international relations as the theoretical foundation, this research examines implementation of Turkish foreign policy in the Western Balkans in times of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic. By employing available original Turkish sources (academic publications, public reports, press releases), the main objectives of Turkey’s political strategy towards the region have been determined. Detailed analysis of official statements and speeches of Turkish policy-makers was also fundamental for this study. In this context, the values and symbols to which the AKP government refers in its activities in the Western Balkans have been identified. Based on content analysis, comparative analysis and political discourse analysis, this research seeks to explain the rationale of Turkish actions in recent months. As a conclusion, future prospects for Turkey’s involvement in the Western Balkans have been presented and discussed.

Characteristics of Russia’s relations with the Kyrgyz tribes in the late 18th and early 19th century

The author of the article describes Russian relations with the Kyrgyz tribes from the late eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century. The main objective of Kyrgyz legations sent at that time to Russia was to acquire certain material goods. In relations with neighbouring powers the elders of the Kyrgyz tribes were guided by several principles. Firstly, they wanted to maintain the position of the only ruler in their tribes and clans. Secondly, to this end, the elders shifted between neighbouring powers (Russia, China and the Khanate of Kokand). Thirdly, the Kyrgyz ensured that no one interfered in their relations with the Kazakhs, with whom they shared common confession (Islam). Up until 1840s Russian politics towards the Kyrgyz tribes essentially focused on protection of merchant caravans which passed through Kirgiz lands on their way to East Turkestan. In later time Russia sought to create from the Kyrgyz territory a buffer zone between itself, China and the Khanate of Kokand.

Together with the acceleration of globalization processes, power in international relations has moved from the political and military space to the economic one. Today, true power means ability and capacity to integrate with the global economy. Therefore, economic diplomacy, which is not a new phenomenon, became one of the most important elements of foreign policy of all countries. The aim of the article is to present the importance of economic diplomacy in foreign policy in the era of globalization with a particular emphasis on the economic activity of China.

Assumptions of Law and Justice’s foreign policy towards Russia in the 2019 election program

This article presents the main assumptions and attributes of the Law and Justice (PiS) policy towards Russia, included in the party’s 2019 election program – “Poland – a model of the welfare state”. The article aims to answer the following questions: What policy assumptions towards Russia were presented by Law and Justice in its 2019 election program? What elements does PiS’s policy towards this state consist of? What are the features of this policy? What are the reasons for the approach and policy of PiS towards the Russian Federation? the 2019 PiS election program or subject to a qualitative analysis is the source and starting material for showing the main goals, elements and features of PiS’s foreign policy towards Russia.

The purpose of this article is to analyze the dominant role of transactional drivers in India’s foreign policy towards the European Union (EU). The article hypothesizes that India is trying to use its relationship with the EU in primarily transactional ways to achieve its own foreign and economic policy goals rather than to advance shared norms and values as democratic powers. Those goals include (i) leveraging its global image and reputation as a trusted and credible international partner, (ii) gaining greater regional and global influence, (iii) attracting foreign investment and boosting Indian exports. The article begins by explaining the concept of transactionalism in foreign policies. Secondly, it identifies the main drivers of India-EU relations with a special focus on (i) the concept of non-alignment and strategic autonomy in India’s foreign policy, (ii) common norms and values shared by India and the EU, (iii) economic cooperation between India and the EU. Thirdly, it assesses the transactional dimensions of the drivers of Indian foreign policy toward the EU discussed in the preceding sections. Finally, it evaluates the significance of India’s attempts to use its relations with the EU to achieve its own foreign and economic policy goals, including with respect to the implications for the EU’s efforts to project itself as a normative power in relations with India.

By assuming a proactive role in international environmental regimes and extending the ‘green’ dimensions of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China has been seeking to promote itself as a leader and responsible stakeholder in global environmental governance. This article examines this development concerning the notion of China’s ‘soft power’ and, more specifically, the notion of ‘green soft power’ – which aims to bridge the traditional concept of soft power with a state’s behavior on environmental and climate issues. China presents an interesting case since it has accrued a considerable amount of green soft power through its multilateral environmental diplomacy practiced at the Conferences of the Parties (COPs), the high-profile annual United Nations Climate Change Conferences, but its patchy deployment of environmental standards in the bilateral engagements under the BRI highlights the contradictions in referring to China as a green soft power. With these ideas in mind, this article holds that in the search to understand the evolving nature of China’s responsible stakeholder role, attention should be given to exploring the notion of green soft power.

This article analyses Turkey’s foreign policy concerning the status quo of the post-Arab uprisings through the prism of regional hegemony theory. The aspiring regional hegemon is identified through criteria applied to Turkish foreign policy, recontextualizing soft power initiatives of the previous decades with current hard power policies. The article suggests that while the Arab uprisings played a vital part in the redefinition of Turkish foreign policy, Erdoğan’s domestic priorities informed its recalibration to weather political difficulties and maintain power. The objective would be to challenge the status quo shepherded by the West during the twentieth century as articulated by the Mavi Vatan doctrine, the motivation to renegotiate the Lausanne treaty, the conversion of the Hagia Sophia into a mosque, and even the escalating Erdoğan-Macron verbal feud. Turkey’s aspirations for regional hegemony are evidenced in policies including military intervention, diplomatic and economic support to state entities, escalation of tensions with other regional powers, and Erdoğan’s consolidation of power over Turkish domestic affairs.

Earthquake Diplomacy and the Change of the Syria’s International Position

Syria is a state which has been affected by multiple series of disasters in the XXI century. Some of them has been natural caused, whereas there were some caused by human activity. Only for the first two decades of the current century, Syria has been the arena of the most complex military conflict, which significantly damaged the whole state and caused its partial international isolation. On the other hand, Syria has struggle with various types of natural disasters, such as drought from 2006 to 2010, numerous floods, the COVID-19 and Cholera outbreak and finally, the recent earthquake, occured in February 2023. The last phenomenon has lead numerous countries to express solidarity with Syria as well as to deliver the humanitarian aid to this country. Some of them are considered to be hostile towards Damascus and president Bashar el-Assad. In parallel to the humanitarian assistance, there was a diplomatic process, which led to full rehabilitation of Syrian president in the region and to full normalization diplomatic relations with other Arabic states as well as to start a dialogue with Turkey. In some analytical and media centers, the recent events have been described as an outcome of the earthquake diplomacy or disaster diplomacy, characterized as the international situation in which the natural disaster and the readiness to counterreaction against its effects, may create the opportunities to deescalate relations between the warrying states. Therefore, would it be accurate to consider the recent disaster in Syria able to create the new process as well as to transform the long-term strategies of a number of countries? This article will deal with analysing political process occured between Syria and the regional powers after the earthquake as well as it will try to answer the question how the international position of Syria has changed and crucially: does the recent earthquake have the impact on these issues?

The Scope of Competences of the President of the Republic of Poland in Matters Related to Poland’s Membership in the European Union

The amendment to the so-called the Cooperation Act granted the President a number of powers related to Poland’s membership in the European Union. In particular, the President was given the opportunity to give binding opinions on candidacies for key positions in the European Union submitted by the Council of Ministers. The article analyzes the provisions of the Constitution regarding the powers of the President and the Council of Ministers in the field of foreign affairs. An attempt was made to answer the question whether the amending act only clarified the provisions of the Constitution regarding the President’s prerogatives or whether it granted him new powers going beyond powers of the head of state, specified in the provisions of the Constitution.

Central Europe is associated with several cultural, economic, and geopolitical processes undergoing considerable intensification in the 21st century. The emergence of nationalist sentiment in this region of the continent coincides with it. This is particularly evident in countries politically dominated by radical right-wing ruling parties (e.g., Poland, Hungary), aiming to reshape the EU, opposing the system of liberal democracy in favor of social solidarity and a Europe of Homelands, rejecting the concepts of a federal Europe, and supporting the idea of national sovereignty. These concepts are taken up by conservative formations of a populist nature, which explain their activities with Eurorealism. The consequence of this policy is the emergence of new visions of Central Europe and the desire to increase the region’s role in international relations. An essential role in these processes is played by the politics of memory preferred by the ruling regimes.