This thesis set out to determine the way in which the state-controlled media of the separatist-held territory of Donetsk in Eastern Ukraine have framed the separatist narrative. This is done...Show moreThis thesis set out to determine the way in which the state-controlled media of the separatist-held territory of Donetsk in Eastern Ukraine have framed the separatist narrative. This is done through a framing analysis of a selection of articles that were chosen and sampled according four different time-frames over the years 2017 and 2018. These periods correspond to events that led to heightened tensions in the conflict between Ukraine and DPR, namely: ‘the battle of Avdiivka’, ‘the economic blockade’, ‘the death of Zakharchenko’ and the ‘Kerch Strait incident’. Six frames were inductively reconstructed and grouped into three categories according to their relation with Ukraine, DPR and Russia. With regards to Ukraine the following frames were found: Ukraine as an aggressor’; ‘Ukraine as a disruptor’; ‘weakness and incompetence of Ukraine’. Frames related to DPR consisted in ‘legitimacy of DPR’ and ‘DPR citizens as victims’. Lastly, the frame that emerged in relation with Russia was ‘Russia as a mediator’. The findings of this study suggest state-controlled DNR-News has framed the separatist narrative with the help of two dominant approaches. One that is inclusive of Russia by representing it as an actor primarily responsible for ensuring DPR’s continuous existence and the success of its separatist ambitions. In a different approach, DPR’s independence is marked as a significant goal even though Russia has not yet recognised its independence and it does so by claiming the right to self-determination. There is thus an attempt at finding a right balance between the two and in turn, render the fight for the separatist cause more plausible.Show less
In April 2014 an armed conflict broke out between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Donetsk and Luhansk (Donbas) regions in Eastern Ukraine. The extent to which the...Show moreIn April 2014 an armed conflict broke out between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Donetsk and Luhansk (Donbas) regions in Eastern Ukraine. The extent to which the Russian government supports the separatists of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics remains a topic of scholarly debate. Numerous academics have come up with interpretations on Russian foreign policy towards Ukraine but these fail to explain the behaviour of the Russian government in Donbas. This thesis will assess what the foreign policy objectives of the Russian government are in Donbas and how these have changed since April 2014. During the first phase of the conflict, the Russian government attempted to introduce the neo-imperial myth of Novorossiya in order to justify separatism throughout South-Eastern Ukraine. This project failed as the separatist drive did not spread to the regions of Kharkiv and Odesa. Thereafter the Russian government started to focus on keeping the conflict ongoing by militarily intervening to prevent the Ukrainian Army from defeating the separatists but not letting the separatists win the armed conflict either. The Russian government governs the separatists republics without participation of Ukrainian separatists, provides them with necessary financing but at the same time drains the region of its economic resources. The main goal of the Russian government in Donbas is to destabilise Ukraine and keep the armed conflict ongoing by sustaining two highly disruptive separatist republics.Show less
This thesis paper researches and interprets the Russian federal system with the intention of observing it’s functioning throughout recent history. Foremost, the paper identifies that the Russian...Show moreThis thesis paper researches and interprets the Russian federal system with the intention of observing it’s functioning throughout recent history. Foremost, the paper identifies that the Russian federal system has experienced two radically different political environments, one of extensive decentralization and one of strong centralization, all within the historical experience since the inception of the modern Russian Federation (1991- ). Hence, the thesis statement and research question try to capture this phenomenon by asking: How do both centralization & decentralization impact the functioning of the Russian federal system? This question observes that there is an interplay between significantly centralizing and decentralizing a federal system, indeed, this paper attempts to observe the effects of both orientations in their most expressed form. The main intention being, to create a credible analysis of the two phenomena and the specificities of the two processes, in distinct time periods. The topics of federal ties, asymmetry, ethno-federalism and separatism are discussed distinctly in each wave of centralization and decentralization due to the persistence of these issues based on our scope of research and the time periods observed. Most importantly, these are hereditary issues spanning from eras that preceded the formation of the Soviet Union and issues that developed during the socialist era. In essence, in order to properly observe the Russian federal system, we mostly focus on the legacies of ethnic conflict, regional inequality and separatism as elements which are the product of and influence the processes of centralization and decentralization.Show less
The European Union is directly affected by political crises within member states. One of the challenges many of the member countries face comes in the form of secessionism. The secessionist...Show moreThe European Union is directly affected by political crises within member states. One of the challenges many of the member countries face comes in the form of secessionism. The secessionist sentiment in Europe is especially felt in the United Kingdom and Spain. Whereby secessionism has been able to move to the political mainstream. This thesis has sought to analyse in accordance to the framework of Mechanics of Cultural diplomacy: A comparative case.” (Kizlari & Fouseki, 2017) how regional secessionist governments have instrumentalised semi-public institutions to conduct sub-state diplomacy. The thesis analyses the legal mandate, the operational structure of Scotland Europa and Diplocat to discover whether they subjected to the direct influence of their respective regional governments. Subsequently, the thesis analyses the frames employed by the organisations in their communications to understand the objective of their publications in order to conclude how regional governments instrumentalised them. The analysis demonstrates that in both the Catalan and Scottish case the organisations were indeed instrumentalised to conduct sub-state diplomacy. Yet, the objectives were different. On one hand the Catalans sought to internationalise their self-determination effort and appealed to the European Union to mediate in the national conflict. On the other hand, the Scottish government has sought to influence EU decision making through more conventional channels such as consultation responses and the publication of papers. Finally, it has become clear that both the Catalan and Scottish government see European Union membership as a crucial part of their independence.Show less
Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia in 2003 after the bloodless Rose Revolution. He provided the people with the hope that Georgia would turn into a functioning democracy under his rule....Show moreMikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia in 2003 after the bloodless Rose Revolution. He provided the people with the hope that Georgia would turn into a functioning democracy under his rule. It turned out that these hopes were set too high. In this thesis I analyse how Saakshvili consolidated authoritarian rule, and how he used the security threats Georgia faced to achieve this.Show less
Advanced master thesis | Political Science (Advanced Master)
open access
Why is it that some separatist movements remain united while others fragment into competing factions? While one would expect supporters of a separatist movement to be united in the struggle against...Show moreWhy is it that some separatist movements remain united while others fragment into competing factions? While one would expect supporters of a separatist movement to be united in the struggle against their common enemy, the state, recent literature has shown that they often spend valuable time and resources on internal rivalries – yet little research has been done to explain this phenomenon. Based on a comparison of the cases of the Armenians in Azerbaijan, the Chechens in Russia, and the Abkhaz in their struggle with Georgia, this thesis shows that the ability of the separatist movement to establish institutions capable of providing effective governance is essential in understanding processes of cohesion and fragmentation. It further illustrates that the strength of the incumbent state as well as the amount of external support a separatist movement receives play into these processes in important ways. Future research will have to show whether these variables hold the same explanatory power in other contexts.Show less
Advanced master thesis | Political Science (Advanced Master)
open access
The main focus of this thesis lies in re-examining the impact of territoriality on the conduct of international relations in the context of separatism of exclaves. The enclaves were selected...Show moreThe main focus of this thesis lies in re-examining the impact of territoriality on the conduct of international relations in the context of separatism of exclaves. The enclaves were selected because of their specific territorial character, being separated from their mother state by a territory of another state entity. Our initial hypothesis stating that the demands of independence are formed by coexistence of both territorial and historical factor has been demonstrated on the cases of Cabinda and Oecussi. Using the qualitative comparative analysis, we have justified the selection of variables and conducted a cross-case study that confirmed our hypothesis. According to our findings, the historical background has a more important role in the creation of separatist tendencies than territory, while this has only a modifying effect on the initial preconditions. In the discussion we contrasted this result with the opportunity and willingness model and concluded that causal logic that applies to the interstate conflict does not adequately describe the situation of exclave’s separatism and therefore a further research into this area is needed.Show less
