Academic literature on the topic 'Sports – Political aspects – Israel'

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: During the last decade, a significant trend could be observed with regards to the growth of the number of sport for development initiatives globally, as well as the increasing range of stakeholders involved in the sport for development field. Many international organisations and institutions began to put more emphasis on the use of sport and sport activities to initiate social change. This was further observed with the growing trends in sport for development activities within the Global South. In order to explore the impacts of the trends in sport for development, this study examined the recent sport for development trends in South Africa and in what way the 2010 FIFA World Cup has affected it. This study attempts to do this by exploring the historical underpinnings of sport for development in South Africa, as well as current trends in the field. The study further examines the sport for development initiatives that have been implemented during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and explores their ramifications for the sport for development landscape in South Africa. With its assessment of the sport for development legacies of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, this study builds on the existing international literature by an increasing number of scholars assessing the trends in sport for development as well as evaluating the effectiveness of the field for promoting development. Moreover, due to the recent increase in developing countries in the Global South hosting sport mega-events, with a purpose to achieve social development objectives through the event (for example, South Africa and the 2010 World Cup), this study builds on literature examining a potential link between sport mega-events and sport for development. As a point of departure this study looked to provide an overview of the sport for development field, the recent debates raised among scholars as well as a theoretical framework informing the field. The study then looked towards the historical underpinnings of sport for development in South Africa, creating a framework for the analysis of the empirical study regarding the sport for development initiatives implemented during the World Cup. The main findings of this study included the rapid growth of sport for development initiatives during the World Cup period, the increase and range in public and private actors forming institutional arrangements and partnerships in sport for development initiatives and the outcomes and implications of those trends for the South African sport for development context. Through the hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, it was found that the sport mega-event was ultimately used as a strategic opportunity for initiatives to achieve objectives and aims including the creation of awareness of initiatives, potentially meeting new partners and funders, and increasing participant numbers. Moreover, through the formation of institutional arrangements and partnerships, implementing organisations could potentially ensure sustainability of the initiative due to the resources made available by the range of partners involved. It must be noted however, that although the 2010 FIFA World Cup was used strategically by the sport for development initiatives implemented during that period, sport mega-events cannot be said to achieve social development objectives, especially those of sport for development, due to the many neoliberal tendencies that is found in the hosting of the event.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gedurende die laaste dekade was 'n kenmerkende / belangrike trant opgemerk, t.o.v. die groei van die getal globale sport vir ontwikkeling, sowel as die toename van rolspelers betrokke by die ontwikkeling van sport. Baie internasionale organiSuid-Afrikasies en inrigtings sit meer klem op die gebruik van sport en aktiwiteite om sosiale verandering uit te oefen. Die is verder opmerkend met die groeiende trant van sport-ontwikkeling in die Globale lande. Om die impak van sport-ontwikkeling te ondersoek, het hierdie studie die onlangse sportontwikkeling trant in Suid-Afrika getoets, asook die manier hoe die 2010 FIFA Wêreld-beker dit beinvloed het. Die navorsing probeer dit doen deur die historiese ondersteuning van sportontwikkeling in Suid-Afrika te ondersoek, sowel as die huidige trant. Dié navorsing ondersoek ook die sport-ontwikkeling inisiatief wat geinplimenteer was gedurende die 2010 FIFA Wêreld-beker, asook die vertakking van sport-ontwikkeling in Suid-Afrika. Met die assesering van die sport-ontwikkeling van die 2010 FIFA Wêreld-beker, gaan hierdie studie op die huidige internasionale literatuur bou by die groei van die getal narvorsers wat die trant in sport-ontwikkeling en evaluering wat die uitwerking op sport-ontwikkeling bevorder. Sodoende, met die onlangse groei van ontwikkelinde lande tussen Globale lande wat groot sport byeenkomste huisves, met die doel om sosiale ontwikkeling te bereik (bv. Suid-Afrika en die 2010 Wêreld-beker), gaan hierdie studie die Literatuur ondersoek van ‘n potensiale koppeling tussen mega-sport byeenkomste en sport-ontwikkeling opbou. Hierdie studie verskaf 'n oorsig van sport-ontwikkeling as 'n vetrek-punt om die onlangse debatte tussen leerders en die teoretiese raamwerk in die veld in te lig. Die studie kyk ook na die historiese ondersteuning vir sport-ontwikkeling in Suid-Afrika, deur ‘n raamwerk in die analise van die studie m.b.t. sport-ontwikkeling inisiatief tydens die Wêreld-beker te skep. Die hoof bevindings van hierdie studie sluit in die vinnige groei van sport-ontwikkeling inisiatief tydens die Wêreld-beker; die toename en reeks publieke en private ondersteuners wat instansie rëelings vorm en verhoudings in sport-ontwikkeling en die uitkoms en implikasies in die Suid-Afrika konteks. Deur die 2010 FIFA Wêreld-beker te huisves, het hierdie mega-sport gebeurtenis eintlik 'n strategiese geleentheid om doele te bereik, insluitend die bewustheid van inisiatief, die ontmoeting van nuwe genote en skenkers, asook die groei in deelname. Verder, deur die formasie van instansie rëelings en verhoudings, implementerende organisasies kan potensiale Suid-Afrikasies kan potensiale steun verseker, a.g.v. die bronne beskikbaar gemaak deur die betrokke vennote. Kennis moet geneem word dat al was die 2010 FIFA Wêreld-beker strateties gebruik om sport-ontwikkeling te implementeer tydens hierdie periode, groot sport byeenkomste kan nie verantwoordelik gehou word vir sosiale ontwikkeling doelwitte, veral vir sport-ontwikkeling, a.g.v. die neo-liberale tendens wat by die huisvesting van hierdie geleenthede gevind word.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2002.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study focuses on the role of political elites in addressing the problem of why a durable peace has eluded Israeli Palestine. A theoretical background study was made on the articulation of identity within a civilization. This established identity formation as a political process. To see how the manipulation of the structure within which identity formation processes take place, six critical indicators were identified. These are: Manufacturing conditions of underdevelopment; Un-integrated social and political systems, and distributive injustice; Fostering cleavages, stereotypical images and political symbolism; Placing issues under the 'sign of security'; The production of insecurity through the manipulation of identity formation processes; and Monopolising the conflict resolution process. Political elite creation and perpetuation of structures for conflict shows an inherent inability to bring about a lasting peace in a protracted social conflict for conflict has become the source, rather than the outcome of policy formation. As a result this thesis calls for a more inclusive approach to conflict resolution, one that goes beyond the processes of arbitration, mediation, negotiation and facilitation, to include conciliation at grass roots level between civilizations, sincerely exploring the underlying emotional legacies of fear, hatred, sorrow and mistrust.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie fokus op die rol gespeel deur politieke elites in die voortslepende vraagstuk rondom vrede in Israel/Palestina. 'n Teoretiese agtergrondstudie is onderneem om die uitdrukking van 'n samelewing oftewel volksidentiteit te ondersoek. Die studie het laat blyk dat identiteitsformulering 'n politieke proses is. Om waar te neem hoe die manipulasie van die struktuur waarbinne identiteitsformulering plaasvind, is ses kritiese indikators geïdentifiseer, te wete: die skepping van toestande vir onderontwikkeling; ongeïntegreerde sosiale en politieke sisteme en ongelyke verdeling van welvaart; doelbewuste voortsetting van etniese verskille, stereotipering en politieke simbolisme; plasing van kwessies onder die vaandel van "sekuriteit"; die produksie van "onsekerheid" deur die manipulasie van identiteitsformulering prosesse; en die manipulasie van konflik resolusie prosedures. Skepping en doelbewuste voortsetting van strukture vir konflik deur politieke elites dui op 'n onvermoë om langdurige vrede in 'n 'uitgerekte sosiale konflik' te bewerkstellig. Konflik het die oorsprong, eerder as die uitkoms van beleid geword. As gevolg van hierdie feite doen die tesis 'n beroep dat konflik resolusie as dissipline 'n meer inklusiewe benadering volg. Die resolusie prosesse van mediasie, arbitrasie, fasilitering en onderhandeling is opsigself nie genoeg nie en behoort vergesel te word deur die proses van konsiliasie op grondvlak tussen samelewings. Hierdie proses moet deel vorm van 'n opregtheid om mense se vrese, haat, seer en wantroue met ootmoed aan te hoor.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2004.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: There can be little doubt about the ability of major international sporting events to capture the aspirations and hopes of nations. These events have an uncanny ability of seemingly effortlessly doing what a hundred speeches and mass rallies by politicians could only hope to achieve. Therefore, it is no surprise that they are commonly understood to be able to bring nations and people together and provide a focus for national identity and unity. The 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa is an obvious proponent of such a claim, whereby South Africa was emerging from a long and arduous political transition and needed something more than going to the polling booths to unite the nation. Major international sporting events are also said to be able to provide a catalyst or incentive for democratization and human rights enhancement in authoritarian or semi-authoritarian regimes. The 1988 Olympics in South Korea is a landmark of such claims whereby the South Korean government was said to bow to the democratizing pressures exerted on it due to its hosting of the event. Many have argued that China’s hosting of the Olympics in 2008 will have a similar effect. However, equally potent, major international sporting events can have various unintended consequences in terms of identity formation, democratization prospects and human rights for the host nations. An analysis of South Africa and Zimbabwe’s co-hosting of the 2003 Cricket World Cup demonstrates this point. The outcomes of the study suggest that whilst it is normally the intention for the host nations to use the games to bring nations and people together, the Cricket World Cup opened up a rift between races, both within the race contours of the cricket playing Commonwealth world and within South Africa's domestic politics. It was also established that much like the 1995 Rugby World Cup had sought to reconcile blacks and whites domestically under the “Rainbow Nation” during Mandela's presidency, the 2003 Cricket World Cup, with its more regional focus and under Mbeki’s presidency, presented an excellent opportunity for transnational reconciliation between Africa and the Anglo-Saxon world. However, the 2003 Cricket World Cup, as a project in racial reconciliation, was essentially a failure. This was predominantly due to the choice by South Africa of Zimbabwe as co-host and due to the shift of South Africa's national identity from that of the “Rainbow Nation” under Mandela, to that of “Africanism” under Mbeki. President Mbeki’s drive towards “Africanism” proved divisive both transnationally and domestically. Symbolically, the Cricket World Cup, when compared with the 1995 Rugby World Cup, had served to highlight the decline of the “Rainbow Nation”. Zimbabwe's co-hosting of the event had served to further entrench the authoritarian regime. Instead of the regime opening up due to its co-hosting of the event, a broad clampdown on civil and political liberties was experienced. The Zimbabwean government felt the need to tighten its grip during the lead up to the event and throughout the tournament itself. The aim was to project a sanitized view of Zimbabwe to the rest of the world. Thus, the event presented an opportunity for the government to shore up its credibility and produce political propaganda. South Africa’s stance of “quiet diplomacy” also indirectly helped to further entrench the regime through the World Cup. Zimbabwe's co-hosting also impacted negatively on the opposition, the MDC. In addition to this, the various pressures which major events are said to exert on a host nation to reform politically and which result from boycott campaigns, pressure from the media, stimulation of civil society and protests, were not very effective in enhancing democratization prospects and human rights in Zimbabwe. This study reaches the overall conclusion that the claims that major events bring nations and people together and provide a catalyst or incentive for democratization and human rights enhancement in authoritarian regimes, need further revision. South Africa and Zimbabwe's co-hosting of the event did indeed have unintended consequences. Policy implications are also assessed. Future areas for research are also identified.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Daar bestaan min twyfel dat groot internasionele sportgebeurtenisse die strewes en verwagtinge van nasies aanwakker. Hierdie gebeutenisse het die vermoë om op ‘n oënskylike moeitelose wyse meer te bereik as wat ‘n honderd toesprake en massavergaderings deur politici kan hoop om te bereik. Daarom is dit geen verrassing nie dat daar vry algemeen aanvaar word dat hierdie gebeurtenisse oor die vermoë beskik om nasies en mense by mekaar te bring en ‘n fokus vir nasionale identiteit en eenheid kan verskaf. Die 1995 Rugby Wêreldbeker in Suid-Afrika, is ‘n ooglopende voorbeeld: Suid Afrika het uit ‘n lang en moeilike politieke oorgang gekom en het meer as ‘n blote verkiesing nodig gehad ten einde die nasie te verenig. Voorts is dit ook so dat groot internasionale sportgebeurtenisse ‘n katalisator of aansporing is vir demokratisering en die bevordering van mensregte in outoritêre en semi-outoritêre regerings. Die 1988 Olimpiese Spele in Suid-Korea ondersteun hierdie aanspraak. As gasheerland van hierdie spele, het die Suid-Koreaanse regering onder toenemende druk gekom om aan die vereistes van demokrasie te voldoen. Daar word verwag dat die Olimpiese Spele van 2008 dieselfde impak op China, die gasheerland, sal hê. Terselfdertyd is dit egter ook so dat groot internasionale sportgebeurtenisse vir die gasheerlande onverwagte negatiewe gevolge ten opsigte van identiteitsvorming, demokratiseringsvooruitsigte en bevordering van menseregte kan hê. n’ Ontleiding van Sui-Afrika en Zimbabwe se mede-aanbieding van die 2003 Krieket Wêreldbeker staaf hierdie stelling. Die resultate van die studie toon aan dat alhoewel gasheerlande normaalweg groot sportgebeurtenisse gebruik om nasies en mense byeen te bring, het die 2003 Krieket Wêreldbeker ‘n kloof tussen rasse veroorsaak – binne die krieketspelende Statebondswêreld sowel as die Suid- Afrikaanse huishoudelike politiek. Daar is ook vasgestel dat net soos die 1995 Rugby Wêreldbeker aan Suid-Afrika tydens die presidentskap van Mandela en onder die vaandel van die “Reënboognasie” ‘n plaaslike versoeningsgeleentheid tussen swart en wit gebied het, net so het die 2003 Krieket Wêreldbeker, met sy regionale fokus en onder presidentskap van Mbeki, ook ‘n uitstekende geleentheid vir trans-nasionale versoening tussen Afrika en die Anglo-Saksiese wêreld gebied. As versoeningsprojek was die 2003 Krieket Wêreldbeker egter in wese ‘n mislukking, hoofsaaklik as gevolg van Suid-Afrika se besluit dat Zimbabwe ‘n mede-gasheer moes wees en weens die feit dat Suid-Afrika se nasionale identiteit ‘n klemverskuiwing van “Reënboognasie” onder Mandela tot “Afrikanisme” onder Mbeki, ondergaan het. President Mbeki se beklemtoning van “Afrikanisme” was ook huishoudelik en trans-nasionaal verdelend. Simbolies gesproke, het die Krieket Wêreldbeker – in teenstelling met die Rugby Wêreldbeker – die “Reënboognasie” se verkwyning beklemtoon. Daar is ook vasgestel dat Zimbabwe se mede-aanbieding van die Krieket Wêreldbeker inderdaad hierdie outoritêre regering versterk het. In plaas daarvan die Zimbabwiese regering sy outoritêre greep as gevolg van sy mede-aanbieding verslap het, was daar inderdaad ‘n verdere breë onderdrukking van burgerlike en politieke regte. Die Zimbabwiese regering het in die aanloop tot en in die loop van die toernooi sy outoritêre greep verstewig ten einde ‘n gesaniteerde beeld van Zimbabwe aan die res van die wêreld te kon voorhou. Die Zimbabwiese regering het die geleentheid misbruik om geloofwaardigheid te probeer wen en politieke propaganda uit te stuur. Suid-Afrika se standpunt van “stille diplomasie” het ook die hand van Zimbabwiese regering versterk; en Zimbabwe se mede-aanbieding van die toernooi het ‘n negatiewe impak op die opposisie, die MDC, gehad. Die dwang wat op gasheerlande deur middel van boikotte, die media en proteste uitgeoefen kan word om polities te hervorm, was in die geval van Zimbabwe nie effektief nie. In hierdie studie word tot die slotsom gekom dat die aansprake dat groot sportgebeurtenisse nasies en mense saambring en ‘n aansporing vir demokratisering van outoritêre regerings is, verdere hersiening verg. Suid-Afrika en Zimbabwe se mede-aanbieding van die toernooi het onbeoogde gevolge gehad – en in sommige gevalle was hierdie gevolge selfs direk die teenoorgestelde van wat verwag is. Beleidsimplikasies word ook evalueer. Voorts word toekomstige navorsingsareas ook identifiseer.

Thesis (MA (Political Science. International Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005.
Tourism is regarded as the world’s largest industry. The various contributions the industry can make towards the global economy and towards creating employment has been acknowledged. In South Africa, sport has been used as a method of nation building and a way of building the country’s national prestige since its re-entry into the global community. The two sectors, tourism and sports, accompany with them the potential to create employment and generate economic spin-offs, as well as enhancing the quality of life for citizens. In light of the many benefits that sport and tourism can generate, South Africa has attempted to host and participate in numerous sports events. Since the end of apartheid, it has hosted several international sporting events, which include the Rugby World Cup in 1995 and the Cricket World Cup in 2003 as well as continental sporting events such as the Africa Cup of Nations in 1996. South Africa has also hosted international events of a smaller degree, which include the Presidents Cup 2003, held in George in the Western Cape. Golf tourism in the Garden Route in particular has escalated to a large degree. Some of the top golf courses can be found there and thus the Western Cape province is closely linked to the golf industry. The main focus of this study is to explore the impact that the Presidents Cup had on the town of George, its community members as well as its contribution towards the tourism industry. It attempts to investigate whether the event generated economic spin offs and whether it has resulted in development for the town and its people. Through a series of face- to- face interviews, the study explores what the perceptions are among key stakeholders in the community concerning the economic and other spin offs. One of the key findings is that the event has contributed to the escalation of various new golf estates in and around George and these has left community members disgruntled. This has resulted in provincial government placing a moratorium on any further development of golf estates along the Garden Route. It has also amounted to property values rising, making it difficult for the locals to afford proper housing. In an attempt to adequately address the issues that have been raised and to preserve and maintain the natural environment for future generations, it is the contention of this study that sustainable development is pivotal. If implemented in a proper way it can have far reaching benefits for all.

Thesis (MA (Political Science))--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
This study focuses on the bidding for sports mega-events, their subsequent planning, and the politics surrounding these processes. The specific examples analysed here are those of the FIFA Football World Cup™ in Germany in 2006, and the forthcoming 2010 World Cup to be hosted by South Africa. The events are examined against a backdrop of increasing competition to host mega-events, spurred on by a widespread belief in the economic benefits that result from hosting, with a frequent disregard for the social and economic costs involved. Four central research questions are addressed in the course of this thesis. The first is the role of corporate actors and their influence on mega-events, the second is the question of what processes characterise both the bidding and planning stages of an event, including the main actors, agendas and discourses involved in both of these stages. Thirdly, the significance of hosting the World Cup in both the German and South African case is examined, and fourthly, the long-term implications of South Africa’s hosting of the 2010 World Cup, both for the country itself and for developing nations more broadly, is considered. The research methodology used for this thesis is predominately qualitative, and utilises mostly secondary sources, including books, academic articles, press articles, and information off the official websites of the football organisations involved. The main findings of this thesis are that while both countries in question had seemingly compelling reasons for hosting the World Cup, and while benefits can stem from the event, the longevity of such benefits is questionable, and the costs involved can be especially heavy in a developing context such as that of South Africa. Furthermore, those that stand to benefit the most from the events include transnational corporate actors, with the implication that significant financial gains never reach the host economy. Nevertheless, an ever-increasing willingness on the part of numerous nations to host mega-events means that the German and South African cases can provide lessons for future hosts, and South Africa’s World Cup has particular significance as a test case for mega-events hosted by developing nations. Finally, this thesis stresses the need for further research in this field. It also aims to break some new ground by examining the commonalities and contrasts to be found in the bidding and planning processes of a mega-event as carried out by a developed and a developing nation.

This dissertation departs from the common understanding that the democratic challenge is to strike the right balance between security and democracy; rather it asserts that the relations between security and democracy are discursively constructed by political actors. The dissertation takes as case study a state where the security discourse has been acute and omnipresent since the very beginning of its establishment: Israel. Drawing on discourse theory premises and narrative analyses, the research enlightens how the security-democracy nexus is articulated in political discourse. The study offers a careful analysis of a set of debates held within the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, over laws and decisions taken in the name of security and that generated discussions over democratic values and principles. The main focus of the analysis is the post-second intifada laws, but the study also offers account of previous discursive articulations at play in the 1980s. Indeed, the understanding of the discursive articulations of the security democracy nexus would not be possible without digging into the roots of its discursive articulations. The overall work gives a detailed account of the way the dominant narrative, by articulating security and democracy in a "defensive democracy" story, has reproduced and reshaped the boundaries of the Israeli polity.
Doctorat en Sciences politiques et sociales
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

This thesis examines an important but understudied phenomenon in international politics: the role of amity in foreign policy. The core research question is "how have American friendships for specified others been made possible?" Drawing on the logic of securitization, this thesis employs Aristotle's notion of character friends as Other Selves and Judith Butler's concept of performativity to elaborate an international process of friendship or amitization. In doing so, the thesis employs critical discourse analysis of presidential rhetoric and popular culture to elucidate the process through which discourses of similarity become naturalized frames of reference within the conduct of foreign policy. It argues that friendship emerges when a state comes to see itself in an other and that this similarity (re)produces a certain form of state identity that enables and forecloses certain policy options vis-à-vis friends. Friendship manifests in a habitual, or naturalized, disposition to treat friends better than others. As such, it can account for how certain policies and postures, such as uncritical and often unconditional support for subjects positioned as "friends," have come to be pursued as common sense. Amitization is illustrated by assessing three case studies: the Anglo-American "special relationship;" the US-Israel "unbreakable bond;" and America's membership of "the Atlantic Community." Specifically, the thesis similarly demonstrates the ways in which amity accounts for how supererogatory commitments such as vast financial assistance, diplomatic support, information sharing, security guarantees and concern for the welfare of these specified others have come to be seen as unquestionably legitimate policies in the broader trajectory of American foreign policy. Amity matters and the practices of amitization are inseparable from intelligible foreign policy.

In the past decade, the Internet has extensively penetrated the political landscape in Israel. A variety of actors, including parties, Knesset members, NGOs, and more, have realized the significance of using the Internet to promote their goals and have established an online presence via a variety of platforms. Consequently, the Internet is becoming a fertile ground to study Israeli society with its multiple cleavages. This chapter analyses how the ideological cleavage in the Israeli society is manifest online, through the linking patterns between political Websites. Link analysis is used to study political visibility and centrality online, to map the channels of information flow between the various political actors, and to identify recognition and discourse networks between the various political actors. From the link analysis of the sites of some 200 political parties, MPs, and NGOs, we found no links between right-wing and left-wing political sites; each side in the political spectrum conducts a different linking strategy. Most of the sites of political parties and MPs received no in-bound links from the other political sites. On the other hand, NGOs have a central role in the online political networks in Israel and maintain a relatively dense linking network.

The period covered in this chapter is dominated by the military rule years (imposed until 1966). This was a crucial period for Palestinians in Israel, as these were years of adaptation to the new reality created during and after the 1948 War and the establishment of Israel. Palestinians who remained in Israel became a minority in a matter of a few months, having the social, cultural and political fabric of their society completely shattered as a result of the destruction of hundreds of villages and the consequent exodus of the majority of Palestinians. Palestinian novels in this period provide a documentation of some of the events of the Nakba (in Haifa), as well as some aspects of Palestinian life during the military rule. However, novels in this period register the powerful effects on Palestinians in Israel of modernization discourse, which became prevalent during the 1960s.

This chapter describes Creed as a sequel-reboot which functions as a politically ambivalent, but textually reverent, reboot of the Rocky franchise (1976–90). It asserts that Creed is a film that at one and the same time celebrates the franchise’s deployment of the tropes of the boxing picture and male melodrama, while also updating the racial and sexual politics of the series. Developing ideas on the way film reboots mediate the tension between familiarity and novelty, the chapter demonstrates how Creed rewrites aspects of the original Rocky films so as to create a new political narrative, one that explicitly challenges stereotypes of African-American athletes.

Scientific and technological innovation has played an instrumental role in shaping contemporary China–Israel relations since the reform era in China. Based on a cross-disciplinary approach integrating international political economy and law, the chapter studies how, and why, innovation has shaped the relationship, and in particular, it analyses the implications of an innovation-based relationship, for China–Israel bilateral investment diplomacy. More broadly, the findings, pointing to innovation as an important explanatory variable in the China–Israel investment and trade relationship, can contribute to a better understanding of China’s changing international investment approach. The chapter starts by considering the importance of innovation in the individual development strategies of China and Israel, and their respective innovative ranking, noting China’s achievements in developing its own innovative capacity. The chapter discusses the central role of innovation in the history of China–Israel investment and trade relations. When geopolitical constraints have hindered innovation transfer, bilateral relations have suffered. The 2008 global financial crisis had surprisingly positive repercussions for Chinese–Israeli economic and political relations since it brought innovation to the forefront. Finally, the chapter focuses on three key aspects of innovation as a catalyst in the China–Israel investment relationship: the China–Israel bilateral investment treaty, its shortcomings, and the implications for the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations; intellectual property rights in the context of the FTA; and the limitations of innovation in the greater geopolitical context. Looking forward, given the above factors, the authors conclude that innovation as a catalyst in bilateral relations is likely to decline.

This chapter examines the military, political, and economic aspects of the Arab–Israel conflict over time. The Arab–Israeli conflict refers to the belligerency between the Arab states and Israel. The first Arab–Israeli War broke out immediately after the proclamation of the state of Israel on 14 May 1948, followed by other conflicts such as the 1967 and 1973 wars. The chapter first provides a historical background on the creation of Israel and how the Six Day War in 1967 gave rise to Arab nationalist rivalries and led to the re-emergence of the Palestinian factor in the Arab–Israeli conflict. It then considers the Egyptian–Israeli peace treaty and the Oslo peace process and shows how both realism and the contours of identity politics inform the position of different states in the conflict. It also discusses the relations between Palestine and Israel during the period 2000–2015.

This book has been driven by one large question: how are we to understand the Jewish Diaspora’s relationship with Israel when it is no longer appropriate, if it ever was, to presume that to be a good Jew means being a Zionist? Answering this question has meant working out what is it about Jewish identity that ties it to Israel, and what theoretical framework can be used to explore this relationship. The language of political obligation raised the hope that political theory could provide a starting point for working out the complexities of a relationship that involved obligations and had clear political aspects to it, but was characterized by a transnational geography spreading across a Diaspora and involving a specific state. The political obligation literature provided some headway, but it became clear very quickly that because of its state-centric focus, this language of political theory was not appropriate....

This chapter discusses different aspects of the Arab–Israeli conflict over time — military, political, and economic. The first two decades of the Arab–Israeli conflict, often marked by armed hostilities, were notable for Arab refusal to recognize Israel's existence. Since the 1967 war, Arab states, specifically Syria and Saudi Arabia, have displayed willingness to recognize Israel, and two, Egypt and Jordan, have signed peace treaties; Yasser Arafat recognized Israel's right to exist in the 1993 Oslo agreement. In this regard, most Arab states have adopted a realist approach to the Arab–Israeli conflict, seeking coexistence based in part on acceptance of Israel's military supremacy. In contrast, Israel appears to insist on security through regional domination, coupled with retention of the West Bank as Greater Israel.

The book opens with an Introduction that gives a tight description of the historical place Matzpen occupied in the Israel of the 1960s and 70s. Looking at Daniel Cohn-Bendit’s famous visit to Israel in the spring of 1970, the chapter offers an extensive interpretation of the Israeli debate that was triggered by the arrival of the leader of the European student revolt, but much more by his advocacy of the Israeli leftists of Matzpen. Taking this event as my departure point, an overview of Israeli society in the years following the Six-Day War is given, with an emphasis on three aspects that become relevant for the entire book: first, the return of the Palestine question with the beginning of the occupation, second, the place of Matzpen as a dissenting voice within Israeli society, and third, the continuing impact of Holocaust memory on political debates about the Israel-Palestine conflict. Only within this broader historical context is it possible to evaluate not only the significance of Matzpen in Israeli history but also the rejection the group encountered.

The article presents the results of the theoretical analysis of the main aspects of sports training in cyclic sports. To effectively solve the problem of training in cyclical sports, it is necessary to study the laws of the reaction of the body of athletes, including the processes of fatigue and recovery in response to the physical exertion of various directions. It is very important to individualize the training process, taking into account the functional state and reserve adaptive capabilities of the body. The authors identify such reasons that influence the development of cyclical sports as socio-economic and political transformations that are constantly taking place in Russia; demographic changes caused by the decline in the population of Russia due to the collapse of the Soviet Union; structural and organizational reasons that suggest the existence of an outdated system for training highly qualified athletes, the lack of modern centers and bases for Olympic training, an effective management system for Olympic training in General, and a targeted policy for training coaches and sports and medical personnel. The technological reasons that arose as a result of a sharp reduction in targeted research in all branches of sports science and an archaic mechanism for the development and implementation of effective innovative technologies are revealed. There is a significant lag in the medical and biological provision of training for Olympic athletes, etc. The analysis showed that the lag in the structural, organizational, and technological blocks of Olympic training is caused by a decrease in the effectiveness of scientific research.