The thesis is focused on presentation and evaluation of the development of foreign policy of the Habsburg Monarchy during the Crimean War in years 1853/4-1856. Its traditional position between Russia and the Western powers and complicated complex of internal problems prevented Austria from being involved with either side of the conflict. The policy of neutrality, adopted by Prussia and the German Confederation during the war, on the other hand, could not ensure sufficient protection of the Austrian interests concerning the Eastern Question. For this reason, the Habsburg Monarchy decided for its own independent policy, based on escalating pressure on Russia and attempts at restricting the war aims of Great Britain and France to an acceptable limit, and thus achieve a peace treaty as soon as possible to prevent the extension of the war and a potential wave of revolutions. The main instrument of this policy was the menace of Austrian military action against Russia and on the other side maintaining of hope of the Western powers for this action. German policy of Austria concentrated on defending its position within the German Confederation and using of German allies for demonstrations directed against Russia, which, however, were not very effective due to the reluctunce of the German states. The...

This thesis examines martial race ideology in the British Army during the mid-nineteenth century. A “martial race” was a group of people that the British considered to excel in the art of warfare due to biological and cultural characteristics. This thesis examines perceived “martial” natures or lack thereof of the Highland Scots and the Irish during this era. Central to this analysis are the Crimean War (1853-1856) and the Indian Mutiny of 1857 which provided opportunities for soldiers to display their “martial” qualities. The Crimean War was the first war where the daily newspapers covered every aspect of the war using correspondents, and it gave soldiers the chance to gain recognition through this medium. The Indian Mutiny represented a crisis for Britain, and it gave soldiers the opportunity to be recognized as “stabilizers of the empire.” However, despite their similarities, the Highland regiments became some of the most revered regiments while the Irish came to be seen as untrustworthy, leading many in the British government to initiate efforts to decrease the role that the Irish played in Britain’s conflicts. This reluctance was due to the turmoil that erupted as a result of the anti-Union Fenian Brotherhood in Ireland during the 1860s. The difficulty in stabilizing Ireland in the wake of Fenian terrorist attacks also exposed old prejudices of the Irish related to religion, race, and class. This was evidenced through parliamentary debates and British newspapers reporting on the crises.

This thesis explores the autonomy of the Crimean region in Ukraine in terms of its impact on Ukraine&rsquo / s relations with Russia in the post-Soviet era. Thesis analyzes also the impact of the relations between Ukraine and Russia on the autonomy of the Crimean region. Contrary to the views that consider the Crimean autonomy as a product of the ethno-territorial relations between the Crimea which is populated by mainly ethnic Russians and Kiev, thesis argues that the interstate relations between Ukraine and Russia have played a crucial role in the evolution of the autonomy of the Crimean region within Ukraine. Thesis is composed of six chapters. Following the introductory First Chapter, the Second Chapter examines the origins of the Crimean autonomy. The Third Chapter examines the Crimean Autonomous Region during the post-Soviet period until the signing of the Friendship Treaty between Ukraine and Russia in 1997. The Fourth Chapter explores the period between 1997 and 2004. The Fifth Chapter analyses the period in the aftermath of the Orange revolution in 2004. The Last Chapter is the Conclusion.

The aim of this thesis is to analyze the current situation of the Crimean Karaites. This community is one of the smallest groups with a population of 800 in the Crimean Peninsula and 2,000 in total all around the world. However, they are trying to resist assimilation via launching a cultural revival project. This thesis studies the cultural loss among the Crimean Karaites and analyzes the factors leading to assimilation. It is argued that despite their efforts of cultural revival, Crimean Karaites constitute a disappearing community.

The aim of this thesis is to define factors that are influential in the ethnic identification process of Crimean Tatars, Russians and Ukrainians in Crimea. To better understand the current ethnic situation in Crimea, Soviet nationality policy as well as Soviet ethnos theory are reviewed. The divergence of the definitions in Soviet and Western traditions is shown. Crucial historical events that took place in Crimea are examined from the viewpoints of Russian, Ukrainian, Crimean Tatar, Soviet and Western historiographies. The influence of the historical myths on shaping ethnic boundaries of these ethnic groups in Crimea is shown. Main factors such as the cultural, political, economic, and global ones which are shaping the ethnic self-consciousness of Crimean Tatars, Russians and Ukrainians in Crimea are studied. Therefore the thesis helps us to understand the meaning of being a Russian, an Ukrainian and a Crimean Tatar in Crimea.

The aim of this thesis is to analyze Ukrainian foreign policy and its domestic sources since 1991, with a focus on the post-Orange Revolution era. The thesis argues that contrary to neo-realist approaches to the study of Ukrainian foreign policy, in the final analysis, it is Ukraine&#039 / s domestic factors which determines the direction of Ukrainian foreign policy in the post-Soviet era. This thesis demonstrates that the existing neo-realist studies of Ukrainian foreign policy exaggerates the role of external factors and neglects the crucial role of domestic factors in Ukrainian foreign policy. The thesis begins with an introduction, which is followed by the second chapter on the interaction between domestic and external factors in Ukrainian foreign policy in the pre-Orange Revolution era. The third chapter examines the characteristics of Ukrainian foreign policy in the post-Orange Revolution era. The following four chapters discuss the impact of political, economic and cultural factors on Ukrainian foreign policy as well as the Crimean question. Finally the last chapter will be the conclusion of this thesis.

Mediated public diplomacy plays an important role in attaining foreign policy objectives by communicating with foreign audiences in order to establish a dialogue intending to inform and influence. The Russian state-funded global network RT serves as an important tool of Russian mediated public diplomacy. Its purpose is not only to cover major global events that are often missed by the Western mainstream media, but also to apprise an international audience of an alternative pro-Russian perspective. Interestingly, although there are a few researches analysing Moscow's efforts to rebrand its international image in the last decade, there has been very little work done giving a good insight into Russian media. This dissertation seeks to participate in the discussion about public diplomacy in general by applying the framing theory as a tool of mediated diplomacy. A qualitative analysis of 97 articles discussing the effects of international sanctions imposed on Russia in the aftermath of the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis, revealed a constructed pro-Russian narrative. Several strategies are pursued to convince its audience about the rightness of the Russian stance and gain support for the Kremlin's assertions. Finally, RT aims to wipe out the demonisation of Putin and its administration and counterbalance the penetration of the West in its sphere of influence.

No description available.

Immune cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha and type I interferons provide front-line defense against viral infection and are regulated in part by ubiquitin (Ub) and Ub-like molecules. Ubiquitin and Ub-like molecule ISG15 share a conserved C-terminal motif where a terminal glycine residue becomes attached to cellular target proteins. Nairoviruses and arteriviruses contain an ovarian tumor domain-containing protease (OTU protease) that was found to corrupt pathways by removing Ub or ISG15 from target proteins. This broad substrate specificity is unlike mammalian deubiquitinating enzymes, which cannot recognize both substrates. To understand how viral OTU domain-containing proteases remove Ub and ISG15, the crystal structure of the Crimean-Congo Heamorhaggic Fever nairovirus (CCHFV) was determined with Ub to 2.5 Å resolution. A computational model was built of the CCHFV Otu protease bound to ISG15 as well. The CCHFV Otu protease has several structural differences from known OTU proteases, manifesting in its broad substrate recognition capability.

Immune cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha and type I interferons provide front-line defense against viral infection and are regulated in part by ubiquitin (Ub) and Ub-like molecules. Ubiquitin and Ub-like molecule ISG15 share a conserved C-terminal motif where a terminal glycine residue becomes attached to cellular target proteins. Nairoviruses and arteriviruses contain an ovarian tumor domain-containing protease (OTU protease) that was found to corrupt pathways by removing Ub or ISG15 from target proteins. This broad substrate specificity is unlike mammalian deubiquitinating enzymes, which cannot recognize both substrates. To understand how viral OTU domain-containing proteases remove Ub and ISG15, the crystal structure of the Crimean-Congo Heamorhaggic Fever nairovirus (CCHFV) was determined with Ub to 2.5 Å resolution. A computational model was built of the CCHFV Otu protease bound to ISG15 as well. The CCHFV Otu protease has several structural differences from known OTU proteases, manifesting in its broad substrate recognition capability.