Conflicts do not naturally attract the interest of policy makers nor do they naturally garner international recognition and attention. It is therefore essential to understand, if conflicts are...Show moreConflicts do not naturally attract the interest of policy makers nor do they naturally garner international recognition and attention. It is therefore essential to understand, if conflicts are ignored, how inattention manifests itself in inaction, what are the consequences of inattention and why does inattention exist. This thesis will seek to answer these questions within the primary confines of the conflict(s) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It will be argued that attention is a commodity predominantly distributed by policymakers and media organisations who may choose to pay attention or not. The consequences of inattention, such as increased levels of severity and violence, can therefore be attributed to those purposefully ignoring conflict.Show less
This study has been conducted to examine the situation of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East, more closely Israel, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Starting from a neorealist perspective, the study...Show moreThis study has been conducted to examine the situation of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East, more closely Israel, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Starting from a neorealist perspective, the study argues that balance of power is needed in the region and nuclear proliferation may be a balancing tool. Consequently, the study hypothesizes that strategic stability, which is an outcome of nuclear deterrence, offers a solution to the to the situation among these three countries. Strategic stability can be achieved by nuclear proliferation therefore this study proposes that Iran and Saudi Arabia should proliferate to counterbalance Israel’s nuclear hegemony in the region. When strategic stability is achieved, then as the theory holds, nuclear powers will not confront each other and thus, the region will be more stable. The study utilizes the work of Waltz, Mearsheimer, Kissinger, Parsi, Walton, Long, Colby, and Steinbruner to name a few. The findings have revealed that in theory strategic stability would be a viable solution to overcome the current situation, however given the complexity of the region and the relations among these countries, it is very unlikely to be achieved.Show less
White supremacist extremism was thought to have been pushed to the fringes of society, but has steadily become more prominent in mainstream society. There are many possible reasons as to why this...Show moreWhite supremacist extremism was thought to have been pushed to the fringes of society, but has steadily become more prominent in mainstream society. There are many possible reasons as to why this is the case, such as technological advancements making it easier to connect to likeminded individuals or the increased presence of populism in right-wing politics. However, in this thesis I will make the case that President Donald Trump has played a significant role in appealing to, and encouraging white supremacists by using overt and covert racial language.Show less
There are many forms and types of culture - violent cultures, peaceful ones, democracy, authoritarian, civilian and military orientated ones among many more. This paper will pay attention to German...Show moreThere are many forms and types of culture - violent cultures, peaceful ones, democracy, authoritarian, civilian and military orientated ones among many more. This paper will pay attention to German military culture and how it shifted from an aggressive culture to a pacifistic one to a ‘defensive’ military culture since the 1990s. In particular, the text will focus on changes in recent time, studying the political incentives in the 1990s. Upon it, a new case study will be made looking at the 2010s and how the new White Papers in 2006 and 2016 have changed the official military culture.Show less
The United Kingdom (UK)'s 2020 decision to prohibit the Chinese company Huawei from participating in the development of Britain's 5G networks, also known as the Huawei ban, raised many questions....Show moreThe United Kingdom (UK)'s 2020 decision to prohibit the Chinese company Huawei from participating in the development of Britain's 5G networks, also known as the Huawei ban, raised many questions. The ban represented a stark policy shift, as the UK had earlier granted Huawei the right to participate in 5G development to a limited extent. Amid political pressure that came from the United States (US) and the United Kingdom itself, the UK government reversed course. The rhetoric used by the political actors pressuring the UK government as well as by the government itself in its announcement of the ban contained characterisations of Huawei and China as threatening. This suggests the securitisation of China played a role in the UK's decision. Therefore, this study posed the following research question: "What role did the securitisation of China in the West play in the UK's decision to prohibit Huawei from participating in the development of British 5G networks?" This is a relevant question as it is concerned with how British foreign policy towards China takes shape and how securitisation takes place and influences consequential policy decisions. Critical discourse analysis with special attention to the context of discourse production and making use of Amin's (2019) three- step conceptualisation of securitisation theory found that the securitisation of China and Huawei played a key role in the UK government's decision to ban the company. The securitisation of China by US political actors influenced US and British pressure on the UK government to reverse its earlier decision. Ultimately the UK government backtracked and implemented the Huawei ban securitising China and Huawei in the process in an effort to regain lost credibility and win support for its newly adopted policy.Show less
Trauma is in a large sense socially constructed, shaped by what is said, and maybe even more so by what is not said. This thesis attempts to investigate the role of NGOs in the process of trauma...Show moreTrauma is in a large sense socially constructed, shaped by what is said, and maybe even more so by what is not said. This thesis attempts to investigate the role of NGOs in the process of trauma and the construction of trauma identities. Do women who have been subjected to sexual violence during the Yugoslavian Wars associate more with the narrative of victimhood, or with the narrative of survivorship? Through a critical discourse analysis of the websites of three Yugoslavian NGOs, several discourses will be distinguished and explained.Show less
Through the case study of the NPFL in Liberia, this thesis explains why some rebel groups are able to transform to a successful political organization after conflict, and others are unable to do so.
When NATO was established the world was in a different place. The world had seen the use of nuclear weapons in Japan for the first time and was confronted with the devastating consequences of these...Show moreWhen NATO was established the world was in a different place. The world had seen the use of nuclear weapons in Japan for the first time and was confronted with the devastating consequences of these weapons. NATO was established as an Alliance between the United States, Canada, and European countries. Meanwhile, the Cold War had started between the United States on one side and the Soviet Union on the other side. To ensure the safety of the European counterparts, NATO decided to establish the nuclear sharing arrangement that would provide certain countries in Europe with nuclear weapons. The Netherlands is one of these countries. This was in the Netherlands’ own security interests, which are heavily influenced by NATO’s security policies. After the end of the Cold War, there was no direct threat and therefore, no direct need to keep these nuclear weapons. However, the Netherlands has been unable to denuclearize. It will use securitization theory as a theoretical framework to try to understand the denuclearization process. This thesis will analyze the denuclearization debate in the Netherlands and what role nuclear weapons play in Dutch security policy.Show less
