In theories of armed conflict in international relations and security studies, human psychology, namely the concept of collective trauma, is very little taken into account. However, considering...Show moreIn theories of armed conflict in international relations and security studies, human psychology, namely the concept of collective trauma, is very little taken into account. However, considering that states and armed groups consist of individuals, their collective traumas might play a role in the outbreak of armed conflict. This paper articulates theoretical elements from IR, memory studies, and psychoanalysis allowing to better grasp how and why collective traumas generated by large-scale violent events may in turn engender armed conflict if they remain unhealed. This articulation leads to a refined theory and mechanism of ‘cycles of violence’, which is then qualitatively tested in two empirical cases: The United States, with 9/11 and the following invasion of Afghanistan; and Afghanistan, with the US intervention and the following insurgency. In both cases it is possible to establish with a high degree of certainty that the respective large-scale violent events caused a collective trauma which, for different reasons, remained unaddressed and participated in the outbreak of further violence. Each case thus represents a cycle of violence itself, and they represent a larger one together. Furthermore, the analysis highlights the power dynamics sometimes preventing proper healing, and sheds light on the case of Afghanistan, in which Western versions of events often dominate.Show less
This thesis will examine the link between women’s civil society organizations (CSOs) and women at the negotiation table in the Havana Peace Process between the Colombian government and the FARC...Show moreThis thesis will examine the link between women’s civil society organizations (CSOs) and women at the negotiation table in the Havana Peace Process between the Colombian government and the FARC guerilla group. Although women are often ignored in peace processes, previous studies have shown a positive relation between the inclusion of women and the outcome of these negotiations. Jana Krause theorizes that female participation in peace negotiations is linked to the durability of peace because female negotiators sustain linkages with women’s CSOs. Through process tracing, this thesis will test whether Krause’s theory can be used to explain the outcome of the Havana Peace Negotiations between the Colombian government and the FARC, taking place from 2012 until 2016. The results will show that women’s organizations were instrumental in getting women in the negotiating teams, and in turn, these women with formal power in the negotiations ensured the participation of women’s CSOs through consultations. This has contributed to the inclusivity of the content of the peace accord but has not necessarily produced any positive effect on the implementation of the agreement, thereby partially supporting Krause’s theory.Show less
This thesis has investigated the role of the American private space industry in the ongoing securitization of outer space within the United States context. Whereas scholars have thoroughly examined...Show moreThis thesis has investigated the role of the American private space industry in the ongoing securitization of outer space within the United States context. Whereas scholars have thoroughly examined the role of the state in the securitization of outer space, it has thus far predominantly overlooked possible securitizing moves performed by the private space industry, as well as the role of the novel NewSpace industry within that process. Therefore, this investigation aims to examine the private space companies SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and United Launch Alliance (ULA) building upon securitization theory. Specifically, it will provide a discourse analysis on those companies’ webpages, uncovering four discourses possessing either or both securitizing speech acts and performative securitization. This thesis finds that the private space industry took on a facilitating role regarding the securitization of outer space by proliferating and enhancing space launching capabilities and engaging with the U.S. military and national security services. Furthermore, it might have contributed to the securitization of outer space by performing speech acts, but this investigation refrains from drawing that conclusion, as it has not investigated the audience involved and thus cannot estimate whether the speech acts were performed successfully. Nevertheless, these findings combined with the academic literature on PMSCs, suggest that private space companies sometimes can look and act like PMSCs, explaining why private space companies might be incentivized to contribute to outer space securitization.Show less
Current academic literature falsely assumes that an authoritarian regime can solely transition into a democracy, other type of autocracy or a similar autocracy. This paper shows that there can be a...Show moreCurrent academic literature falsely assumes that an authoritarian regime can solely transition into a democracy, other type of autocracy or a similar autocracy. This paper shows that there can be a fourth alternative: state failure. This paper conceptualises state failure in Westphalian terms, namely when there is an absence of internal and external sovereignty and the state apparatus fails to provide essential services. The paper hence focuses on possible explanations of state failure in autocratic regimes. Specifically, the paper focuses on personalism as a predictor for state failure, which must be understood as the degree to which an autocratic leader forms the regime to their personal demands. The argument of this paper, consequently, follows that personalism is detrimental to the state’s institutions, as these institutions are formed to solely function under the regime’s current leader. Additionally, the paper theorised that this effect would be stronger in regimes where regime change was imposed, as these regimes would be especially ill prepared for the sudden change in regime. Through a binomial logistic regression, this paper has found evidence that higher personalism indeed does lead to a higher probability of state failure, but has found no evidence to support the second claim, as the size of the effect of personalism on state failure seems to decrease when only analysing those regimes which experienced imposed regime change.Show less
John M. Owen argues that liberal ideas prod liberal states into war with illiberal states but does not explain or explore why this is the case. This thesis argues that this ‘why-question’ has thus...Show moreJohn M. Owen argues that liberal ideas prod liberal states into war with illiberal states but does not explain or explore why this is the case. This thesis argues that this ‘why-question’ has thus far remained unanswered altogether and as such takes the first step in bridging this academic gap. The research has been conducted using two main methods: an interview with Owen about his theory and a case study analysis of the 1956 Suez Crisis. The research found that historical analogies and, to a lesser extent, a belief in the moral righteousness of liberalism can cause liberal elites within liberal states to behave more violently towards their perceived illiberal counterparts, thus creating the circumstances for war to break out.Show less
This thesis aimed to establish how Gibridnaya Voyna became a popular framework in Russia to describe Russia’s relationship with the West. Using the process-tracing method, this thesis traced the...Show moreThis thesis aimed to establish how Gibridnaya Voyna became a popular framework in Russia to describe Russia’s relationship with the West. Using the process-tracing method, this thesis traced the two main aspects of the Gibridnaya Voyna framework, NATO expansion and color revolutions, throughout major Russian documents from 1991 to 2016.Show less
Although jihadist organisations envisage a society segregated by roles between the sexes, they increasingly turn to women in pursuit of their goals. This is a double-edged sword for jihadist...Show moreAlthough jihadist organisations envisage a society segregated by roles between the sexes, they increasingly turn to women in pursuit of their goals. This is a double-edged sword for jihadist organisations: while female recruits increase the pool of followers, the discrepancy between their patriarchal ideology and women’s enlistment may have implications for their legitimacy. Whereas explanations have been offered as to how jihadists resort to patriarchal gender beliefs to legitimise their exclusion of women, questions remain regarding how jihadist groups use gender to legitimise their inclusion of women. Increased understanding of this gender component may yield insight into the organisational structure of jihadist organisations and their future direction regarding female recruits. Exploring the case of ISIS, this thesis analyses the extent to which the group adopted a gender perspective in legitimising its recruitment of women between 2015 and 2017. By conducting a critical discourse analysis, three gendered narratives are identified that ISIS employed in justifying its recruitment of women, depicting women as builders of the Ummah, as representatives of Islam and as guardians of the Caliphate. Rather than women challenging its patriarchal hegemony, the narratives illustrate how ISIS used this structure to create a set of gendered incentives and thereby attributed women (violent) agency.Show less
In recent years, the People’s Republic of China’s power has increased globally. However, China still experiences issues in relation to its soft power, which can be described as a country’s ability...Show moreIn recent years, the People’s Republic of China’s power has increased globally. However, China still experiences issues in relation to its soft power, which can be described as a country’s ability to attract and appeal through which one is able to persuade and get what they wish for. This recently has led to a deterioration of several of China’s bilateral relations, yet the Dutch government has expressed a desire to continue close cooperation with China. The 2019 Netherlands’ China policy calls for a more nuanced view of China and states that the Netherlands should cooperate with China where possible, while safeguarding the Netherlands interests and values. As China seems to have soft power issues within Western Europe, it can be questioned whether the policy actually aligns with the general perception of China within the Netherlands, as this alignment is generally expected within a democracy. In order to determine whether this is the case, a qualitative descriptive study has been conducted and a Dutch media content analysis has been performed. Research findings indicated that, while China was generally perceived negatively within the media and public opinion, the Netherlands’ China policy was much more neutral. Conclusions that can be drawn from these findings are that government policies may not necessarily reflect public opinion and that soft power might not actually be as important as frequently is assumed. Furthermore, it indicates that it might not be as important for a country like China to have soft power amongst the general public, as to be positively perceived within a country’s government.Show less
This thesis focuses on the peacekeeping partnership between the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN), in the context of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). It investigates the...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the peacekeeping partnership between the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN), in the context of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). It investigates the question: “How did the AU and the UN institutional (in)compatibility impact the effectiveness of AMISOM?” Both the practical and executive sides of the institutions involved, and the congruence between the mandate, resources, and activities undertaken are considered when evaluating the effectiveness of the mission. This is done using the congruence component of the analytical framework of Effectiveness of Peace Operations Network (EPON). This part of the framework describes the strategic intent, mandate and aims to understand whether the mission has achieved its mandated tasks, and the extent to which there was consensus about this among various stakeholders. While the mission had a clear mandate, the main form of logistical support, the United Nations Support Office for AMISOM (UNSOA), was not designed to do its job. Mainly because it had roots in the UN’s bureaucratic system, UNSOA was never able to meet the expectations of the mandate and objectives of AMISOM. The partnership between the AU and the UN was born out of the mutual recognition that alone, neither of them could cope with the multitude of security challenges facing Somalia. The mission had a peace-enforcement nature but was unable to successfully carry out its mandate and objectives because of the limitation of using peacekeeping logistics. The inability of overcoming the institutional differences between the two organizations has led to the failure to accomplish the mission’s mandate and the additional objectives and has led to an ineffective peacekeeping partnership that was not successful in living up to its full potential. For future peacekeeping partnerships, this means that working on a more equal and consistent relationship between the AU and the UN will likely improve the effectiveness of the collaboration and the mandate, objectives, and activities of the mission.Show less
