{"title":"US Policy in Conditions of Growing Non-Military Challenges in Europe","authors":"S. Kislitsyn","doi":"10.15211/soveurope620215262","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope620215262","url":null,"abstract":"The article deals with the problem of new, non-military challenges for the US in Europe. Previously Washington saw the main regional risks in the military-political sphere. Now serious challenges are emerging in issues of trade, technological and information security. It also appears to lack initiative for regional development. To a large extent, the risks can be associated with the activities of the PRC. The study analyzes the American policy in specific areas (trade, 5G networks, energy exports, relations between allies). The main approaches that Washington can apply to protect its regional interests are as follows: attempts to put pressure on allies by introducing new tariffs and reducing cooperation in several areas; the desire of the US to provide an alternative to the projects of the PRC in the region; deliberate militarization of several topics by the US. But still, the universal instrument is the emphasis on shared values and the issue of human rights. The resolution of bilateral problems between the US and the EU will not fully deal with new risks. Trying to fend off the challenges emanating from the PRC, the US has to partially repeat and duplicate Beijing's policy, creating alternative infrastructure projects or trying to promote its LNG instead of Russian gas.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49285580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism: New Context for EU-Russia Relations","authors":"A. Nevskaya, Y. Baronina","doi":"10.15211/soveurope620216374","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope620216374","url":null,"abstract":"The article examines the introduction of the EU carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) as part of the EU economy decarbonization. The implementation of this initiative poses certain risks for the EU trading partners. Moreover, this issue is extremely important for the entire global trading system. The purpose of the study is to assess the real threats of the mechanism for Russian companies and identify opportunities for successful adaptation to the new green realities. The theoretical approaches and prerequisites for the CBAM introduction are analyzed, its systemic effects for companies around the world are shown. The channels and possible scale of this measure’s impact on Russian exporters are considered. The authors analyze the main possible response scenarios for Russia. The most promising scenarios could be: a) intensification of the carbon-free energy and increasing the energy efficiency of production processes, 2) development of an alternative compensatory mechanism, 3) integration into the regional emissions trading system. A possible challenge of the CBAM introduction in the WTO may be ineffective; cooperation with countries outside the “green agenda” – counterproductive. It is concluded that there are opportunities for Russian companies to strengthen their competitiveness due to CBAM requirements. However, there is a lack of expertise in a number of areas and levels, which can hinder the implementation of these opportunities.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48932551","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Learning on Religion in the Modern European Education: new approaches to the teaching","authors":"E. Miroshnikova","doi":"10.15211/soveurope62021167177","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope62021167177","url":null,"abstract":"The article analyzes significant changes of the sociocultural and religious landscape in the modern post-secular Europe, which have led to the need of new approaches to religious education. According to the European Educational School’s Principles, religious education (confessional and non-confessional models) is an integral part of the curriculum. Religion is an ordinary, but a non-progression subject. In some European countries religious education is under a threat. There is an ambivalent process of the quest for multi-layered religious identities within the public schools of post-secular European countries. The author states that the traditional confessional model as a variant of catechesis is evolving to the system of multi-confessional religious education, Alternatives (Ethics, Ethics and Values, philosophy, citizenship), parallel mandatory courses about religion under Toledo principles (2007). Confessional religious education is teaching the religion in question. The author notes the growing role of the model of interreligious education IRE as a non-confessional academic Study of Religion for all students in the classroom. The most important international projects REDCo (Religion in Education. A Contribution to Dialogue or a Factor of Conflict in Transforming Societies of European Countries) and ENRECA network (The European Network for Religious Education through Contextual Approaches) show clear signs of the characteristics of interreligious education: teaching about is combined with teaching from the insider’s perspectives. Especially interesting are different options of the cooperative religious education and the model of intercultural religious education ICRE with a worldview as a key notion. The main goal of the IRE is working towards a public, rational discourse of religion against the privatization of religion, against displacing religion from educational institutions. The conclusion is made that the multi– disciplinary approach, based on Culture and Religious Studies, is capable to increase the quality of learning on religions.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49047012","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The European Silver Economy","authors":"N. Govorova","doi":"10.15211/soveurope62021109119","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope62021109119","url":null,"abstract":"The European Union is going through a period of profound transformation due to socio-economic and demographic changes. Europe's population is aging as a result of declining fertility and increasing life expectancy, and its share of the world's population continues to decline. The top 10 countries on the planet with the oldest populations include nine EU countries. Older citizens are increasingly shaping the economy, constituting a growing segment in many areas of consumption. The expansion of this age group is expected to lead to an increased demand in many sectors, and in the not-too-distant future will provide significant economic opportunities for European businesses. The so-called “silver economy” (or longevity economy) is a concept of responding to and adapting to the challenges determined by demographic shifts at the global, regional and country levels by inclusively supporting job growth and productivity in traditional and new sectors of the modern digital economy, acceptable to government, business and the entire population, and supposedly capable of becoming the engine of the future economy. Population aging, its density, and household size, in turn, have also had an impact on the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, whose outbreak tested health and welfare systems as well as economic and social sustainability. This is why demographic processes need to be taken into account in the post-pandemic economic cycle, managing their long-term effects has many different aspects concerning health care, including care for the elderly, as well as government budgets. The integration of digital solutions, robotic technologies in these areas can significantly empower the elderly, promote independent and active lifestyles, and integrate into the labor market. Thus, it can be argued that the potential risks of the modern demographic transition are not inevitable, and the challenge is to find tools, opportunities and means to adapt the economy and society to it.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43102358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Formation of Environmental Identity in Germany and Italy: Actors and Best Practices","authors":"Tatyana Khaynatskaya","doi":"10.15211/soveurope62021201210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope62021201210","url":null,"abstract":"One of the important components of environmental policy in recent years is the formation of environmental identity. This article analyzes the German and Italian practices of ecological identity formation, identifies the actors of such a policy, and evaluates the prospects of ecological identity formation in the European Union. Based on case studies and in-depth interviews, the author describes the experience of implementing the Zero Waste concept in the Italian municipality of Capannori and the coastal German city of Kiel. The conclusion that the success of measures to form an environmental identity is influenced by the nature of political culture, the level of economic development, regional development features, but also by targeted environmental education initiatives and the success of grassroots practices in the environmental sphere, is substantiated. As the research has shown, in promoting eco-practices at the local level in Italy the leadership factor plays a large role, including in the framework of protest eco-activism, in Germany ‒ the self-organization of local communities in cooperation with the city authorities. The politicization of environmental identity contributes to the consolidation of citizens around environmental priorities. However, factors such as generation gaps and uneven regional development, as well as the rise of populism, can contribute to deepening divisions and confrontations around the environmental agenda.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46715544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Genesis of the Second World War in Contemporary Polish Historical and Political Discourse","authors":"Artem Barynkin, N. Mezhevich","doi":"10.15211/soveurope62021178189","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope62021178189","url":null,"abstract":"The Second World War has undoubtedly left a deep scar on the historical memory of the Polish people. The hardest ordeal for the Polish Republic was the military confrontation with Nazi Germany, which resulted in the loss of statehood and the horrors of the German occupation regime. As a result of World War II, Poland lost almost 40% of its national wealth and about 6 million of its people. The issue of political interpretations of historical events in contemporary Polish historical and political discourse is of particular importance. Reflected in educational literature, it is no less important than the positions set out in academic journals. Yesterday's schoolboy and student today is a minister's assistant and an officer, tomorrow a minister and a general. At the same time, there is no certainty that they will again turn to systemic education. One should also take into account the current status of the Polish Republic, its fundamental economic achievements and the apparent desire for an independent line in the European Union. All this makes the dialogue actual even in the current extremely difficult conditions.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44137296","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evolution of Approaches to Countering Hybrid Threats in the European Union’s Strategic Planning","authors":"D. Bazarkina","doi":"10.15211/soveurope62021133143","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope62021133143","url":null,"abstract":"This article aims to identify the main components of the EU approach to countering hybrid threats. To achieve this goal, research questions were posed: 1) How does the theory of hybrid warfare define hybrid threats, what are its strengths and weaknesses? 2) How is the approach to combating hybrid threats regulated in the EU? 3) What changes are taking place in this approach under the influence of trends in recent years, including the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic? The author concludes that the “open architecture” of the hybrid war theory, the wide possibilities of interpreting the definition of hybrid threats allow us to improve practical measures and theoretical approaches to security problems. However, as economic competition and political contradictions under geopolitical rivalry deepen, the approach to countering hybrid threats is hyper politicized, being used to justify sanctions pressure, strengthening military blocs or massive psychological campaigns against a political adversary. The EU tries to develop and improve a systemic approach to ensuring security in the context of the growth of hybrid threats. However, this approach is increasingly deformed under the influence of above-mentioned hyperpoliticization. This is especially evident in the EU’s attitude towards Russia and China, which are constantly accused of creating hybrid threats. The excessive use of the rhetoric of the hybrid war theory in the EU discourse jeopardizes the security of Europe.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44708680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"French Foreign Policy in the Horn of Africa Region","authors":"Aleksandr Nadzharov","doi":"10.15211/soveurope52021190198","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope52021190198","url":null,"abstract":"The Horn of Africa has gained strategic importance due to its transit location and the rapid growth of regional economies. The French Republic, historically is presented in the region through its military base in Djibouti and seeks to consolidate and expand its influence. Paris seeks to gain a foothold in the energy, infrastructure, and arms markets and to expand its cooperation with key Middle Eastern partners. The Djibouti base itself serves as the northwestern flank of the French presence in the IndoPacific. Nevertheless, the French policy faces several challenges: regional destabilization, the rise of great power rivalry, and the lack of a broad foreign policy toolkit. Nevertheless, Paris seeks to overcome the challenges and its own financial limitations by building networks of presence through its cultural and humanitarian institutions. Moreover, due to Brexit, Paris is the only power representing the EU in the IndoPacific through its military bases, which may facilitate the europeanization of French foreign policy in the region.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46325344","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"On the Legal Consequences of Brexit (on the example of personal data protection)","authors":"M. Entin, D. Galushko","doi":"10.15211/soveurope520214555","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope520214555","url":null,"abstract":"The article explores the legal consequences of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union. The scope of personal data protection was taken as an example. The purpose of the article is to study and analyze the legal aspects of the termination of the UK's membership in the European Union, its impact on the cross-border transfer of personal data between the parties, as well as the development of legal regulation in this area. The article shows that, despite the signing of the Withdrawal Agreement, as well as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, there is a complication of legal regulation, as well as the emergence of potential contradictions and threats to the interests of interested parties. The sphere of personal data protection clearly demonstrates that despite the desire for the sovereignization of legal regulation on the part of the UK, its legal system remains dependent on the legal order of the European Union. The UK's national regulation on personal data will be under constant monitoring by the competent EU authorities, which indirectly confirms the failure to achieve the goals of the full return of the UK's delegated sovereign powers. It is concluded that the EU Court of Justice still retains its jurisdiction over the United Kingdom, in particular, in connection with possibility to challenge decisions on adequacy, as well as through the adoption of its own practice on issues related to personal data protection.","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46009272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impact of the Coronacrisis on Germany's Transition to a Climate-neutral Economy","authors":"V. Belov","doi":"10.15211/soveurope52021100112","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15211/soveurope52021100112","url":null,"abstract":"The author continues the study of the impact of the coronavirus crisis on the economic and political space of Germany. The second article outlines the features of the double transition ‒ energy and digital ‒ to a climate-neutral economy. Germany is carrying it out within the framework of the European Green Deal, the adoption of which almost coincided with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus crisis has become a catalyst for the transformation processes in the field of energy and digitalization, many of which Berlin began to implement long before the onset of its consequences. Lockdowns have led to a reduction in industry's primary energy and electricity consumption, motivated businesses to relocate employees to home-based work, and accelerate the introduction of new digital technologies. The coronavirus crisis has become a challenge for government departments, healthcare institutions, secondary and higher education, which management and employees were not ready for a quick use of distance technologies. The author analyzes the structural policy of the coalition government, the contribution of German-French initiatives and projects to the implementation of the double transition in the field of energy, cloud technologies and artificial intelligence, assesses the role of a new Climate Protection Law","PeriodicalId":42204,"journal":{"name":"Contemporary Europe-Sovremennaya Evropa","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2021-10-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42222259","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}