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- Anderlini, Michel Vincent, 1985-
(författare)
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The Mundane Face of Europeanization : Norm Implementation through Expert Interactions in Georgia 2012-2020
- 2023
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Numerous studies, using the Europeanization theoretical framework, have looked into why and how EU-supported norms and policies are adopted in non EU-Member States, focusing either on the mechanisms through which they are diffused or on the local actors' responses to such demands. However, the practical implementation of such norms and policies in third countries has only received modest attention in academic and policy-related studies. Indeed, the “law in the books” is not necessarily the “law in action”. Going beyond the top-down approach that have extensively characterized Europeanization studies, this dissertation will operate a return to the “mundane face” of Europeanization and looks into how expert interactions matter for EU law implementation. It shows that those experts are highly enthusiast and willing to implement EU demands and adapted them to fit in their domestic context. They act as policy champions and show high degrees of policy saliency when fulfilling their tasks. Nevertheless, those champions operate in a difficult administrative and political environment that complicates EU law compliance, with low administrative capacity, high degree of staff turn-over, shortages of knowledgeable staff and political actors that might hinder EU law implementation if it is too costly or in contradiction with domestic vested interests.
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| 2. |
- Blackburn, Matthew, Dr., et al.
(författare)
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Covid-19 and the Russian Regional Response : Blame Diffusion and Attitudes to Pandemic Governance
- 2023
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Ingår i: Canadian Journal of European and Russian Studies. - Ottawa : Centre for European Studies, Carleton University. - 2562-8429. ; 16:1, s. 29-54
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- As was the case with other federal states, Russia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic was decentralized and devolved responsibility toregional governors. Contrary to the common highly centralized governance in Russia, this approach is thought to have helped insulate the government from criticism. Using local research and analysis based on a national representative survey carried out at the height of the pandemic during the summer of 2021, the article charts the public response to the pandemic across Russia. It examines the regionalization of the response, with an in-depth focus on two of the Russian cities with the highest infection rates but differing responses to the pandemic: St. Petersburg and Petrozavodsk. There are two main findings: at one level, the diffusion of responsibility meant little distinction was made between the different levels of government by the population; at another level, approval of the pandemic measures was tied strongly to trust levels in central and regional government.
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| 3. |
- Gamkrelidze, Natia
(författare)
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Reimagining Georgia : Images of Georgia Held by the Collective West, Russian, and Georgian Political Elites from 1991 to 2020
- 2023
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This compilation thesis examines the United States (U.S.), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU), Russian, and Georgian political elites’ images of Georgia from the regaining of Georgia’s independence in 1991 up to 2020. This topic shows the significance of studying the role of the agency of individual leaders and including them as a level of analysis when analyzing different geopolitical setups. The empirical data come from the author’s 102 original interviews with political elites from Georgia, the U.S., NATO and the EU, including presidents, prime ministers, ministers, secretaries, secretaries-general, and Russian foreign policy experts. This dissertation comprises four articles, each using the same research design. The findings of this dissertation show that over time, external and internal political elites hold somewhat varying images of Georgia. These diverging images that mainly emerged after the Rose Revolution of 2003 have a geopolitical character and are crucial for understanding Georgia’s strained geopolitical context. In particular, they reflect a rift between the U.S., NATO, the EU, Georgia, and Russia with regard to the perception of the threat to and cultural status of Georgia. This has chiefly influenced the type of imagery of Georgia that the actors hold and has contributed to the changing geopolitical conditions. Overall, changes in internal and external political elites’ perceptions and attention to image variation help explain policy variation over time.
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| 6. |
- Petersson, Bo
(författare)
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Felslut och önsketänkanden : Om Rysslandsforskarna, Putin och utvecklingen fram till kriget
- 2023
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Ingår i: Statsvetenskaplig Tidskrift. - Lund : Fahlbeckska stiftelsen. - 0039-0747. ; 125:1, s. 25-40
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Fallacies and wishful thinking: on Russia studies, Putin, and the lead-up to the warWhen President Putin over the years repeatedly raged and ranted about how Russia had been deceived by the West over NATO’s eastward expansion, how Ukraine’s rightful president allegedly had been illegally overthrown in a coup instigated by the West, and how these actions had the hidden purpose of bringing destruction and devastation to Russia, few were inclined to believe that he was not just repeat-ing a mantra, but actually believed in what he said and prescribed a program of action. This essay provides a background to the steady growth of the authoritar-ian essence of the Putin regime and its growing ambitions beyond Russia’s borders and discusses what academic area studies specialists in the West and other Russia pundits generally should have been able to foresee about Russia’s aggressiveness and its upcoming assault on Ukraine. Perhaps the current situation could have been avoided, had there been a greater inclination to bring together the clues that were there and take preventive action to meet the danger
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Petersson, Bo
(författare)
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Squaring the circle : Legitimizing the Putin regime after February 24, 2022
- 2023. - 1
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Ingår i: Exploring Russia’s Exceptionalism in International Politics. - London : Routledge. - 9781032610153 - 9781003462521 ; , s. 53-65
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Vladimir Putin’s power position has long been sustained by the successful communication of major political myths and his acclaimed role in them. This chapter discusses such myths to assess whether they are still useful for the regime as tools of legitimation after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, launched on February 24, 2022, and Russia’s lack of success on the battlefield thereafter. I introduce the distinction between overarching master myths and more supplementary myths, arguing that the master myths about Russia’s pre-determined great power status, Russia as a phoenix rising from the rubbles of another Time of Troubles, and Russia as a bulwark against the evil West retain their relevance and are ruthlessly exploited by the regime. Several supplementary myths have most likely had their credibility reduced. However, unless the master myths are affected, the regime is not likely to face a major loss of legitimacy among the population at large.
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| 10. |
- Blackburn, Matthew, Dr., et al.
(författare)
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Parade, plebiscite, pandemic : legitimation efforts in Putin’s fourth term
- 2022
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Ingår i: Post-Soviet Affairs. - : Taylor & Francis Group. - 1060-586X .- 1938-2855. ; 38:4, s. 293-311
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Putin’s fourth term as president (2018–2024) has involved new challenges for Russia’s hybrid regime. COVID-19 hit the Kremlin at a sensitive time, when the old institutional forces had been demounted and new arrangements, including extensive constitutional changes, had yet to become cemented. There is an emerging gulf between state rhetoric, PR events, and patriotic performances, on the one hand, and economic chaos, social disorder and dysfunctional state capacity, on the other, which is likely to reduce system legitimacy and cause increased reliance on repressive methods. This article examines Kremlin legitimation efforts across Beetham’s three dimensions: rules, beliefs, and actions. We argue that the regime’s legitimation efforts in 2020–21 have failed to reverse emerging cleavages in public opinion since 2018. Increased reliance on repression and manipulation in this period, combined with the contrast between regime promises and observable realities on the ground, speak not of strength, but of the Kremlin’s increased weakness and embattlement.
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