This thesis examines the apparent discrepancy in success between Iran and North Korea when it comes to developing nuclear weapons. Both states at one time sought to acquire nuclear weapons for internal political and external security reasons. But whereas North Korea successfully detonated its first atomic bomb in 2006, Iran was pressured into an agreement in 2015 which put significant restraints on its nuclear programme. This thesis finds that there were multiple contributory factors that lay behind these differing outcomes. Specifically, it finds that while both nations had similar motivations to acquire nuclear weapons, their economic/military capabilities and the external pressure against their ambition differed in one case from the other. The ability of North Korea to deter a potential military attack from the United States together with the regime's ability to rely on its Chinese and South Korean partners for diplomatic protection as well as its own brutality towards its own population played the key role.

- EN The aim of this thesis is to answer the research question of "Why did the US not conduct a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities during the Trump presidency despite the sharp criticism of Iran's nuclear program?" The thesis presents several hypotheses that deal with the conditions for a military strike against nuclear facilities of a potential nuclear proliferator to be conducted. One such hypothesis is chosen to be confirmed or refuted in the case of US- Iran relations during Trump's presidency. The hypothesis states that Iran was able to deter the US by the threat of conventional retaliation. Methods of single case study and discourse analysis are used. The empirical part of the thesis firstly assesses whether all three steps of securitization as described by the Copenhagen school were completed. This work claims that Iranian nuclear program was indeed successfully securitized in the US during Trump's presidency. Secondly, an analysis of the components of Iranian conventional deterrence is provided. It is ascertained that Iran commanded strong enough conventional forces to be able to mount effective attacks on targets valuable to the US. All three conditions of the deterrent's credibility were also met, and Iran sufficiently communicated the threat to the US. Therefore, this thesis...

In the years following World War II, Iran became one of the closest allies of United States of America in the Middle East. The era of friendship was replaced by hostilities and mutual mistrust after the 1979 Iranian revolution. In order to understand the current situation the analysis of American foreign policy towards Iran during the reign of Mohammed Reza Shah Pahlavi has been done. The author of the thesis The Making of a Special Relationship: Iran in the Foreign Policy of the United States, 1953 - 1979 questions what kind of policy the United States adopted towards Iran that inevitably led to such dramatic end? What kind of rule Washington pursued towards Tehran that Revolution arose with anti-American spirit? The research has been performed in a constructivist framework. American foreign policy with its specific values, norms, beliefs, culture and language towards other states creates, according to constructivist scholars, three different types of rule: hegemony, hierarchy and heteronomy. The analysis of U.S. foreign policy and declassified primary documents showed that U.S.-Iranian relations operated in heteronomic structures. United States created rules that determined Iran to be dependent on it. The country under Shah's rule became more developed and powerful, but not independent. Thanks to...

The aim of the present paper is to answer the question on how do regional powers shape the security environment within their regional subcomplex? The research interest is conditioned by the rise of powers that represent strong actors, especially in regional affairs, and which certainly influence dynamics within their region. It has been assumed that the manifestation of power at the regional level can also be transferred, to the global level leading to an elevated position of these actors in global affairs, allowing equally for the existing Western-led order to be challenged. These assumptions have been applied and tested on the example of the regional powers Russia, Turkey and Iran and their respective influence on the security dynamics in the South Caucasus as their historically common shared neighbourhood. In order to disentangle the complicated web of relationships and influential factors, the descriptive framework of the Theory of Regional Security Complexes as suggested by Barry Buzan has been outlined and applied. Based on these theoretical observations the attention has been further turned towards the empirical testing of the hypothesis which states that Russia, Turkey and Iran have exercised influence during the second Nagorno-Karabakh War 2020 that occurred between Armenia and Azerbaijan...

The Master's thesis Iranian opposition and blogging - the phenomenon of Citizen journalism in a non-free society is focused on analysis of blogging as an opposition's communication tool within the nondemocratic regimes, contemporary Iran in particular. The research question is How can be the opposition's communication performed by blogging and what are the limitations and possibilities of such communication. The primary hypothesis is that the blogs are not used for direct manangement of opposition's actions, but rather as an alternative space for free expression. Four opposition's blogs written in english are analysed by means of qualitative analysis. The main criteria for selection of blogs were that the blog should be actualised on regular basis, based in Iran or at least written by a native Iranian, and clearly be in favour of the opposition's ideology. Content published between march 2009 and march 2010 was selected for analysis, for it was the period of disputed presidential election and following citizen's unrest in Iran. The issues of media's effects are not discussed in the thesis. Aside of the analysis, certain theoretical models of communication and their potential use within Iran's blogosphere are discussed. The analysis finally confirms that the bloggers have a potential to become...

The diploma thesis "At the Top, or behind the Zenith of Power? To the Effect of Winston S. Churchill as the Prime Minister of Great Britain in the Years 1951-1955" examines the effect of Winston S. Churchill during his second term as Prime Minister of Great Britain. The thesis analyzes his effect on foreign policy, where the main emphasis is on the relationship with the United States, his plans for negotiations with the Soviet Union, domestic politics, and his tenure at the head of the Conservative Party. It briefly analyzes his relationship and disputes with Foreign Minister Anthony Eden, and the British Prime Minister's medical condition. The main focus of the thesis is devoted to Churchill's ability to promote his ideas and plans in all areas of his operations, as a leading politician of the Great Britain.

This thesis is focused on the influence of money, that comes from oil export, on economy, politics and society of selected oil exporting countries: Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Norway, Ira nand Equatorial Guinea. The first part characterizes oil, its extraction, reserves, flows, and consumption . The influence of oil on economy, politics and society is explained on the example of Venezuela in the second chapter. In the third part the effects in the other countries are compared. The key question is: Is the oil wealth advantage or disadvantage for the country?

The diploma thesis analyses the role of Iran in contemporary relations. It discuss its position by means of its historic background, its religious beliefs, its economic situation, the monetary aspects and its inner politic situation. The main attention is focused on its relations with the United States of America, particularly on economic ties, petrodollar policy and on the Iranian nuclear program threat. It also pays attention to the context of oil importance in the Middle East and to the Israeli foreign policy.

The Iran's nuclear program makes really deep wrinkles to the United States as one of the main supporters of peace and stability in the world. Despite the fact that Iran has not showed any tests of its nuclear weapons, the USA still tends to destroy Iranian nuclear facilities to protect its national interests. The aim of the thesis is not only to analyze US foreign policy towards Iran but also to deal with the issue of the US non-intervention of Iranian territory to halt the Iranian nuclear program.

This thesis tries to identify what's at stake of normalized relations between the United States and Iran since the Iranian revolution in 1979. The thesis tries to find out what are the key issues behind the failed relations between these two countries from the American point of view in order to determine whether normalized relations between these two countries can ever be achieved. It elaborates on four key characteristics of individual level analysis of foreign policy decision making applied on three key Presidents involved in foreign policy making towards Iran since 1979.