No description available.

As an arms-exporting state, Sweden has certain legal responsibilities to ensure that licences authorizing arms exports are in line with existing laws, policies and guidelines. Apart from that, the government has an ethical responsibility to ensure that arms are not exported to countries where they are used to oppress the population and commit human rights abuses. Despite this, questionable and unethical deals are authorized without any accountability being demanded. The main purpose of the essay is to perform a critical ethical analysis of the Swedish arms trade policy, to develop the application of policies in relation to arms trade, and to suggest additional criteria to make this trade more ethically justifiable. Among other things, it is asked whether different goals and principles come into conflict, and if they do, does the “right” goal or principle win? Also, which criteria are necessary to make arms trade ethically justifiable? The essay outlines some additional criteria which could be useful in making the trade ethically justifiable and performs a text analysis on selected documents relating to the arms trade in order to delineate where the inherent issues lie. The conclusion reached is that the different policies, mostly, harmonize, although security and human rights concerns sometimes conflict, which leads to potential serious outcomes. The existing legal and policy framework provides for a robust foundation, although inadequate as contentious arms exports are authorized. However, the imposition of the suggested criteria, especially criteria pertaining to establishing responsibility and accountability in the existing structures, should prove useful. / Sverige har, som en vapenexporterande stat, en laglig förpliktelse att säkerställa att licenser som godkänner vapenexporter är i linje med existerande lag, policy och riktlinjer. Utöver det har regeringen ett etiskt ansvar att säkerställa att vapen inte exporteras till länder där de används för att förtrycka invånarna och begå människorättsbrott. Trots detta auktoriseras tvivelaktiga och oetiska exporter utan att någon hålls ansvarig. Huvudsyftet med uppsatsen är att utföra en kritisk etisk analys på svensk vapenexportpolicy, att utveckla tillämpningen av policy i relation till vapenexporten och att föreslå ytterligare kriterier för att säkerställa att exporten blir mer etisk berättigad. Bland annat ställs frågan om olika mål/principer kommer i konflikt med varandra, och om de gör det, vinner det ”rätta” målet/principen? Vilka kriterier är nödvändiga för att göra vapenexporten etiskt berättigad? Uppsatsen föreslår några ytterligare kriterier som kan tänkas vara användbara i strävandet att göra exporten mer etisk berättigad och utför en textgranskning samt analys på utvalda dokument som har ett samband med exporten för att utröna vari konflikter förekommer. Den nådda slutsatsen är att de olika policyerna, för det mesta, harmoniserar med varandra, dock föreligger det ibland en konflikt mellan mänskliga rättigheter och säkerhetsintressen, en konflikt som kan få potentiellt allvarliga konsekvenser. De existerande lagarna och policy tillhandahåller en robust grund, dock är den otillräcklig då problematiska exporter fortfarande förekommer. Dock skulle införandet av de föreslagna kriterierna, framförallt kriterierna som handlar om att etablera ansvar och ansvarskrävande i de existerande strukturerna, vara användbara.

Postural control incorporates multiple neural and mechanical systems at various levels of the motor control system, yet the question of how all these systems interact remains unanswered. This dissertation describes development of a biologically based, three-dimensional mathematical model of the forelimb of the domestic cat that integrates skeletal anatomy, muscular architecture, and neural control. Previous work has shown that muscle architecture profoundly affects its function. However, even though the forelimbs of quadrupeds contribute to posture and locomotion differently from hindlimbs, most models of quadruped motion are based upon hindlimb mechanics. The proposed work consists of three main steps: (1) architectural and anatomical characterization, which involves acquisition of muscle attachment data, measurement of whole muscle and muscle fiber properties, and estimation of limb kinematic parameters; (2) model development and implementation, wherein the data will be integrated into a mathematical model using special-purpose software; and (3) model validation, including verification of model estimates against experimentally obtained measurements of muscle moment arms, and prediction of limb kinetics, namely end-point forces arising from perturbations to the limb. It was found that the forelimb does indeed possess structure, particularly at the shoulder and antebrachium, that allows for more diverse movements. The neural wiring in these regions is more complex than in the hindlimb, and there exists substantial muscular structure in place for non-sagittal motion and object suppression and retrieval. Other results showed that the kinematics of the limb alone produce a restorative response to postural disturbance but that the magnitude is reduced, indicating that neural input acts as a modulatory influence on top of the intrinsic mechanism of limb architecture. Furthermore the model demonstrated many of the essential features found in the experiments. This study represents the implementation of the first forelimb model of the cat incorporating mechanical properties and serves as a key component of a full quadruped model to explore posture and locomotion.

The present study was intended as a new approach to the study of the military equipment of the Late Assyrian period which has traditionally relied upon the pictorial representations of the palace reliefs. By examining extant artifacts from the first millennium in their own right, with the reliefs merely serving to contextualize them, a truer understanding of Assyrian arms and armour can be gathered. This is necessary because the artwork only provides us with a filtered view of the real world, the reliefs are as much works of propaganda as of history. The approach taken here is to first examine the existing weapons typologically, and then to evaluate whether such weapon types appear to be accurately represented in contemporary artwork. Textual sources are also used where they can aid in the discussion. Five categories of arms and armour were studied: swords and daggers, spearpoints, shields, armour and helmets. The quality and quantity of the items in these categories varied significantly, providing for a much better representative sample of some items than others. Further questions concerning the possible ritual, rather than military, use of some of the existing artifacts were raised. However, the main conclusions reached were that the reliefs suffer not only from a propagandistic viewpoint which sometimes obscures the reality of Assyrian warfare, but that they also suffer from artistic license and spatial restraints, the difficulties in representing three-dimensional objects in a two-dimensional manner, the possible unfamiliarity of the artists with changing military technology and methods of construction, and finally, our inability to understand artistic short-hand for what were commonplace objects to the contemporary viewer. These have led to misunderstanding both as to the dating and chronological changes in weaponry, and also to the tactics used by the Late Assyrian military. This study of the artifacts themselves reveals a more mundane, utilitarian, and conservative military force which shows both a basic homogeneousness throughout the empire, and the myriad tiny variables of an army on the move drawing weapons and troops from many regions.

<p>The paper focuses specifically on the South African Military Aerospace Industry as most of the weapons procured under the arms deal were military aircraft. Taking into account the numerous social needs of South Africa, the purpose of this paper is to inter alia try to establish the rationale behind the South African government's decision to to purchase an array of military weapons from foreign suppliers at an initial cost of almost thirty billion rand. In order to gain a better undrstanding of the topic, the author gives a brief overview and history of the South African Aerospace industry.Furthermore, an examination of the politics of the transition from apartheid to democracy and how this affected the aeropace industry is given.</p>

The continued existence of the Russian defence and arms industry, known as the Oboronnyi Promyshennyi Kompleks (OPK), was called into question following the disintegration of the Soviet Empire in 1991. Industry experts cited the lack of a domestic market, endemic corruption, and excess capacity within the industry as factors underpinning its predicted demise. The most telling factor was the sudden removal of considerable government subsidies and high defence industry wages that had traditionally buttressed the industry's economic viability and encouraged the cream of Russia's workers into the sector. It was a crippling blow. However, the industry's export customers in China, India and Iran during those early years became the OPK's saving grace. Their orders introduced hard currency back into the industry and went a long way to preventing the forecasted OPK collapse. Although pessimistic predictions continued to plague the OPK throughout the 1990s, the valuable export dollars provided the OPK the breathing space it needed to claw back its competitive advantage as an arms producer. That revival has been further underpinned by a new political commitment, various research and development initiatives, and the restoration of defence industry as a tool of Russian foreign policy. In order to gauge the future prospects for the OPK, it is necessary to examine the domestic and external drivers that have either underwritten its success to date or are still required to ensure its long term endurance. Domestically, continued success demands a closer collaboration between the OPK and the Russian armed forces. It also requires serious efforts to curb endemic corruption, further consolidation of the defence industry and continued development of the Russian domestic market for arms. Externally, the strength of the state arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, global market diversification and joint military ventures with strategic partner countries are essential ingredients for long term OPK success. Cultivating and maintaining the economic and political momentum vital for the OPK's progress will be a daunting undertaking for Russia. However, Russia's accomplishments in these key areas since 2000 suggest that continued success is a genuine prospect and that the OPK could potentially grow to be the proverbial 'phoenix from the ashes'. China and India constitute approximately eighty percent of the total Russian arms transfer market. Trading and cooperation with these two countries has provided Moscow with the finances to sustain its defence industry through continued orders and valuable finance for research and development programmes for military hardware. However, post 2015, the Chinese market will be nearing total saturation and the Indian market will have contracted somewhat, as the indigenous defence industries of these nations can be expected to usurp the demand for Russian equipment. This scenario, together with a more active foreign policy under Putin has seen Russia launch aggressive marketing campaigns into the Middle East, South East Asia and Latin America. The strategy has already begun to pay dividends with large contracts being signed by Algeria, Indonesia, and Venezuela. The Russians hope that large sales to these countries will trigger further sales within the respective regions. The realised or potential contracts for arms from Libya, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Mexico, and Brazil suggest that this strategy is producing the desired result. The short term future of the Russian OPK looks promising. The rising domestic defence order is beginning to challenge the export market as the OPK's most important customer. Meanwhile, exports will be safeguarded by continued foreign demand for niche Russian defence products such as cruise missiles and air defence systems as well as cost effective and user friendly Russian aircraft, ships, submarines and land systems. Flexible financing options offered by Rosoboronexport will stimulate demand in new markets such as Algeria and Indonesia and sustain the economic viability of the OPK for at least the next decade.

The Formulary Approach to the Taxation of Transnational Corporations: A Realistic Alternative? Synopsis The central hypotheses of this thesis are: that global formulary apportionment is the most appropriate method for the taxation of transnational corporations (TNCs) in lieu of the present system commonly referred to as the separate accounting/arm's length method; and that it is essential, in order to implement the proposed global formulary model, to create an international organisation which would fulfil, in the taxation field, a role equivalent to that of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in international trade. The world economy is fast integrating and is increasingly dominated by the activities of transnational enterprises. These activities create a dual tax problem for various revenue authorities seeking to tax gains derived thereon: Firstly, when two or more countries entertain conflicting tax claims on the same base, there arises what is commonly referred to as a double taxation problem. Secondly, an allocation problem arises when different jurisdictions seek to determine the quantum of the gains to be allocated to each jurisdiction for taxation purposes. The traditional regime for solving both the double taxation and the allocation problem is enshrined in a series of bilateral treaties signed between various nations. These are, in general, based on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Model Treaty.1 It is submitted, in this thesis, that while highly successful in an environment characterised by the coexistence of various national taxation systems, the traditional regime lacks the essential attributes suitable to the emerging 'borderless world'. The central theme of this thesis is the allocation problem. The OECD Model attempts to deal with this issue on a bilateral basis. Currently, the allocation problem is resolved through the application of Articles 7 and 9 of the OECD Model. In both instances the solution is based on the 'separate enterprise' standard, also known as the separate entity theory. This separate accounts/arm's length system was articulated in the 1930s when international trade consisted of flows of raw materials and other natural products as well as flows of finished manufactured goods. Such trade is highly visible and may be adequately valued both at the port of departure or at the port of entry in a country. It follows that within this particular system of international trade the application of the arm's length principle was relatively easy and proved to be extremely important in resolving both the double taxation and apportionment problems. Today, however, the conditions under which international trade is conducted are substantially different from those that prevailed until the 1960s. * Firstly, apart from the significant increase in the volume of traditionally traded goods, trade in services now forms the bulk of international exchanges. In addition, the advent of the information age has dramatically increased the importance of specialised information whose value is notoriously difficult to ascertain for taxation purposes. * Secondly, the globalisation phenomenon which gathered momentum over the last two decades has enabled existing TNCs to extend their global operations and has favoured the emergence of new transnational firms. Thus, intra-firm trade conducted outside market conditions accounts for a substantial part of international trade. * Thirdly, further economic integration has been achieved following the end of the Cold War and the acceleration of the globalisation phenomenon. In this new world economic order only TNCs have the necessary resources to take advantage of emerging opportunities. The very essence of a TNC is 'its ability to achieve higher revenues (or lower costs) from its different subsidiaries as a whole compared to the results that would be achieved under separate management on an arm's length basis.'2 Yet, the prevailing system for the taxation of TNCs overlooks this critical characteristic and is therefore incapable of fully capturing, for taxation purposes, the aggregate gains of TNCs. The potential revenue loss arising from the inability of the present system to account for and to allocate synergy gains is substantial. It follows that the perennial questions of international taxation can no longer be addressed within the constraints of the separate entity theory and a narrow definition of national sovereignty. Indeed, in order to mirror the developments occurring in the economic field, taxation needs to move from a national to an international level. Moreover, a profound reform of the system is imperative in order to avoid harmful tax competition between nations and enhance compliance from TNCs. Such a new international tax system needs to satisfy the test of simplicity, equity, efficiency, and administrative ease. To achieve these objectives international cooperation is essential. The hallmark of international cooperation has been the emergence, after World War II, of a range of international organisations designed to facilitate the achievement of certain goals deemed essential by various nations. The need for an organisation to deal specifically with taxation matters is now overwhelming. Consequently, this thesis recommends the creation of an international organisation to administer the proposed system. The main objective of this international organisation would be to initiate and coordinate the multilateral application of a formulary apportionment system which, it is suggested, would deal in a more realistic way with 'the difficult problems of determining the tax base and allocating it appropriately between jurisdictions'.3 The global formulary apportionment methodology is derived from the unitary entity theory. The unitary theory considers a TNC as a single business which, for convenience, is divided into 'purely formal, separately-incorporated subsidiaries'.4 Under the unitary theory the global income of TNCs needs to be computed, then such income is apportioned between the various component parts of the enterprise by way of a formula which reflects the economic contribution of each part to the derivation of profits. The question that arises is whether the world of international taxation is ready for such a paradigm shift. It is arguable that this shift has already occurred albeit cautiously and in very subtle ways. Thus, the latest of the OECD Guidelines on the transfer pricing question provides that 'MNE [Multinational Enterprise] groups retain the freedom to apply methods not described in this Report to establish prices provided those prices satisfy the arm's length principle in accordance with these Guidelines.'5 Arguably, the globalisation process has created 'the specific situation' allowed for by the OECD. This thesis, therefore, explores the relative obsolescence of the bilateral approach to the taxation of TNCs and then suggests that a multilateral system is better adapted to the emerging globalised economy. The fundamental building blocks of the model proposed in this thesis are the following: * First, the administration and coordination of the proposed system is to be achieved by the creation of a specialised tax organisation, called Intertax, to which member countries would devolve a limited part of their fiscal sovereignty. * Second, in order to enable the centralised calculation of TNC's profits, the proposed system requires the formulation of harmonised methods for the measurement of the global profits of TNCs. Therefore, the efforts of the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) to produce international accounting standards and harmonised consolidation rules must be recognised and, if needs be, refined and ultimately implemented. * Third, the major function of Intertax would be to determine the commercial profits of TNCs on a standardised basis and to apportion the latter to relevant countries by way of an appropriate formula/formulas. Once this is achieved, each country would be free, starting from its share of commercial profits, to determine the taxable income in accordance with the particular tax base that it adopts and, ultimately, the tax payable within its jurisdiction. In the proposed system, therefore, a particular country would be able to independently set whatever depreciation schedules or investment tax credits it chooses, and adopt whatever tax accounting rules it deems fit relative to its policy objectives. Moreover, this thesis argues that the global formulary apportionment model it proposes is not dramatically opposed to the arm's length principle. Indeed, it suggests that the constant assumption to the contrary, even with regard to the usual formulary apportionment methodology, is extravagant because both methodologies are based on a common endeavour, that is, to give a substantially correct reflex of a TNC's true profits. It has often been objected that global formulary apportionment is arbitrary and ignores market conditions. This thesis addresses such concerns by rejecting the application of a single all-purpose formula. Rather, it recognises that TNCs operating in different industries require different treatment and, therefore, suggests the adoption of different formulas to satisfy specific industry requirements. For example, the formula applicable to a financial institution would be different to that applicable to the pharmaceutical industry. Each formula needs to be based on the fundamental necessity to capture the functions, taking into consideration assets used, and risks assumed within that industry. In addition, if the need arises, each formula should be able to be fine-tuned to fit specific situations. Moreover, it is also pertinent to note that the OECD already accepts 'the selected application of a formula developed by both tax administrations in cooperation with a specific taxpayer or MNE group...such as it might be used in a mutual agreement procedure, advance transfer pricing agreement, or other bilateral or multilateral determination.'6 The system proposed in this thesis can thus be easily reconciled with the separate accounting/arm's length which the OECD so vehemently advocates. Both models have the same preoccupations so that what is herein proposed may simply be characterised as an institutionalised version of the system advocated by the OECD. Multilateral formulary apportionment addresses both the double taxation and the allocation problems in international taxation. It resolves the apportionment question 'without depending on an extraordinary degree of goodwill or compliance from taxpayers.'7 It is therefore submitted that, if applied on a multilateral basis with a minimum of central coordination, it also seriously addresses the double taxation problem. Indeed, it is a flexible method given that different formulas may be devised to suit the needs of TNCs operating in different sectors. Consequently, formulary apportionment understood in this sense, is a realistic alternative to the limitations of the present system.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2004. / Submitted to the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 571-601). Access restricted to members of the Tufts University community. Also available via the World Wide Web;

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Virginia, 2006. / Title from v.1 t.p. (viewed Apr. 20, 2009). "UMI number: 3218417." Includes bibliographical references (p. 582-609). Also issued in print.

Thesis (M.S.)--Missouri State University, 2008. / "May 2008." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-92). Also available online.