Abstract of the journal number 4, April, 2011

Russia and Great Britain have no alternative but to jointly face common threats

S. Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation

Similarly to the arrangement that has existed throughout the past three centuries, today's Russia is ready to shoulder its share of the responsibility in global affairs. As a country we are equally free of imperial ambitions and inferiority complexes.

Keywords: Russian-British relations, struggle against terrorism, modernization of Russia, multipolar world order, London School of Ecocomics

Russia and Serbia: Side by Side for Eight Centuries

Vuk Jeremić, Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Government of Serbia

In a few months Presidents B. Tadic and D. Medvedev will meet in Moscow to sign the Strategic Partnership Declaration. The document will mark a milestone in the relations between Serbia and Russia.

Keywords: Russia, Serbia, D. Medvedev, B. Tadic

Space

Gagarin as Russia's National Symbol

S. Savitskaya

Since Yu. Gagarin became the first man to reach outer space 50 years ago, space exploration has remained an integral expression of Russia's national spirit.

Keywords: Aviation, space flights, year of space exploration, first cosmonaut, International Space Station, space program

Space Belongs to the Entire Mankind

Mazlan Otman

It becomes clear in the context of debates over space exploration that the UN is the world's absolute necessity, at least due to the fact that no nation has individual rights to outer space.

Keywords: UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, International Space Station, struggle against space junk, GLONASS, Galileo

Gagarin's Smile Not Forgotten in Sweden

N. Vukolov

Gagarin's unwaivering optimism and subtle sense of humor, his ability to sense the atmosphere among his listeners – altogether expressed in Gagarin's unforgettable smile - used to leave audiences fascinated.

Keywords: Yu. Gagarin,  V, Junsson, Malmo, space Odyssey

Editor's Column

Convertible Democracy

A. Oganesyan

The current crisis of political modeling stems not so much from intellectual poverty as from the overwhelming inertia in political thinking. The philosophy of convertible democracy is increasingly put to work to help idealized political models withstand the test of the empirical reality.

Keywords:Developments in the Middle East, Libya, Gadhafi, Arab world, convertible democracy

Politics

Egypt: Stepping into a New Epoch

V. Belyakov

The outbreaks of protests that shattered Egypt on January 25, 2011 and led to the February 11 ouster of president H. Mubarak left quite a few questions unanswered. Evidently, the key reasons behind the transition driven by a young and informal liberal opposition which had been gathering momentum over the past several years were political rather than social in nature. 

Keywords: Egypt, President Mubarak, Takhrir Square, unemployment, young opposition, Mansur brothers, M. Al Baradei

The Overly Burdened Europe

N. Mayorov

West Europe's inability to influence the recent cascade of developments in the Arab world highlighted the fact that the EU, increasingly locked in the struggle with its internal problems, is in the process of losing its global power status.

Keywords: Russia and Europe, European politics, historical aspirations, European security, balance of forces, NATO expansion, European integration, EU, European values

Russia and the CIS in the Post-Crisis World

A. Bykov

The crisis took a heavy toll on the majority of the CIS countries which, like Russia, saw their potentials at best halved in the wake of collapse of the USSR, largely due to the disintegration of the  tightly knit Soviet economy.

Keywords: Russia and CIS, Eurasian Economic Community, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC), post-Soviet space, Eurasia, East Asia

Globalization and the State's Role in Modernizing Russian Economy

A. Sazonov

Launching a modernization campaign in the settings of galloping globalization, Russia faces the challenge of carefully weighing the optimal extent of its engagement with the global economy.

Keywords: Role of state in modenizing Russia”s economy, assistance in the development of the national economy, global market, the «free ride» problem, market competition

Pompidou-Brezhnev

E. Osipov

The paper offers documents from French archives which used to be out of reach for Russian audiences and shed light on the process of preparing and finalizing the documents inked by the French and Soviet leaders.

Keywords: Georges Pompidou, Soviet-French documents, A.N. Kosygin, M. Jouber, W. Brandt”s eastern policy, 1970 Soviet-French declaration, OSCE

Responsibility for Human Rights Violations

 Roundtable

The International Law and Security Center at the Institute of Contemporary International Studies of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation hosted debates on the recognition as international criminal offenses of human rights violations ordered by national governments and on the further reform of the European Court of Human Rights.

Keywords: Human rights, responsibility of national governments for human rights violations, UN, ICTY, international crime, European Court of Human Rights, European Convention on Human Rights

Bookshelf

An Unusual and Thought-Provoking Manuscript

G. Gatilov

G. Karapetyan and V. Grachev-Selikh undertook the noble mission of  preparing for publication the legacy of outstanding Soviet diplomat Yu. M. Vorontsov, which the International Rerikh Center Publishers offers under the title “From Molotov to Lavrov. The Unwritten Memoirs by Yu. Vorontsov”.

Keywords: “From Molotov to Lavrov. The Unwritten Memoirs by Yu. Vorontsov”, International Rerikh Center, G. Karapetyan, V. Grachev-Selikh

Diaries by A Cyprus Diplomat

A. Dubina

“The Diplomacy of Cyprus. A Personal Testimony” by Cyprian statesman Sotos Zackheos presents a personalized perspective on the problems encountered by Cyprus internationally, the country's struggle on the UN sidelines, and the key role to be played by Russia.

Keywords: “The Diplomacy of Cyprus. A Personal Testimony”, Sotos Zackheos

The Clash Between Two Brands of Capitalism: To Be or Not to Be?

A. Yur'ev

J. Bremmer's recent book The End of the Free Market: Who Wins the War Between States and Corporations (Portfolio, May 2010), intrigues the readership timely albeit extremely contradictory conclusions.

Keywords: Market capitalism, state capitalism

Russia and Central Asia

A. Dubina

The two volumes of Russia – Central Asia portray Russia's advent to Central Asia in the XVI-XVIII centuries and Moscow's relations with the independent Central Asian republics in the post-Soviet epoch. It also surveys the current state of Islam and religious disposition in Central Asia, and the place occupied by Islam in the region's politics.

Keywords: Russia and Central Asia, Central Asian republics, Russia”s relations with Central Asian republics

Humanitarian Ties

B. Obama as a Carrier of Martin Luther King's Legacy

Katori Hall

The Mountaintop, a drama which won its author, US journalist Katori Hall the Laurence Olivier Award is being staged in Moscow. The play shows the last day in the life of Martin Luther King. Its first reading was synchronized with Russia's Golden Mask theater festival.

Keywords: Golden Mask Festival, Katori Hall, The Mountaintop, Martin Luther King

The Presentation of International Affairs in China

I. Antonov

GlavUpDK (Main Administration for Service to the Diplomatic Corps under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) – Moscow, Prechistenka St. 20. A Building with a History of

Keywords: Prechistenka St., Konshin, Fyodor Schechtel, GlavUpDK 

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