Studia Politica, vol. XIX, no. 3 & 4, 2019

ARTICULI

SABINA-ADINA LUCA, DRAGOŞ DRAGOMAN, Young People and Political Activism in Moldova: Why Online Mobilization is Not Enough for Democratic Consolidation (pp. 323-344)

Abstract

The election of a socialist and pro-Russian candidate in December 2016 as president of Moldova marked a new turn in Moldovan politics. This election contrasts with the pro-Western attitudes of the previous government. Governing instability in Moldova and changing international orientations of many prominent political actors, as emphasized by this article, are partly due to political alternative victories of parties supported by different social groups. Focusing on young people activism, this article underlines the differentiation between the political success of pro-Western parties, made possible by the street protests of April 2009, and the political failure of December 2016. The findings of this research may add a new explanation to Moldova's permanent instability. The factor we emphasize here is the change in political values, attitudes and actions due to profound generational transformations. Since democracy is a life-long learning process, a continuous updating, changing of beliefs and action strategies responding to the varying political environment, different generations rely not only on different past experiences, but on different adapting capacities, on different meanings given to rights and freedoms, social standards and economic conditions.

Keywords: Moldova, street protests, elections, young people, democratization.

DRAGOȘ DRAGOMAN, PhD in Sociology, Associate Professor with the Department of Political Science, “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu, dragos.dragoman@ulbsibiu.ro .

SABINA-ADINA LUCA, PhD, lecturer at “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Department of International Relations, Political Science and Security Studies, sabina.luca@ulbsibiu.ro.

PASKAL ZHELEV, ANNA GARASHCHUK, Prospects for Free Trade Between the Eurasian Economic Union and the European Union After the Sanctions (pp. 345-370)

Abstract

With growing US protectionism and uncertainties in the transatlantic relationship it is time for the EU to consider diversifying its external ties and look for other allies that support the idea of free trade gains and have a common interest in maintaining the international rules-based trading system. The Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) which shares a common neighbourhood and is a crucial supplier of raw materials interested in getting technology transfer represents a natural trading partner of the EU. While there are currently no political (sanctions against Russia) and legal (Belarus is not yet a WTO member) preconditions for starting free trade negotiations, given the high economic significance and positive security implications such a possibility should be considered. This paper undertakes a comprehensive assessment of the potential welfare effects of a possible future EU-EEU FTA based on the Sussex Framework. Such an analysis provides important information on bilateral trade patterns and insights on the economic implications that would be useful once sanctions are removed and bilateral trade relations normalized. The results show that in the long term the aim should be a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement that goes beyond mere removal of trade barriers which could however be a feasible first step.

Keywords: free trade agreements, Eurasian Economic Union, EU, trade indicators, Sussex Framework.

PASKAL ZHELEV, PhD in International Economic Relations from the University of National and World Economy (UNWE) in Sofia, pzhelev@un.we.bg.

ANNA GARASHCHUK, PhD in Economics and Business by the University of Malaga. anutka735@gmail.com.

PASQUALE CERBONE, MARÍA PEREIRA LÓPEZ, Understanding Populism in Ecuador. How the Ecuadorian Population Perceives Presidents Rafael Correa and Lenín Moreno (pp. 371-394)

Abstract

This article explores the perception of Ecuadorian population concerning the political style of Presidents Rafael Correa and Lenín Moreno and their links to populism, one of the most interesting features of the Ecuadorian political arena. The analysis is based on a survey designed and applied by the authors at a national level. The quantitative data was interpreted using linear multiple regression models, to understand which of the variables analyzed can explain the perception of the interviewees. The results were extrapolated by using a descriptive statistical analysis (means, standard deviation and correlation matrix). The article shows that a difference between Correa and Moreno’s styles exists and this difference is clearly perceived by Ecuadorian population. While populist features are strongly identified in Correa’s political style, they are less remarked in Moreno’s rhetoric and action. This difference marks a discontinuity in the use of populism in the political style of the two presidents.

Keywords: Populism, Rafael Correa, Lenín Moreno, Ecuador.

PASQUALE CERBONE, Full professor in Gepolitics, at Universidad UTE, in Ecuador, pasquale.cerbone@ute.edu.ec.

MARÍA PEREIRA LÓPEZ, Associate Professor in the subject of Political Marketing, in the “Ciencias Política y Sociología” department, of the “Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)”, maria.pereira.lopez@usc.es.

RALUCA ALEXANDRESCU, Agents Politiques et Discursifs de La Modernité Roumaine. Origines, Hésitations, Malentendus (pp. 395-410)

Abstract

Representing states and citizens in the political rhetoric and construction of the XIX century means investigating the origins of such discourses in the political thought. In the Romanian case, one should get a closer look into the ways of intellectual nurturing in the rising of a Modern political elite in the XIX century, especially in the aftermath of 1848 Revolution and of the 1859 Union. The political agents of this period are to be analyzed in a broad theoretical and rhetorical framework, conditioned by philosophical and historiographical discontinuities between the periods. One should see and interpret in that sense the intellectual sources, the political and institutional framework of that time, that could draw a more accurate image of what political power and agents’ discourse meant at that time and how it influenced, for that matter, the further construction of modernity during the XX and XXI centuries.

Keywords: Modernity, Democracy, Romanian Political Thought, XIXth Century Narratives.

RALUCA ALEXANDRESCU, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Bucharest, raluca.alexandrescu@fspub.unibuc.ro.

VALENTIN STOIAN, Policy Integration Across Multiple Dimensions: the European Response to Hybrid Warfare (pp. 411-440)

Abstract

The article analyzes the European Union’s response to hybrid warfare and argues that a proper interpretation of the policies adopted offers cautious support for a rational choice intuitionalist approach. It begins with the presentation of the main theories of European decision-making, among which rational choice and constructivist institutionalism and it derives a hypothesis which it tests in the third part of the article. Several policy documents are analyzed in order to provide the empirical material for the analysis. The article concludes that EU institutions prefer to undertake supra-national action in technical fields which are less politically controversial and where supra-nationalization is more easily accepted.

Keywords: hybrid warfare, constructivism, institutionalism, spill-over.

VALENTIN STOIAN, Researcher in Political Theory with the “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy, valentin.stoian@animv.ro, stoian.valentin@animv.eu.

ANDREYANNA IVANCHENKO, IRYNA IGNATIEVA, VASILIY LEFTEROV, OLEXANDER TIMCHENKO, Personality traits as determinants of political behavior: Ukrainian electoral and voting tendencies (pp. 441-466)

Abstract

Now there is a sharp increase of interest in politics, especially among young people. Meanwhile, the psychological mechanisms of the person’s political behavior (its manifesting and regulating), as well as interaction of his cognitive, emotional, motivation and value factors with the political system remain insufficiently studied. The aim of this research is to study the influence of personality traits on political behavior in order to find out the connection between person’s individual-psychological characteristics and the degree of his participation in political life within the territory of Ukraine. The Five-Factor NEO-PI-R (NEO Personality Inventory-Revised) model was used for analyzing the respondents’ tendency to politically significant behavior. The survey was conducted in 2017 in Ukraine (n=1247, age: 15-50 years). A positive correlation of the political participation indicators with the personal indicator Conscientiousness and the negative correlation with the Agreeableness parameter were revealed. We have established that emotionally balanced respondents more often show a desire to run for office and rarely participate in voting. High results for Agreeableness and Neuroticism determine the low level of political ambitions. These findings constitute a new step forward in understanding how personality traits form responses in the people’s political engagement while demonstrating the Ukrainian political tendencies.

Keywords: personality traits, political behavior, Five-Factor model, Big Five, NEO Personality Inventory-Revised.

ANDREYANNA IVANCHENKO, PhD in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Kharkiv Institute “Interregional Academy of Personnel Management”, andreyan@libero.it.

IRYNA IGNATIEVA, PhD in Political Sciences, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Psychology, National University “Odessa Law Academy”, irynaikuptsova@gmail.com.

VASILIY LEFTEROV, Professor, PhD in Psychology, Head of the Department of Sociology and Psychology, National University “Odessa Law Academy”, lefterov.vasil@gmail.com.

OLEXANDER TIMCHENKO, Professor, PhD in Psychology, Leading researcher, Laboratory of Extreme and Crisis Psychology, Kharkiv National University of Civil Protection of Ukraine, timchenko.psy@gmail.com.

TETIANA SYDORUK, PAVLO STEPANETS, IRYNA TYMEICHUK, Nord Stream 2 as a Threat to National Interests of Poland and Ukraine (pp. 467-490)

Abstract

The article analyses Nord Stream 2 project in terms of the national interests of Poland and Ukraine. The authors carry out comparative analysis of risks and threats which are posed by the project to the national interests of both countries in economic, political and geopolitical spheres. The probable consequences of implementation of the Russian gas initiative are discussed. Scenarios of tactical and strategic steps of Poland and Ukraine are described. These steps would allow the countries to influence the process of Nord Stream 2 project implementation and, potentially, block it; as well as allow preparing their own energy systems to new conditions which might be formed after the launch of two lines of a new Russian gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea.

Keywords: Nord Stream 2, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, EU, gas, influence.

TETIANA SYDORUK, Professor, Head of the Department of International Relations of the National University of Ostroh Academy, tetiana.sydoruk@oa.edu.ua.

PAVLO STEPANETS, PhD student in Political Science at Department of International Relations of the National University of Ostroh Academy, pavlo.stepanets@oa.edu.ua.

IRYNA TYMEICHUK, Associate Professor of the Department of International Relations at the National University of Ostroh Academy, iryna.tymeychuk@oa.edu.ua.

KOSTIANTYN BALABANOV, NATALIIA PASHYNA, VICTORIIA LYSAK, Regional Identity in Ukraine: Formation Factors and Functions (pp. 491-513)

Abstract

The main approaches to determining the regional division of Ukraine are analyzed. It is shown that regional identity in Ukraine is determined by a unique combination of the historical heritage of the region, features of the ethno-confessional composition of its population, socio-economic status, and specifics of lifestyle, traditions and culture. The functional analysis of regional identity justifies that, being considered one of the basic construction elements of a definition “region”, it plays an important role in the preservation and functioning of a regional socio-political space. Subjective factors influence the formation of regional identity models: interests of regional elites, geopolitical factors, current political processes, political parties and public organizations, the position and influence of the mainstream media. The politicization of regional differences in modern Ukraine has led to increase in the regionalization of electoral political sympathies, the aggravation of social differences around geopolitical and ethno-cultural values.

Ethnocultural regionalism creates additional difficulties in the formation of national identity, consolidation of the Ukrainian society according to the strategic social development goals: its democratization and modernization. Therefore, the formation at the state level, the policy of identity based on public consensus and democratic values, taking into account the ethnic, cultural, confessional and linguistic features of the Ukrainian regions, is acquiring particular relevance in modern Ukraine.

Keywords: region, identity, regional identity, ethnocultural features.

KOSTIANTYN BALABANOV, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine, Professor, Doctor of Political Sciences, Honored Worker of Education of Ukraine, Corresponding Member of the Pelorite Academy (Italy), Parnas Academic Philological Society (Greece), Rector of the Mariupol State University (Ukraine), nauka2019@meta.ua.

NATALIIA PASHYNA, Professor, Doctor of Political Sciences, Head of the Department of International Relations and Foreign Policy, Mariupol State University, Ukraine, npash2@gmail.com.

VICTORIIA LYSAK, Professor, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Dean of the Faculty of History, Mariupol State University, Ukraine, fifitau@ukr.net.

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