In August 2021, the Taliban took control over the Afghan government. Subsequently, the EU halted development aid to Afghanistan. This research seeks to explain what motivated this decision and how...Show moreIn August 2021, the Taliban took control over the Afghan government. Subsequently, the EU halted development aid to Afghanistan. This research seeks to explain what motivated this decision and how Afghanistan’s illegitimacy has influenced the EU’s decision. Two aid allocation models based on recipient merit and donor interests are used to explain this puzzle. Drawing on an in-depth qualitative content analysis, this research illustrates how both aid allocation models sufficiently explain the EU’s decision considering Afghanistan’s illegitimacy.Show less
Somaliland is a self-declared country located in the Horn of Africa that has been struggling for international recognition for over 30 years. Nonrecognition hinders unrecognized states from...Show moreSomaliland is a self-declared country located in the Horn of Africa that has been struggling for international recognition for over 30 years. Nonrecognition hinders unrecognized states from participating in multilateral and bilateral trade agreements, it severely restricts their opportunity to attract foreign aid and it excludes their region from international legal frameworks. The decision to grant Somaliland recognition is a political process of negotiation and depended on the global context, and moreover, not strictly bound by international law. Discourse and framing theories exemplify that how actors frame their actions, words and perceptions has a significant influence in diplomatic relations. Hence, this thesis is intending to unravel the ways in which the Somaliland government aims to influence the stance of the international community towards recognizing its independence by using various types of framing. This will contribute to the academic debate as unrecognized states and their practices, interests and beliefs are still considered to be a ‘black box’. A qualitative content analysis was carried out and data was gathered, comprising 14 speeches and interviews given by the Somaliland President and Minister of Foreign Affairs for the period of 2012-2022. The results indicate that the government of Somaliland prioritizes prognostic framing over diagnostic framing with a specific focus on the justification for acquiring international recognition. Motivational framing is mostly deployed towards the United States as this country is seen as a powerful actor in diplomatic relations.Show less
Social networks have paved the way for news, media influence, public opinion and political participation. While the introduction of ‘new media’ in a networked participatory media environment is...Show moreSocial networks have paved the way for news, media influence, public opinion and political participation. While the introduction of ‘new media’ in a networked participatory media environment is proven in some cases to be beneficial for democracies, the reverse side of the story shows that in social networks, political actors have found a privileged channel to spread misleading narratives at the expense of society. This thesis integrates economic, political and social theories in the growing debate about misinformation and formulates them into the framework of media systems developed by Hallin and Macini and Hardy. Four components of media systems, i.e., ‘media-party parallelism’, ‘instrumentalization of social media’, ‘government regulatory burden’ and ‘fractionalization of media outlets’, are theorized to impact the dissemination of false and/or inaccurate information. Through a panel data regression and an analysis on democracy, this thesis finds robust evidence in favor of ‘instrumentalization of social media’. For the remaining three components, some evidence is found, namely within certain democratic regimes.Show less
The issue of climate change requires immediate action. With this urgency, there is growing momentum behind youth movements advocating for serious action, and they have specific demands. This study...Show moreThe issue of climate change requires immediate action. With this urgency, there is growing momentum behind youth movements advocating for serious action, and they have specific demands. This study aims to provide a descriptive analysis of the representation of social movements, precisely the Fridays for Future movement, in the political arena. This study asks, ‘What determines the political narratives of politicians representing European countries in COP25?’ To explore this question, this thesis uses qualitative methods to analyze three important connections: 1) the recognition that the demands of FFF get at the level of European politicians at the COP25, 2) the direct references made by European politicians with various political positions, 3) the usage of business-related narrative in COP25 by politicians with different political positions. Speeches given by 22 European countries at the COP25 summit are analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results provide deeper insight mostly in favor of the expectations that FFF and their demands got reflected in the narratives of European politicians at COP25. Additionally, a politician's political orientation showed mixed results regarding whether they incorporate business-related narratives in their speeches.Show less
