Reviewing inter-state warfare literature, I observe a correlation between the growth of international institutions, economic interchange, and levels of democracy, and corresponding decreases in incidents of international war. Conversely, internal conflicts comprise most conflicts in the post-1945 world, compared to inter-state conflicts. Within the larger intra-state literature, I note an underlying lineage to concepts evolving from Kant’s writings, specifically Kantian democratic peace theory (DPT) literature posited by Russett and ONeal (2001), and the informal social-juridical relationship within Metaphysics of Morals. From that pedigree, could a deeper understanding of internal political risks gained through application of Kantian DPT, interpolating Putnam’s (2002) Social Capital Theory (SCT) hold potential to provide researchers and policy makers insight into propensity for descent into conflict early enough to implement corrective actions? This investigation initially questions existence of intra-state processes performing similar ameliorating or exacerbating functions observed at inter-state level. Assessing that intra-state dynamics exhibit an elevated dependence on social factors necessitates adjustments to DPT to accommodate the adaptable nature of social constructs, leading to the designation of my theory as Kantian Adaptable Networks Theory (KANT). To test hypotheses, I start with DPT, incorporate elements of SCT, and identify a hybrid combination presenting greater explanatory power than either DPT or SCT factors alone. Fund for Peace’s Fragile State Indices (FSI) for 2005-2013 provides the dataset to conduct regression analysis to determine significance of DPT and/or SCT elements in static and time-series. Initial results indicate DPT/SCT provides explanatory value at the intra-state level with the Group Grievance factor generally presenting the most significant effect on probability of conflict. To assess resilience to intra-state conflict, I then explore brittleness of social-contract dynamics through the lens of Clausewitz’ center of gravity theory. In my exploration of applicability of KANT at the case level, I analyze FSI data for Syria and Kenya to determine resilience to shocks and ratcheted pressures, and explanation for differing outcomes. Based on the results of quantitative and case analysis, I present policy prescription considerations. Finally, I discuss additional avenues for follow-on research of issues and opportunities identified during the course of the investigation.

Taking off from a security related interest in de-democratization processes throughout Europe and the limited theoretical field thereof, this paper examines the political development in Poland 2008-2018. Through a comparison of the development in Poland and Hungary, the ambition is to identify what differs the de-democratization process of the two East European countries in regards to their communist past and in a broader sense to their current membership in the European Union. To guide the comparison is the theoretical framework of Merkel (2004), through both qualitative and quantitative analysis as it has been applied on Hungary by Bogaards (2018). The combined framework provides five categories of defect democracies: exclusive, illiberal, delegative, tutelary and diffusely defect. While Bogaards (2018) categorizes Hungary as a diffusely defect democracy, the study finds that Poland does not adhere to any single one of the categories. The question of what differs the development in Poland and Hungary is best answered in terms of legality. Whereas the systematic Hungarian process has been carried out within legal frames of the majority rule in parliament, the hasty Polish process resembles a palace revolution, as the leading party is interfering with and partly controlling the rule of law. The study provides support to the observations of the EU being an externally limiting, enabling and legitimizing factor of autocratic developments in member states, made by Bozóki and Hegedüs (2018). Additionally, a reverse snowball effect is being put to action by Poland and Hungary vetoing on EU sanctions against one another. The findings of the paper also support observation made of a limited research field; theoretical understanding and international measurement indexes of democratization being insufficient in explaining and describing the emerging de-democratization. The study opens up for further research regarding democratic peace in Europe.

In this study the notion of domestic democratic peace will be examined by using a holistic understanding of internal conflicts. Domestic democratic peace has most commonly been studied by using quantitative methods. This study will be qualitative using an abductive approach when understanding why mature democracies are more stable than other types of regimes. The holistic understanding of internal conflicts used in this study is based on the concepts of relative deprivation, instrumentalisation of politics and politicisation of identity. Burton’s sources of conflict are used to show how relative deprivation can be experienced. The questions to be answered in this essay are as follow: How can the proposed holistic understanding explain why mature democracies are more stable than newly established democracies and autocratic states? In what ways do mature democracies decrease experience of relative deprivation and thereby safeguarding Burton’s sources of conflict? In what ways do mature democracies cater to a more peaceful process of politicisation of identity and instrumentalisation of politics?

Democratic Peace Theory observes a lack of war between liberal democratic states that merits an explanation. Democratic Peace Theory does not give a satisfactory explanation and as such, an exploration into the logic of the theory through an examination of its internal logic and wider implications is warranted. An understanding of dialectical materialism allows for such an examination when used together with a thorough exploration of the relevant cases of Greece and Italy in the two periods from 1960-1979 and 1991-2010 respectively. This examination will look at how well Democratic Peace Theory explains the observed facts through an examination of trade statistics of the two countries, which will here be used as an indicator of foreign policy. Democratic Peace Theory cannot explain the data that is analysed here, but through the examination, a better explanation through dialectical materialism can be arrived at. The international system is constructed through nation states seeking their own interests to the extent that they are able to identify them. The international system in turn gains influence over the same nation states as have constructed it. This is the dialectical functioning of the international system that is created by and affects national interests and will be argued to better explain the observation than Democratic Peace Theory. The main body of the text is 22.000 words.

本文最主要的目的有二。其一為評估「民主和平論」是否依然有效地解釋「戰爭與和平」議題。若然，那麼同為自由主義的「貿易和平」是否相較之下之解釋力較佳。第二則是個案研究，聚焦於「南海爭端」用以進一步驗證本文的論述。本文認為以制度層面而言，貿易量事實上相較於政治體制是較能降低衝突帶來和平。 / This thesis has two purposes: the first one is to re-examine “Democratic Peace” and to testify “Trade Peace” with an eye to finding a more explainable solution on the issue of Conflict and Peace; and the second purpose is by providing a case study centering on the region of the South China Sea, the premise of this thesis will further be evaluated. The premise in here is that from an institutional perspective, trade is the more efficient and less costly method to reduce the possibility of initiating armed conflicts than polities.

This thesis investigates the European Union (EU) effect on the economic activity across the Green Line in the divided Cyprus between 2004 and 2016. The primary focus is on the development and implementation of the EU's Green Line Regulation (GLR), which regulates and enables such activity from three aspects: movement of goods, services, and persons. In tracing the EU effect, this thesis provides a critical appraisal of the GLR on whether it provides an adequate legal framework for the economic activity in those three aspects and the extent to which it has contributed to the development of economic cooperation between the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot communities across the divide. The analysis also pays an equal level of attention to the extent to which the EU effect has been mediated by the factors at the domestic level: the roles of legal framework, ethno-politics in political elites, ethno-politics in civil society, and governance. The investigation of this study is pegged in two academic literatures. The first one is the Europeanisation debate, which concerns with the EU effect in the domestic affairs of countries associated with the EU. This thesis borrows three mechanisms of Europeanisation from this debate in order to test the EU effect on the three aspects of economic activity across the divide in Cyprus: i) institutional compliance, ii) change of domestic opportunity structures, iii) cognitive change. The second academic literature is the liberal peace, which it proposes that greater economic interactions and development of economic interdependence between countries facilitate resolution of their conflicts. The insights from this debate is utilised for conceptualising the EU's GLR as a liberal peace project. While Europeanisation is portrayed as a 'process', liberal peace objectives are seen as the 'ultimate destination', which the 'vehicle' of the EU's GLR will drive the island towards it. This thesis argues that the GLR has only achieved a limited success and largely failed to contribute to the development of economic cooperation across the divide in Cyprus. This is mainly because the Europeanisation process have been heavily mediated and negated by the design shortcomings of the GLR as well as the factors at the domestic level, which are inherently linked to the politics of division. In this context, this thesis aspires to make contribution in both empirical and conceptual terms. The in-depth and critical investigation of the GLR as well as of the economic activity across the divide in Cyprus provides a much-needed contribution to the contemporary politics of Cyprus, which has been largely ignored by the existing academic literature. Additionally, the conceptual framework developed in this thesis allows exploring synergies between the theoretical literatures of Europeanisation and liberal peace and combines them with examination of new empirical evidence. This focus captures insights on how Europeanisation can be used as a 'tool' for pursuing liberal peace objectives in contested statehood, beyond what has been researched so far and also provides a blueprint for other similar cases of conflict.

While not uncontested, the finding that liberal democracies rarely, if ever, fight wars against each other represents one of the seminal discoveries of international relations (IR) scholarship. Nevertheless, 'democratic peace theory' (DPT) – the body of scholarship that seeks to explain the democratic peace finding – still lacks a satisfactory explanation for this phenomenon. In this thesis, I argue that a primary source of this failure has been DPT's failure to recognize the importance of collective identification and trust for the eventuation of the 'liberal peace'. Building on existing DPT scholarship, most of it Realist or Rationalist in its inspiration, but also employing insights from Constructivist and Cognitivist scholarship, I develop a new model of how specific forms of collective identification can produce specific forms of trust. On this basis, I elaborate a new explanation of the liberal peace which sees it as arising out of a network of trusting liberal security communities. I then elaborate a new research design that enables a more rigorous and replicable empirical investigation of these ideas through the analysis of three historical cases studies, namely the Canada-USA, India-Pakistan, and France-Germany relationships. The results of this analysis support the plausibility of my theoretical framework, and also illuminate four additional findings. Specifically, I find that (1) IR scholarship needs a more nuanced understanding of the interaction between agents and structures; (2) 'institutionalized collaboration' is especially important for promoting collective identification; (3) DPT scholarship needs to focus more attention on the content of the narratives around which collective identification takes place; and (4) dramatic events play an important role in collective identification by triggering what I term catharses and epiphanies. I close the thesis by reviewing the implications of my findings for IR and for policymakers and by suggesting some areas worthy of additional research.

In the wake of the Cold War, regional organizations have proliferated and are now a dominant theme in global politics. This study tests whether explanations for the Nordic peace can help to understand or construct other zones of peace in these increasingly important regional settings. With that in mind, this study compares the Nordic area of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden with the Southern Cone region–here defined as Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay–and both are treated as regional, subsystemic zones of peace. Its significance lies in analysis of two developmentally disparate regions not yet compared in zones of peace literature. Using structured, focused comparison, this study is guided by fundamental questions about each region that assess the relationship between explanations for regional peace and their respective historical records. Understanding the conditions that permit the endurance of peace in today’s global context has far-reaching empirical and theoretical implications.

The thesis has aimed to study the emergence of a new weapons technology, also known as ‘killer robots’ or lethal autonomous weapon system. It seeks to answer what factors drive the development and deployment of this weapon system without ‘meaningful human control’, a component that allows the decision to kill to be delegated to machines. The research question focuses on seeking the motivations to develop and deploy LAWS, as well as the consequences this would have on military conduct and conflict characteristics.The incentives they bring up and the way of adopting them has been studied by synthesizing antinomic democratic peace theory and adoption capacity theory respectively. The findings of this qualitative content analysis lead to two major conclusions. (1) That LAWS present severe risk avoidance and costs reduction potential for the user. These factors have a more prevalent pull on democracies than autocracies, since they stand to benefit from LAWS’ specific capabilities more in comparison. (2) That their adoption is aided by low financial intensity needed to adopt it, due to the high commercial profitability and applicability of AI technology, and the ease of a spillover to military sphere. Their adoption is hindered by high organizational capital needed to implement the drastic changes LAWS bring. All of this leads to the prediction that LAWS are likely to proliferate further, at a medium speed, and potentially upset the balance of power.

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