Europolity.2018.12.1

Abstract

CURRENT SECURITY SITUATION IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS: WIDER REGIONAL CONTEXT Armen Grigoryan Central European University Budapest, Hungary grigoryanarmen@yahoo.com While unsolved conflicts in the South Caucasus are sometimes labelled “frozen”, that is basically a misnomer: there is a volatile situation with a potential for large-scale violence. In addition to the persistent threat for human security, the situation in that part of the EU’s periphery may potentially threat oil and gas supply routes and other transportation corridors, particularly between Europe and Central Asia. Furthermore, the situation is additionally complicated by multiple antagonisms between global and regional powers. This article offers a review of the situation taking into consideration the mentioned issues and examining the current security situation in the South Caucasus within a wider regional context. The article also examines Russia’s regional interests and the attitudes of other regional actors – Iran and Turkey, and their relations with the South Caucasian countries. Keywords: Conflicts, energy, regional security, South Caucasus, transportation DOI: http://doi.org/10.25019/europolity.2018.12.1.01 THE POLITICAL CULTURE IN THE CYBERSPACE. PROFILING THE CYBER SECURITY Cosmina Moghior National University of Political Studies and Public Administration Bucharest, Romania cosmina_moghior@yahoo.com Concepts like cyberspace, cyber security, cyber war and other words from the same family are increasingly brought to attention either in media, public discourses or in everyday life. Probably the main reason is the high interconnection of what we call cyberspace with the real space, our everyday life. We are living a double life, one in the virtual space and the other in the physical one. But what would be the role of the state in this constellation? Are the characteristics of a state influencing the level of cybersecurity? Our aim in this article is to identify some of the factors that have an impact in the cyberspace. We will proceed by presenting the approaches on cyberspace in the selected countries. After that, we will continue with selecting the data for the chosen variables and we will effectuate the preliminary analyses of the selected data. Afterwards, we will move to the individual interpretation of the results, correlations and graphics. Keywords: Cyberspace, cybersecurity, political culture, personal freedom, democracy, ICT DOI: http://doi.org/10.25019/europolity.2018.12.1.02 THE ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IN THE AREA OF SUPPLEMENTARY PENSION FUNDS: THE CASE OF KOSOVO Ruzhdi Morina PhD candidate Faculty of Law, University of Prishtina Prishtina, Kosovo ruzhdimorina@yahoo.com Pension Funds are a novelty in the global arena and certainly an innovation in the newly established Kosovo pension system. After the 1999 conflict, first the international community and later the Kosovo authorities have undertaken state and institution building efforts in order to normalize all sectors of social and institutional life. To date, the Kosovo authorities have progressed in the process of the establishment of actual Pension Funds. However, they are still facing challenges in implementing the newly established legal framework, setting up the institutions, and establishing adequate processes related to the functioning of pension funds. In 2015, the Kosovo authorities signed the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union (EU) as the first step towards the still-distant prospect of EU membership. As such, the Kosovo authorities need to undertake comprehensive and deep reforms of its legal and intuitional framework. The main purpose of this paper is to identify the advantages, risks and challenges of integrating the EU DB and DC concept of Pension Funds in Kosovo as a part of its efforts towards EU integration. Through a comparative approach of the EU DB and DC concept of Pension Funds and the newly developed pension schemes in Kosovo, I aim to answer the question: is it possible to implement the very high standards for Pension Funds developed by the EU in post-conflict Kosovo as a part of its efforts towards EU integration? The main findings of the paper will show how the socio-economic and financial problems of post-conflict Kosovo impact the core of pension funds as envisaged in EU pension fund schemes and how the goal of EU integration impacts the development and implementation of pension funds in Kosovo. Keywords: EU, pension funds, pension, Kosovo, Define Benefit and Define Contribution. DOI: http://doi.org/10.25019/europolity.2018.12.1.03 DEFENDING RUSSIA, SECURITISING THE FUTURE: HOW THE PAST SHAPED RUSSIA’S POLITICAL DISCOURSE REGARDING CRIMEA James C. Pearce and Anastassiya Yuchshenko Anglia Ruskin University and University of Canterbury Cambridge, United Kingdon and Canterbury, New Zealand jcpearce.91@gmail.com and a.yuchshenko@gmail.com Abstract : This paper shows how Russia framed the annexation of Crimea from the securitisation theory perspective, with a focus on the shared past as the key argument. This paper discusses how the idea of shared past in general and the concept of brotherhood among nations in particular were utilised to justify the annexation, along with how the Crimean discourse was framed for the domestic Russian consumption. This includes an analysis of why a shared past is so important to the Kremlin, how this was applied in its foreign policy approach and later justified the annexation and the various methods the Kremlin used to win over public support. Keywords: Brotherhood of Nations, Crimea, Russia, Securitisation, Shared Past, Russia. DOI: http://doi.org/10.25019/europolity.2018.12.1.04 IMPLICATIONS OF EU EVALUATION PRACTICES: FROM A POSITIVIST APPROACH TO A REALIST ONE IN EVALUATING 2007-2013 COHESION POLICY Ioana Spanache Complutense University of Madrid Madrid, Spain ioana.borcan09@gmil.com The present paper aims to analyse the...