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Children and young adults from the early Sarmatian burials of the Lower Volga region (paleopathological perspective)

Children and young adults from the early Sarmatian burials of the Lower Volga region (paleopathological perspective)

Pererva Evgeniy V., Chistobaeva Valentina Yu.

Статья научная

This paper presents the results of a study of bone remains of impuberal individuals from the Early Sarmatian burial mounds located in the Lower Volga region. When working with bone remains, we analyzed frequency of occurrence of various stress indicators and other abnormalities, taking into account biological age of the individuals buried there. The comparison of paleopathology results with the data from archaeological and ethnographic written sources made it possible to assess some aspects of the life of the early Sarmatian population. Thus, the number of children and adolescents in the early Sarmatian burials corresponds to the established paleodemographic standards proving the normal demographic situation in the paleopopulation. Reconstruction of nutrition patterns allows us to assert that breastfeeding in early Sarmatians was long. Meat and dairy products were the basis of the diet of both older children and adults. In the life of the population, there must have been occasional famine periods, for instance, due to livestock loss. The nomads' diet was limited to meat and milk products, did not provide proper nutrition and caused numerous diseases such as scurvy and porosis. Paleopathology data demonstrate the spread of helminthiases and various infections in the Sarmatians.

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China’s defense cooperation with Latin America and Caribbean: trends and limitations

China’s defense cooperation with Latin America and Caribbean: trends and limitations

Kashin V.B., Kosevich E.Yu.

Статья научная

Introduction. China started to develop military-to-military ties and defense-industrial cooperation with Latin America and Caribbean countries in the early 2000s as an element of its strategy of comprehensive cooperation with the region. Defense cooperation was mentioned in the Chinese documents and statements on the policy in the region from the early 2000s. However, China has always considered this defense cooperation to be just a secondary, subordinate element of its overall strategy in the region.

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Communication technologies of crowdsourcing in contemporary global and russian public policy

Communication technologies of crowdsourcing in contemporary global and russian public policy

Pankratova Liliya S., Shakarbieva Svetlana V.

Статья научная

Introduction. The paper studies crowdsourcing technologies of public communication that is an essential part of the global and regional contemporary political spaces as a method of nonviolent conflict resolution and reduction of social tensions in different parts of the world. Methods. The authors examine crowdsourcing technology of public political communication based on classical and modern concepts of political-communicative interaction of society and government (J. Habermas, M. Castells, G. Tarde, J. Shurovyeski, J. Howe). The paper reveals the specifics of implementation of crowdsourcing in the international public policy on the example of the United Nations Organization world agenda setting e-discussion projects, and in the political context of modern Russia with the spread of e-government practices, e-participation of individuals and groups. Results. The introduction of crowdsourcing is one of the important stages in the process of increasing the effectiveness of communication between government bodies, local authorities, business, political and public associations in developing and making the most important decisions for citizens all over the world. The demand for crowdsourcing in both international and Russian public policy is connected, on the one hand, with the recognition that a huge number of citizens have the abilities, talent, necessary competencies and qualities of innovative activity, and, on the other hand, with significance of development of ‘human capital’, understood as a set of knowledge and skills used to meet the diverse needs of citizens and societyas a whole, for the modern competitive and challenging world. Discussion. The limits of crowdsourcing technologyin public policy need to be evaluated from the perspective of social and cultural stratification and inequality, potential of mediated collective action.L.S. Pankratova has carried out complex analysis of the concept of public sphere in the context of new information communication technologies dissemination and examined the cases of crowdsourcing projects introduced by the United Nations Organization over recent years, as well as made professional translation of the article. S.V. Shakarbieva has conducted interdisciplinary analysis of social theories to interpret the concept of crowdsourcing and investigated the perspectives and limits of the spread of crowdsourcing communication technologies in the modern public policy space of Russia.

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Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos on Croatsin early medieval Southern Pannonia (DAI, C. 30, 75-78): a note on concept and method of Byzantine history writing

Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos on Croatsin early medieval Southern Pannonia (DAI, C. 30, 75-78): a note on concept and method of Byzantine history writing

Graanin Hrvoje

Статья научная

The paper endeavours to discuss anew a scholarlypuzzle related to the Croatian early Middle Ages and centred on a few lines from Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos’s De administrando imperio , which in English translation are as follows: And of the Croats who arrived to Dalmatia one part separated and ruled Illyricum and Pannonia. And they also had an independent ruler who was sending envoys, though only to the ruler of Croatia from friendship . Taking a different approach from the complete dismissal of the two sentences as a pure fiction or a mere literary device, the paper instead attempts to trace the concept behind this account as well as its underlying meaning. On the one hand, it seeks to detect the methods or strategies used by the royal compiler in trying to elucidate the past. On the other hand, it aims to provide a thorough historical analysis and offer a possible interpretation in opposition to the view, still largely extant in the Croatian scholarship, that this account is an evidence for an early presence of the group called Croats in southern Pannonia.

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Contemporary state and prospects of female protest development: from deprivation to mobilization

Contemporary state and prospects of female protest development: from deprivation to mobilization

Makarenko Kirill M., Pankratova Liliia S.

Статья научная

Introduction. The article presents the analysis of the сontemporary state and prospects for the development of women’s protest in a global perspective. The research focuses on the study of the causes and nature of mass women’s protest in the context of the formation of a new system of relations between the authorities and society represented by certain social groups. The relevance of the problem is determined by the need for a political science analysis of modern practices, causes and forms of women’s protest, making a forecast of the prospects for the development of women’s social movements. Methods and methodology. The methodological basis of the research is the synthesis of the relative deprivation theory by T.R. Gurr and the resource mobilization theory by Ch. Tilly, which makes it possible to present women’s protest through the prism of both psychological (deprivation) and institutional determinants. The empirical basis of the work is the data (338 cases) of the quantitative study “The Women in Resistance (WiRe)”, that is available for secondary analysis in the Harvard Dataverse Repository. Analysis. Women’s protests represent an institutional and non-institutional form of changing the “political field”. A common peripheral role of women in the political space serves as a basis for the formation of a common identity among them. A high degree of consolidation, as well as an active role of women in protest, correlates with the success of collective action. Protests in which women play an active role are more peaceful in nature. This is due to the mediating role of women, which prevents the growth of tension in the conflict. Results. Based on the analysis of statistical information and case-study, it was revealed that the economic and legal structural similarity of states does not determine the nature of women’s protest participation in politics, which is more dependent on historical practices, previously achieved results of women’s protest, the presence of institutional structures that organize protests, as well as on the specific problems of women in the state. The prospects for the development of women’s protest and women’s social movements are determined by the level of success achieved. While in Western Europe and the USA, women’s social movements are fighting for the achievement of post- material values, due to the solution of the economic differentiation problems, in Latin America, women are fighting for their natural right to life and their own bodies. A vector of women’s protest is aimed at combating all types of discrimination, but the nature of specific problems is fundamentally different.

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Cooperation between Russia and Norway: strengthening dialogue in the Arctic

Cooperation between Russia and Norway: strengthening dialogue in the Arctic

Bhagwat Ja.V., Rogachev I.V.

Статья научная

This study analyzes the degree of influence of international tension due to anti-Russian sanctions on relations between Russia and Norwayat thegovernmental and regional levels, includingpolitical, economic, environmental, cultural, and other spheres. The authors begin by discussing how Norway's accession to anti-Russian sanctions and active involvement in NATO have affected bilateral relations, especially in the economic and political spheres. The presented work is based on the principles of historicism and objectivity. The methodological framework for writing the article is the model of neoliberal institutionalism and constructivism. The source base of the study, in addition to publications in periodicals, consists of official documents regulating the foreign policyactivities of Russia and Norway . The article attempts to structure the relations of the twoArctic neighbouring countries under new international conditions by highlighting two levels of interaction - governmental and regional - as well as critical elements, including issues of economic cooperation, mutual sanctions, cooperation in the field ofenvironmental protection and fisheries, cooperation between the two countries in Spitsbergen, cooperation in science, culture, and education; and regional cooperation between Russia and Norway in the North and the Arctic. The article discusses to what extent security issues affect the development of the Russian-Norwegian dialogue in using the NSR as a transport route and problematic issues around Spitsbergen. Finally, the authors consider what practical measures are being taken by Russia and Norway to mitigate the general international tension in the bilateral dialogue using public diplomacy in the framework of strengthening and expanding contacts through the Barents Cooperation and interaction at the level of municipalities as well as universities in Russia and Norway. The authors conclude that notwithstanding geopolitical tensions, regional cooperation due to common borders, cultural and historical heritage, and the geo-economic relationship could be the primarydrivers for the revival of ties between the two countries. Authors'contribution . Jawahar Vishnu Bhagwat developed the concept of the study and worked out its theoretical and methodological foundations. I.V. Rogachevanalyzed the policies of Russia and Norway in various areas of bilateral cooperation and formulated the final conclusions.

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Crimean war, John Arthur Roebuck and public opinion in the Great Britain in the middle of the 19th century

Crimean war, John Arthur Roebuck and public opinion in the Great Britain in the middle of the 19th century

Klochkov V.V., Nazarova V.S., Uznarodov I.M.

Статья научная

Introduction. The key issue of this work is the relationship between the press, public opinion, and political institutions of Great Britain during the Crimean War (1853-1856). In this context, the political activity of the Sheffield radical John Arthur Roebuck (1802-1879) is considered. The relevance of the work is determined by the research thesis that, during the Crimean War, public opinion was no longer only broadcast by the press but was largely shaped by it.

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Current issues of information support of Russian foreign policy in the new political environment

Current issues of information support of Russian foreign policy in the new political environment

Menshikov Petr V., Neymatova Aida Ya.

Статья научная

Introduction. In the context of growing anti-Russian information wars, intensive and sharp ideological confrontation active information support of Russia’s foreign policy becomes more and more crucial. Methods. Authors use mainly the methods of expert evaluation and trends, opinion polls to prove that the US has long been waging information wars against Russia first using the term (“information war”) back in 1992. Moreover, with time the United States makes the methods of struggle more and more sophisticated and has already attracted the EU and NATO as associates. In addition, the methods of comparative analysis of research results of leading domestic and foreign experts in the field of information and ideological component of modern international relations and issues of information support of foreign policy of the Russian Federation, as well as general scientific and special methods of knowledge of legal phenomena and processes made as the object of the research: the method of systematic and structural analysis, comparative legal and formal-logical methods have been used. Analysis. Along with the tools of public diplomacy our state takes all the needed measures to defend its information sovereignty at all levels. Despite the fact that the Russian state strategy has consistently created a system of detecting, preventing and eliminating threats to its information security, still it is necessary to deal with ever growing amount of anti- Russian false information in the global media space. Results. Being one of the instruments of public diplomacy and foreign policy of any sovereign state, soft power takes into account the objective conditions of international relations and world politics and proceeds from the requirements of the national interests of the state as the main actor of the entire system of modern international relations. In the world practice of implementing the policy of soft power, starting with the creation of the Westphalian system of international relations, there was no precedent, when the state regardless of the socio-political nature of building a political system or the purposes of the foreign activity would be guided by different objectives and methods of analysis of world politics, the entire system of international relations and other goal-setting action in the international arena, including defined in the last decade by the concept of soft power. In the history of international relations, there has not been any world policy free from its ideological component. The thesis of de-ideologization of international relations, which received its definite distribution in the period immediatelyafter the collapse of the Soviet Union, in the practice of foreign policy actions of all the main actors of modern world politics has clearly proved its complete failure. Today, in the context of “hybrid wars” within the entire system of international relations, the world politics is no less ideologized than during the “cold war”. The political leadership of Russia allows the hypothetical possibility of cyberwarfare, provoked by the actions of the Republican administration of the United States. In December 2019, the White House authorized the preparation of a plan for conducting an information war with the Russian Federation by special forces of the U.S. Army, assigning the solution of this task to the above-mentioned cyber command. The policy of soft power of Russia, as well as its public diplomacy, as the whole complex of foreign policy activities of the Russian Federation in the international arena, is derived from the fundamental function of defending the national interests of Russia in the new political reality. The Russian Federation has consistently opposed the transformation of international relations into an arena of ideological confrontation with the use of tools of the so-called “information wars”. State sovereignty is unified. Information security, as a factor of ensuring information sovereignty, is a basic component of the unified state sovereignty. This is an accepted truth underlying the understanding of the nature of modern international relations, the principle underlying the foreign policy activity of any modern sovereign state, due to the objective regularity of the growth of the ideological factor of modern international relations. Moreover, in the face of targeted misinformation Russia needs to ensure its information security at both levels: political (ideological) and technical (technological) ones combining cyber as well as soft power tools. Only such a combination of these two crucial elements and continuous improvement can lead to victory in hybrid wars.

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Debates about Russia, America, and new world order: four books from the 1850s

Debates about Russia, America, and new world order: four books from the 1850s

Kurilla Ivan I.

Статья научная

Introduction. The first major crisis of the international relations system founded in Vienna after Napoleonic wars emerged with the series of European revolutions of 1848-1849 and Crimean War of 1853-1856. Not onlydiplomatic alliances required to be re-evaluated, but also politicians and thinkers challenged the philosophical foundations of the world order. As Russia was the guarantor of the old system, and the United States appeared as an attractive model for the European revolutionaries, the debate on the new world order involved re-assessment of the two countries respective roles and of their future relations. Methods and materials. The article examines books on the subject written during 1850s by four prominent thinkers: American aspiring politician Henry Winter Davis, Russian diplomat Alexei Evstafiev, Polish émigré and American journalist Adam Gurowski and Russian political émigré Ivan Golovin. Analysis. They provided four different visions of the future of the world, and, while never mentioning each other, produced a polyphonic sound of the important debate on the eve of the American Civil War. Results. Bipolarity of the international system predicted by Davis became a fact only a century later, while criticism and praise to American role as a model and an intervening power in European affairs became a constant feature of any subsequent debate.

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Development propsects of the Eurasian Economic Union as a regional integrational organization

Development propsects of the Eurasian Economic Union as a regional integrational organization

Bukalerova Liudmila A., Kaminskiy Ilya S.

Статья научная

Introduction. It has been almost thirty years since the idea of forming Eurasian space was voiced and seven years since that idea was embodied in the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Despite the acknowledgment of the EAEU importance and the recognition of the need of its further development by its member states, the organisation’s future is still in question. For instance, an increase in barriers has been observed, despite the fact that at the very beginning in 2015 when the EAEU was established, a gradual creation of the Eurasian customs union without exceptions and restrictions was proclaimed as one of its principles. Internal problems emerging between the EAEU member states considerably slow down the EAEU activity both within the EAEU and with its partners, and require a discussion of a broader agenda that goes beyond the economic sphere. In this regard, the authors set the goal of researching approaches to further development of the Eurasian economic integration as well as the harmonization of the EAEU member states in socio-cultural area. During the research, the authors used methods of scientific cognition, consistency, analysis and legal comparison. In order to examine the EAEU bodies’ development the authors also used legal research. Results. The authors’ position substantiated in the work is based on the history of the development of Eurasian economic integration, the influence of foreign policy, internal factors and soft power carried out by the neighboring countries of the region in various socio- economic spheres. Conclusions. As a result of the research, the authors come to the conclusion that it is necessary to restore and deepen cultural and historical ties between the participants of the Eurasian Economic Union, as a separate area of activity of the Eurasian Economic Commission.

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Digital diplomacy and social media networks: contemporary practices of innovation in foreign policy

Digital diplomacy and social media networks: contemporary practices of innovation in foreign policy

Reshetnikova Liudmila M., Samokhina Irina M.

Статья научная

Introduction. The article is devoted to contemporary digital diplomacy, which is implemented within the framework of social networks. Unlike traditional diplomacydigital one operates in a different communicative space where blogs, electronic media and global social networks are the key communication channels. Using these tools allows digital diplomacyactors to influence events and communities in other countries. Methods and materials. Method of mixing qualitative and quantitative data, hashtag-analysis, comparative analysis of the social networks’ messages and accounts were able to understand the dynamics and interactions in social networks, engagement and possibilities of institutional and private actors in digital diplomacy. Analysis. In the 2000s foreign policy and public diplomacy began forming based on data on the mood of users of social networks and their preferences in politics. Thanks to this, digital diplomacy may well become one of the innovative tools for resolving modern global problems. Digital diplomacy, as a new method and the tool for implementing foreign policy, contributes to the effective functioning of departments and ministries of foreign affairs, their response to the needs of citizens, to emerging challenges and threats to state security, like a global epidemic or natural disasters. Using digital tools, it is possible to shape the norms of communication, interaction and decision-making by which diplomats perform their work, modifying the diplomatic process. Besides this digital diplomacy increases the attractiveness of the state in the eyes of the world community. Results. Based on a comparative analysis study of the content of social networks, it could be concluded that over almost a decade, from the 2010s to the 2020s, digital diplomacy has developed from a “soft power” mechanism to a method of information warfare and propaganda which involves artificial intelligence tools and big data. But this is predominantly characteristic of technologically developed countries. It is possible to conclude about future co-existence of traditional and digital diplomacies in a new hybrid variety. Authors’ contribution. In this article Liudmila M. Reshetnikova has contributed Introduction, Research Methods, Analysis and Results sections: identified risks and threats to digital diplomacy, analyzed the development of the soft power methods, identified features and tools of digital diplomacy. Irina M. Samokhina has contributed Analysis and Results sections: analyzed social networks and digital infrastructure for digital diplomacy and diplomatic activity, contemporary computer tools for learning about social networks.

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Dynamics of the policy network in the aspect of global crisis phenomena (on the example of NATO)

Dynamics of the policy network in the aspect of global crisis phenomena (on the example of NATO)

Dresvianin D.V.

Статья научная

Introduction. A peculiarity of modern political reality is the interconnectedness of the processes of globalization and fragmentation in the world. In a new emerging paradigm of international relations, policy networks come to the fore. These are the network structures for managing public affairs, uniting a variety of political actors. The relevance of the study is due to the need for an objective evaluation of the development of the policy network in the context of global changes as well as forecasting potential threats in the field of international security. The aim of the work is to examine the dynamics of the policy network in the context of global crisis phenomena, using the example of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

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Education as a tool of the formation and transmission of political values

Education as a tool of the formation and transmission of political values

Antyukhova Ekaterina A.

Статья научная

The political culture of any society is supported and determined by the spiritual and moral values adopted by this particular society over the course of its historical development. We can say that general cultural values of the metaphysical order eventually transformed into socio-political values that formed the modern heterogeneous political space. The transmission of values, including political ones, takes place by means of exploiting different mechanisms by society and using different tools. Nevertheless, one of the most effective mechanisms at this time is education, which is more and more often considered by developed countries as a means of achieving their economic and political dominance in the international arena. In this aspect, education serves as a tool of “soft power” policy. It is through the expansion and spread of their education model that many countries promote their political values in economically and geopolitically important regions.

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Egerton Ryerson: building a spiritual and intellectual foundation for a Canadian identity

Egerton Ryerson: building a spiritual and intellectual foundation for a Canadian identity

Timko Robert M., Kubyshkin Aleksandr I.

Статья научная

The article analyses the philosophical and political theories of Egerton Ryerson (1803-1882) - one of the leading figures of intellectual history of Canada in the 19th century. The authors concentrate their research on the religious, political and educational activity of Ryerson,on his vision of good government and reform of educational institutions in Upper Canada. Special features of the Scottish Enlightment are discribed as well.

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Ethnic conflicts or economic benefits? A media content analysis about the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway as a part of the Trans-Caspian transport corridor

Ethnic conflicts or economic benefits? A media content analysis about the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway as a part of the Trans-Caspian transport corridor

Uste Ahmet Nazmi, Aydin Ulviyye Sanili

Статья научная

Introduction. The study analyses the reflection of the infrastructure projects on the Trans-Caspian transport corridor in the media. By combining the roles of transport corridor as a means of regional cooperation and overcoming ethnic issues between the countries, it is aimed at addressing two main questions. The first question would be on the reflection of infrastructure projects on the Trans-Caspian transport corridor in the media in the context of promoting regional cooperation, the second on whether news about infrastructure projects contains any ethnic based messages of discrimination or hostility to exclude any country from such projects. The BTK railway project is used as a case in this paper in this respect. Methods and materials. A conceptual content analysis methodology is applied in this study, which is limited to online media news of three major news agencies of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey within a specific time period beginning from the official inauguration of the BTK until the date of conducting this research - 30 October 2017 - 15 May 2020. Analysis and results. The findings reveal that the news investigated within the context of this research involves positive messages supporting regional cooperation, mutual benefits and common interests that mayhave an incentive impact on public perceptions. It was also discovered that the news about the BTK railway project does not contain any content otherizing or excludes any country, which may help societies to focus on regional cooperation rather than vulnerable ethnic issues. Considering the difficulty of control of social media, it has been recommended that official news may avoid publishing messages with provocative content. Authors’ contribution. A.N. Uste developed the content of the article and carried out its general scientific editing. U. Sanili Aydin proposed a scheme for research analysis. The authors jointly analyzed the results.

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Evolution of British euroscepticism in the second half of the 20th century

Evolution of British euroscepticism in the second half of the 20th century

Atapin Evgenii A.

Статья научная

Introduction. The United Kingdom is the most prominent example ofa Eurosceptic countryin the EU. For many years the United Kingdom did not feel a part of Europe. Great Britain was geographically separated from continental Europe and psychologically distant from the European integration movement established by the 1957 Treaty of Rome. The British Eurosceptic tradition rested on these geographic and psychological characteristics. Eurosceptic traditions included political, economic, linguistic, cultural and historical aspects that made it difficult for the United Kingdom to accept European integration. Methods and materials. The research methodology is based on narrative and comparative methods. The materials of the study incorporate statements of certain British politicians about attitudes towards European integration, works devoted to the analysis of Euroscepticism in the United Kingdom and manifestos of some far-right political parties. Analysis. Astudy of the attitude to European integration of the two main political forces of Great Britain, namely the Conservative and the Labour Parties, in the second half of the 20th century is carried out. Results. The study results in the creation of a periodization of British Euroscepticism in the second half of the 20th century. Three stages of evolution of British Euroscepticism in the period under study are distinguished: 1) the stage preceding the entryof Great Britain into the European Communities, conventionallycalled “Labour”; 2) the stage of the United Kingdom’s participation in the “common market”, conventionally called “Conservative”; 3) the stage of Britain’s participation in the European Union, conventionally called “Right-wing populist”. Their chronological framework is established and their main characteristics are given.

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Exchange of captives within the framework of the truce of deulino

Exchange of captives within the framework of the truce of deulino

Бохун Томаш

Статья научная

Введение. В статье исследован вопрос обмена военнопленными между Россией и Речью Посполитой после заключения Деулинского перемирия 1 (11) декабря 1618 года. Это перемирие ознаменовало окончание Смутного времени в Московском государстве и установило мирные отношения между Россией и Речью Посполитой на 14 лет. Автор провел анализ обстоятельств обмена пленными, а также выделил основные проблемы, которые возникли в ходе реализации договоренностей. Материалы. В качестве источников в исследовании использованы неопубликованные документы Посольского приказа: статейные списки, челобитные, списки договорных записей, хранящиеся в виде столбцов и книг в Российском государственном архиве древних актов в фондах № 79 «Сношения с Польшей» и № 141 «Приказные дела старых лет». Результаты. Деулинское перемирие предусматривало решение двух текущих вопросов: передачу семи приграничных городов и их уездов с последующей делимитацией границы и обмен военнопленными. Со временем была достигнута только часть первых договоренностей. По общему признанию, замки плавно перешли в польско-литовское владение, но из-за взаимных притязаний граница на Трубчевско-Новгородско-Северско-Брянской линии и Витебско-Торопецкой стала частью Поляновского мира (1634 г.), положившего конец Смоленской войне. Проблемы были также с обменом пленными, который произошел с опозданием более чем на три месяца. Здесь, однако, единственным виновником была польско-литовская сторона.

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Federal university's role in the implementation of the Russian Federation “soft power” conception in Central Asia (the case of Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov)

Federal university's role in the implementation of the Russian Federation “soft power” conception in Central Asia (the case of Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov)

Boldyreva Slavyana Yu., Boldyrev Roman Yu., Beloshitskaya Nataliya N.

Статья научная

Introduction. Currently the notion of the “soft power” is perceived as an effective way of nation’s non-forcible influence on other countries with a view to implement one’s own objectives. Suchlike implementation is confined to particular spheres to form a positive image of the nation. Higher education today is one of the most efficient instruments of the “soft power” implementation in the countries of Central Asia, for it allows securing friendly political and economic elite as well as enhancing the quality of labour migrants to the Russian Federation. The aim of the research is to analyze particular features of the “soft power” implementation in the domain of higher education in case with the region of Central Asia on the example of Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov (the city of Arkhangelsk, Russia, henceforth NArFU). Methods and materials. The study is based on systematic and comparative approaches to the analysis of the Russian “soft power” strategy in the domain of higher education. The studyin hand also draws on general approaches to the “soft power” implementation in the region of Central Asia. The main sources for the analysis are annual reports on implementing the NArFU programme of development. These reports pay a great deal of attention to academic recruiting and academic mobility. Analysis. The Central Asia region is crucial from the view point of Russia’s interests. The region is rich in hydrocarbon deposits, it boasts a great transit potential in international trade, and this is the region where the biggest number of migrants come from to Russia. For these reasons Russia is strengthening its “soft power” influence on Central Asian countries in general and in the sphere of higher education in particular. From the very day of the NArFU foundation in 2010, the region of Central Asia has been considered as a high-priority region. The example of NArFU demonstrates that the number of international students in the total number of full-cycle students has risen by 8.4 times, wherein the growth is secured mainly by students from Central Asian countries. Central Asian students’ percentage of the total number of international students is 82-89.3%. The percentage of students from the region in question, doing short-term educational programmes is also high - 49.5-61.4%. Diverse mechanisms are exploited to attract would-be students to NArFU: agreements with educational establishments of the region; visits of NArFU’s representatives (both lecturers and students) to the region; NArFU’s participation in international exhibitions on education; presenting NArFU’s educational programmes on the basis of “Rossotrudnichestvo” regional offices; inviting school graduates to study within the quota for fellow-countrymen residing abroad; arranging off-site university testing and multi-disciplinary intellectual contests; higher educational allowances and medical insurance compensation; active promotion with the help of social media. The international Friendship Club and the team of tutors were set up to ensure better social and cultural adaptation, regular events and excursions take place on the same purpose. Results. Despite the fact that there is no general state-level integral concept on attracting school graduates from the countries of Central Asia to the universities of Russia, NArFU managed to occupy the niche on the educational market of the region. University’s administration has been pursuing a clear course towards attracting would-be students from Central Asia, exploiting a wide range of mechanisms to enhance academic recruiting, relying upon the advantages of Arkhangelsk region in the sphere ofmigrants’ adaptation. Over the recent ten years the factors mentioned above have brought about more than eight times growth of students from the region of Central Asia in NArFU.

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