Дисертації з теми "Regional enlargement"

This thesis contributes in several ways to the theoretical literature that studies regionalism. First, this thesis investigates whether there are incentives for a regional trading bloc to enlarge through further extensions of its membership, or to reject new membership requests. Chapter 2 develops a theoretical model where the incentives for a regional trading bloc to enlarge and for third countries to join are formalised, and the enlargement of the bloc is endogenously determined by the interaction between supply of, and demand for membership. Furthermore, this analytical set-up is used to assess how deeper integration among the members of a regional trading bloc affects the equilibrium size of the bloc. Second, this thesis studies the incentives for a country to enter a regional trade agreement when a multilateral free trade agreement is available, and the implications of the choice of regionalism for the incentives to pursue subsequent multilateral trade liberalisation. Chapter 3 provides a theoretical model that formalises a country's choice between entering a regional trade agreement or a multilateral free trade agreement, depicted as alternative trade policy options. Also this analytical framework is used to assess how a country's choice to enter the regional trade agreement affects its incentives to liberalise trade multilaterally. Third, this thesis studies the trade effects of deeper integration among the members of a regional trading bloc, and the impact of economic dissimilarities on the identified trade effects. Chapter 4 develops a general equilibrium model which formalises the trade effects of the formation of a currency union among the members of a regional trading bloc, and of the subsequent enlargement of the currency union to include an economically dissimilar country. Furthermore, this analytical framework is used to assess how economic dissimilarities between the members of the currency union and the accession country affect the magnitude of the trade effects that would follow the enlargement.

The general aim of this paper is to describe how the European Union can affect and transfer their conditionality politics to the Western Balkan countries. A specific purpose of this study is to describe and explain what we in this paper consider to be a specific additional membership criterion, regional cooperation that has been especially designed for this region. The point of departure for this paper is Europeanization theory that will be used to study the European Union’s impact on non EU-members in Europe. The theoretical Europeanization mechanisms are taken from Heather Grabbes “Europeanization model”. A descriptive case study method together with a theory consuming method will be used. After the wars in former Yugoslavia the now independent countries started in their own pace to move closer the European Union. The problems the individual countries faced in the beginning of the 21^st century were much a consequence of the war. This lead the European Union to establish a special political and economical regional framework, where regional cooperation was emphasized. Regional cooperation developed into one of the most important elements in the EU´s relation with the countries and is made a specific requirement under the Stabilization- and association process. Implications this paper makes are that regional cooperation can be considered as a specific requirement the EU use in the Western Balkan countries membership process and that EU have a series of “influencing tools” which works to promote regional cooperation in the Western Balkans.

This thesis aims at analyzing why the municipality of Flen, in the eastern part of Sweden, has experienced strong depopulation for the last forty years in spite of its relative vicinity to Stockholm. The study uses current theories on regional developement, population theory and theories on regional enlargment to help explain and to evaluate the different regional factors that affect the developement of Flen on the local level. The thesis is primarily focused on the subject of regional policy and strategies to meet regional depopulation. The study also gives a presentation of the strategies of major regional institutions as well as analyzing what impact regional policy have on local policy in the municipality of Flen. Interviews with local officials, politicians and other people representing the population of Flen were carried out to achieve a better understanding of the specific challenges that the municipality faces and of the measures that are taken to meet them. Regional policy in Sweden prioritises measures that promote regional enlargment to link the housing and labour markets together with the regional infrastructure. Each region should promote and develop its own unique qualities as a way of stimulating growth. This disregards the former notion that the state should strive for regional growth to be achieved equally distributed within its boundaries. The thesis puts forward the view that this development could lead to an allowance for some regions to be neglected by the state. The findings in this study show that the measures that are put in to curb the stagnation in the municipality of Flen are made with difficulty and cannot be financed without external aid. The challenges are to a growing extent no longer managable by the municipality itself which brings me to a final conclusion that predicts that Flen could befavoured in a future municipal reform in which there are clearer connections to Stockholm and to other larger towns in the region, as well as a new delimitation that better takes the functional relationships of the population into account.

This paper addresses the so-called political rationale of the European Union’s (EU) regional policy in the context of the forthcoming eastern enlargement. The political rationale emphasises a particular type of organisation, involving multiple layers of governance and actors. This organisation is considered important in effectively reducing regional disparities. Regarding the great amount of EU regional funding the candidate states in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) are expected to receive upon accession, capable institutions and structures for handling these funds are vital. Also, it is a crucial part of the EU’s accession criteria. By using Hungary and the implementation of the partnership principle as a case study, the process of preparing for the regional funds in CEE is investigated in-depth. A policy analysis of the cohesion between EU policy objectives and the Hungarian implementation process of the partnership principle serves as the overall basis for the analysis. In order to analyse and understand the implementation process, Historical Institutionalism (HI) is applied as a theoretical framework. It contributes by assessing the factors affecting the implementation process and thus, policy coherence. A triangulation of data consisting of interviews with Hungarian officials and EU Member State experts involved in the implementation of partnership practices, primary and secondary texts as well as basic statistics is made against the propositions formulated through HI.

In turn, a number of analytical findings have been discovered. Firstly, the policy process is seen as highly constrained by formal and informal institutional factors, created by historical policy legacies. These have shaped the goals and preferences of the actors involved and have also privileged certain groups over others. In turn, path-dependency is noticed. Secondly, this has made policy cohesion rather weak, with certain short-term requirements being fulfilled but with a lack of more in-depth, long-term measures. Thus, there is a mismatch between the EU and the Hungarian regional policy organisation. Thirdly, although the formal institutional mechanisms for change are rather rigid, indications of informal mechanisms providing possibilities of institutional change were found, with some actors adapting to the EU enlargement context. This could lead to partnership practises gradually infiltrating some ofthe institutional and organizational features and in turn, become strengthened through the multi-level governance structure of the EU. Yet, implementation of the partnership principle is identified as a long and open process, with the real challenges arriving as Hungary enters the EU

O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar a geopolítica da Turquia após as transformações que alteraram o ambiente geopolítico em escala mundial. Desde a fundação da República da Turquia, Ancara tem desenvolvido relações preferenciais com o Ocidente, implementando diversas adaptações políticas, sociais e econômicas a fim de superar definitivamente o legado otomano e se ajustar às exigências do mundo ocidental. Durante a Guerra Fria, a Turquia passou a integrar a Aliança Transatlântica e serviu como elemento de contenção da União Soviética. Entretanto, o fim do mundo bipolar reduziu a importância da Turquia para a ampla estratégia de contenção americana, trazendo a necessidade de novos argumentos para manter o seu peso estratégico. Ao mesmo tempo, surgiram novas oportunidades para Ancara, especialmente quanto ao desenvolvimento de relações econômicas e culturais com os Estados independentes da ex-União Soviética. Os atentados de 11 de setembro e a reação norte-americana colocaram a Turquia novamente no centro da política americana como exemplo de compatibilidade entre o Islã e a modernidade ocidental e no combate ao terrorismo. Diversas interpretações do espaço geopolítico mundial destacam a importância da Turquia, desde sua importância estratégico-militar até seu papel como interlocutora entre o Ocidente e o mundo muçulmano, dentro de uma sugestão de choque entre as civilizações. Apesar disso, a Turquia ainda enfrenta sérios desafios externos em todas as direções, entrelaçados com seus problemas internos que, por muitas vezes, ultrapassam suas fronteiras e se tornam assuntos transnacionais.
The aim of this research is to evaluate Turkey\'s Geopolitics after the tectonic forces that reshaped the balance of power and the geopolitcs at a world level. Since its foundation after the Ottoman Empire break up in the years immediately following World War I, Ankara started to adapt itself in Western structures, such as NATO. The collapse of the USSR and Eastern Europe, raised some doubts about Turkey\'s importance to the West. However, the aftershocks at the beginning of the twenty-first century and the War on Terrorism launched by the US and its allies, pushed Turkey from the Western periphery to the very center of world politics, thrusting Turkey into an increasingly role in the Middle East, the Southeastern Europe, and Caucasus/ Central Asia. In addition, its geopolitcal position interpreted by some scholars reinforced its strategic and, at some extend, crucial position to the West and to the system evolution. At the same time, Turkey\'s aspiration to become a member of the European Union, its ethnic, linguistic and religious affinities to the Turkic republics combined with the energy resources issues eastwards and its security concerns in the Middle East, reveal the complexity and the challenges facing Turkey.

There is an urbanization trend in the world. Sweden is no exception. Today, approximately 85 percent of Sweden's population live in urban areas, which means that urbanization has grown considerably since the beginning of the 19th century when 90 percent of Sweden's population lived in rural areas. At the same time as urbanization has grown stronger, employment commuting, both within and across municipal boundaries, has increased. Improved infrastructure in the form of better road networks, faster and denser public transport and an increased number of passenger cars are all contributing factors to this. As an effect of the increased commuting, local labour markets have been expanded in many places and so-called regional enlargement has been created.   The aim of this study is to map and analyse the development pattern, with the focus on the population, in the Umeå region during the period 2000 to 2015. The purpose is also to discuss the development in the region and it’s connection to theories and the general development.   The study is a descriptive quantitative study based on municipal statistics from SCB. The study describes population development in different demographic dimensions for all municipalities in the Umeå region.   The study's results indicate that the Umeå region has had a positive development between 2000 and 2015, but the differences within the region are high. Umeå municipality is the municipality that had the strongest growth, while the surrounding municipalities had a weak, and in some cases also a negative development. You can see clear traces of urbanization in the region, not only Umeå municipality has had a positive development, but primarily Umeå city.     Keywords: population development, urbanization, local labor markets, regional enlargement, growth poles

Göteborgs stad står inför en av sina största infrastrukturinvesteringar i modern tid - en åtta kilometer lång järnvägstunnel under staden i form av Västlänken. Västlänken presenteras i sammanhanget som den hållbara lösningen för att uppnå ambitionen om regionförstoring. Målet med studien har därför varit att undersöka hur hållbarhetsbegreppet används i relation till Västlänken av projektets förespråkare Göteborgs stad, Trafikverket och Västa Götalandsregionen. Med hjälp av Carol Bacchis diskursanalytiska WPR-metod synliggörs i denna uppsats hur ’problemen’ som ligger till grund för Västlänken konstruerats i planerings- och policydokument, vilket medfört att utvecklingen styrts i en specifik riktning. Studien har haft en socialkonstruktivistisk utgångspunkt, vilket bygger på tesen att språkbruket bidrar till att konstruera en bild av ’verkligheten’, inom vilken begrepp ges innebörd efter kontext. De som äger rätten att forma diskursen, är också de som har möjlighet att genom diskursen styra utvecklingen i en önskvärd riktning. Denna studie synliggör några av de problem som kan uppstå när normativa och värdeladdade begrepp används som argument för att legitimera specifika åtgärder.
The city of Gothenburg (Göteborgs stad) is facing one of its largest infrastructural investments in modern times - an eight-kilometer long railway tunnel under the city in the form of Västlänken. Västlänken is presented as the sustainable solution for achieving the ambition of regional enlargement. The aim of the study has therefore been to examine how the concept of sustainability is used in relation to Västlänken by the project promoters Göteborgs stad, Trafikverket and Västra Götalandsregionen. With Carol Bacchi's discourse analytical WPR approach, this study shows how the ’problems’ that form the basis of Västlänken were constructed in planning and policy documents, which led to the development being driven in a specific direction. The study has had a social constructivist viewpoint, which is based on the thesis that language use contributes to constructing an image of ’reality’, in which concepts are given meaning by context. Those who own the right to form the discourse are also those who have the opportunity to steer the development in a desirable direction through the discourse. This study highlights some of the problems that may arise when normative and value-added concepts are used to legitimize specific measures.

This thesis assesses the underlying political and financial reasons of the recent budgetary crisis of the European Union. It aims to discuss the possible reform alternatives for the European Union budget in order to improve it to better serve for the objectives of the enlarged Union and to enable the Member States to share the budget burden more fairly. To this purpose, the thesis first analyzes the budget of the European Union in terms of its aims, evolution and structure of revenue and expenditure items and than presents a general overview of the shortcomings of the present own resources system. In general, the thesis discusses possible reform areas, in which the reform process could take place. The thesis also shows how the Union overcame the policy challenges, and particularly the budgetary implications brought out with the inclusion of Central and Eastern European countries and how its financial perspectives covering the 2000-06 and 2007-2013 periods were finalized.

&lsquo
The reconstruction of Europe&rsquo
is a subject covering a quite long period that has seen various outstanding historical events changing the geography and power distribution in Europe, and in the politics of international relations within a general framework. This study underlines the impact of geopolitical setting in the post-WW II and the post-Cold War periods to understand the acts of actors and related outcomes in the reconstruction of Europe. By the comparison of reconstructive acts and ingredients of the foreign policy strategies in both periods, this study attempts to reach the conclusion that &lsquo
the geographical position&rsquo
and the &lsquo
capability to implement&rsquo
defines states&rsquo
foreign policy structuring. The policy choice and instruments of the US in the post-WW II period for the reconstruction of Europe and the policy choice and instruments of West European countries for the reconstruction of Central and Eastern Europe, via the EU and enlargement strategy, in the post- Cold War period has been the focal point of this study to support the argument mentioned above.

L’estudi de l’comportament de la fecunditat, a Colòmbia, no és un tema que requereixi una àmplia justificació i demostrar la seva importància, més quan les anàlisis d’aquest fenomen són reduïts, no estandarditzats en les seves metodologies i no compten amb una freqüència contínua, que permeti seguir la seva traçabilitat, tant en els nivells nacionals com sub-nacionals, a la fecunditat de moment i en la de les generacions. Els estudis de fecunditat, a diferència dels de mortalitat, no són molt nombrosos, algunes estimacions realitzades amb informació censal, donen fe de la fecunditat de moment i geogràficament a nivells molt desagregades, departamental, municipal i fins i tot àrea. Objectius: L’objectiu d’aquesta tesi és, analitzar retrospectivament les característiques de l’comportament reproductiu de les dones a Colòmbia, a escala nacional, regional i d’àrees menors i les relacions entre fecunditat i migració i fecunditat i educació, a partir de les pautes del conjunt nacional i les seves peculiaritats en l’escala regional, a partir de la informació recollida en els censos de 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 i 2018; utilitzant les eines que ofereix l’anàlisi longitudinal. Fonts: La font proposta per a aquesta anàlisi amb les preguntes sobre fecunditat retrospectiva que es van fer en els censos de 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 i 2018. Mètodes: Quant als mètodes, es va utilitzar El-Badry ajustat per Vincent per corregir la paridez no declarada a les preguntes no sap / no respon. Per a l’estimació de la fecunditat es va utilitzar el mètode de Paridez mitjana i per identificar presència de control de la natalitat es van estimar probabilitats de engrandiment de les famílies. Les anàlisis van ser afectats pel perfil migratori de les dones i el seu nivell educatiu. També van fer anàlisis exploratòries geogràfics-demogràfic de la fecunditat per a això es va utilitzar econometria espacial exploratòria, es van construir clúster. Finalment, es van aplicar models de regressió logística per identificar els efectes que altres variables exerceixen sobre la fecunditat. Principals resultats: La qualitat de la informació censal és bona per a l’estimació de la fecunditat. La correcció del-Badry va oferir informació robusta, especialment a nivell departamental. La fecunditat és descendent tant en els nacional com en els regional, la diferència es troba en els diferencials de l’descens. En els departament més desenvolupats i més urbanitzats, la presència d’al control de la natalitat es dóna des de les generacions que van néixer al començament de segle. El nivell educatiu de les dones és fonamental per definir la seva fecunditat, i fins i tot per decidir controlar la seva fecunditat. Pel que fa a l’perfil migratori, les dones emigrants són les que menor nivell de fecunditat reporten. La dinàmica poblacional en els departaments és heterogènia, de manera que la correlació espacial no es dóna en totes les unitats d’observació, aquesta tècnica és més acceptable a nivell municipal; en aquest context l’aplicació de l’econometria espacial a la fecunditat ha identificat l’existència de conglomerats espacials d’alta i baixa fecunditat relativa. És a dir, encara que la fecunditat general decreix, les relacions espacials de fecunditat es mantenen en certes àrees que evolucionen a un mateix ritme: en unes àrees amb fecunditat per sobre de la mitjana i en altres per sota.
El estudio del comportamiento de la fecundidad, en Colombia, no es un tema que requiera una amplia justificación y demostrar su importancia, máxime cuando los análisis de este fenómeno son reducidos, no estandarizados en sus metodologías y no cuentan con una frecuencia continua, que permita seguir su trazabilidad, tanto en los niveles nacionales como sub-nacionales, en la fecundidad de momento y en la de las generaciones. Los estudios de fecundidad, a diferencia de los de mortalidad, no son muy numerosos, algunas estimaciones realizadas con información censal, dan fe de la fecundidad de momento y geográficamente a niveles muy desagregados, departamental, municipal e incluso área. Objetivos: El objetivo de esta tesis es, analizar retrospectivamente las características del comportamiento reproductivo de las mujeres en Colombia, a escala nacional, regional y de áreas menores y las relaciones entre fecundidad y migración y fecundidad y educación, a partir de las pautes del conjunto nacional y sus peculiaridades en la escala regional, a partir de la información recabada en los censos de 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 y 2018; utilizando las herramientas que ofrece el análisis longitudinal. Fuentes: La fuente propuesta para este análisis con las preguntas sobre fecundidad retrospectiva que se hicieron en los censos de 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 y 2018. Métodos: En cuanto a los métodos, se utilizó El-Badry ajustado por Vincent para corregir la paridez no declarada en las preguntas no sabe/ no responde. Para la estimación de la fecundidad se utilizó el método de Paridez media y para identificar presencia de control de la natalidad se estimaron probabilidades de agrandamiento de las familias. Los análisis fueron afectados por el perfil migratorio de las mujeres y su nivel educativo. También hicieron análisis exploratorios geográficos-demográfico de la fecundidad para lo cual se utilizó econometría espacial exploratoria, se construyeron clúster. Por último, se aplicaron modelos de regresión logística para identificar los efectos que otras variables ejercen sobre la fecundidad. Principales resultados: La calidad de la información censal es buena para la estimación de la fecundidad. La corrección de El-Badry ofreció información robusta, especialmente a nivel departamental. La fecundidad es descendente tanto en los nacional como en los regional, la diferencia se encuentra en los diferenciales del descenso. En los departamento más desarrollados y más urbanizados, la presencia del control de la natalidad se da desde las generaciones que nacieron a comienzos de siglo. El nivel educativo de las mujeres es fundamental para definir su fecundidad, e incluso para decidir controlar su fecundidad. En cuanto al perfil migratorio, las mujeres emigrantes son las que menor nivel de fecundidad reportan. La dinámica poblacional en los departamentos es heterogénea, por lo que la correlación espacial no se da en todas las unidades de observación, esta técnica es más aceptable a nivel municipal; en este contexto la aplicación de la econometría espacial a la fecundidad ha identificado la existencia de conglomerados espaciales de alta y baja fecundidad relativa. Es decir, aunque la fecundidad general decrece, las relaciones espaciales de fecundidad se mantienen en ciertas áreas que evolucionan a un mismo ritmo: en unas áreas con fecundidad por encima de la media y en otras por debajo.
The study of fertility behavior in Colombia is not a subject that requires ample justification and demonstrates its importance, especially when the analyzes of this phenomenon are reduced, not standardized in their methodologies and do not have a continuous frequency that allows follow its traceability, both at the national and sub-national levels, in the fertility of the moment and in that of the generations. Fertility studies, unlike mortality studies, are not very numerous, some estimates made with census information attest to fertility at the moment and geographically at highly disaggregated levels, departmental, municipal, and even area. Objectives: The objective of this thesis is to retrospectively analyze the characteristics of the reproductive behavior of women in Colombia, at a national, regional and smaller area scale and the relationships between fertility and migration and fertility and education, based on the guidelines of the whole national and its peculiarities on the regional scale, based on the information collected in the censuses of 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 and 2018; using the tools offered by longitudinal analysis. Sources: The source proposed for this analysis with the questions on retrospective fertility that were asked in the censuses of 1973, 1985, 1993, 2005 and 2018. Methods: Regarding the methods, El-Badry adjusted by Vincent was used to correct the undeclared parity in the questions does not know / does not answer. For the estimation of fertility the method of average parity was used and to identify the presence of birth control, probabilities of enlargement of families were estimated. The analyzes were affected by the migratory profile of women and their educational level. They also made exploratory geographic-demographic fertility analyzes, for which exploratory spatial econometrics were used, clusters were built. Finally, logistic regression models were applied to identify the effects that other variables exert on fertility. Main results: The quality of the census information is good for estimating fertility. El-Badry's correction offered robust information, especially at the departmental level. Fertility is descending both in the national and regional ones, the difference is found in the differentials of the decrease. In the more developed and more urbanized departments, the presence of birth control has occurred since the generations that were born at the beginning of the century. The educational level of women is essential to define their fertility, and even to decide to control their fertility. Regarding the migratory profile, migrant women report the lowest level of fertility. The population dynamics in the departments is heterogeneous, so the spatial correlation does not occur in all observation units. This technique is more acceptable at the municipal level; In this context, the application of spatial econometrics to fertility has identified the existence of spatial conglomerates of high and low relative fertility. In other words, although general fertility decreases, spatial fertility relationships are maintained in certain areas that evolve at the same rate: in some areas with fertility above the average and in others below.
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Programa de Doctorat en Demografia

This diploma thesis is focused on the analysis of Russian foreign policy towards Kazakhstan and Ukraine. The actions of the external players, namely the US (NATO), the EU and China are discussed in order to see how these foreign entities can modify Russia's actions in its backyard. The current state of affairs demands a careful examination of Russian foreign policies. As Russia has demonstrated in Georgia, Ukraine, Syria, it is willing to protect its interests at any cost. Thus, it was decided to analyze whether the foreign involvement in Kazakhstan would provoke Russian aggression. The primary aim is to provide a complex examination of Russian involvement in Kazakhstan and Ukraine along with the increasing influence from external players. This thesis is expected to contribute to the existing research on Russian foreign policy by providing an essential background for future researches as well as by presenting previously incomparable cases. This work presents a significant historical background that provides a reader with the in- depth analysis of Russia's relations with Kazakhstan and Ukraine. Geopolitical, military, economic, social factors are analyzed to present a broader perspective of the regional interconnections. Thus, this work analyzes how Russia has established its dominance in the...

Presented thesis Programs of the European Union of supporting regional interparliamentary cooperation in the region of Western Balkans as an instrument of regionalisation is focusing on regional parliamentary cooperation in the region of Western Balkans and programs of the European Union which are programmed to support this particular cooperation. The study is framed in the theory of new regionalism and the approach of socialization in international relations, which both offer in the case of European integration explanation of why regionalization takes place. The aim of the thesis is to answer the question whether the European Union is successful in its support of regionalization via regional parliamentary cooperation. Meaning if the mechanism of socialization chosen by the Union is effective and if institutional capacities of the national parliament in the region to conclude this cooperation are being built either via direct engagement with the Union, or via indirect way by engaging with regional initiatives active in regional parliamentary cooperation such as Regional Cooperation Council, COSAP and Cetinje Parliamentary Forum. By analyzing the mechanism of socialization and the environment in which the socialization takes place the thesis identifies if, and how much is the European Union able to...