The diploma thesis called Labour Party during the Premiership of Margaret Thatcher (1979- 1990) focuses on the causes of the defeats of the Labour Party in 1979, 1983 and 1987. For this purpose it examines the relations of the individual party factions. Attention is also paid to opinion polls, especially party preferences. Last but not least, it is taken into account how the Labor Party turned towards centrism and rejected the more radical left-wing policy it had enforced in its first opposition period. Key words Labour Party, Militant, Social Democratic Party, Tony Benn, Neil Kinnock, David Owen, Michael Foot, National Executive Committee, Tony Benn, Trade unions

The diploma thesis analyzes the changes in transport policy during the time of Thatcher and Major conservative governments. It tries to answer why the traffic situation resulted in a permanent break with the concept raised in the 1940s by labour government. The changes are associated with principles of Thatcherism which also influenced the transport industry. The contribution of the work consists of creating a compact view of the privatization of bus and rail transport, including consideration and evaluation of options and results. Both the same and different elements of the privatization of two transport sectors are mentioned. Author uses information from contemporary sources obtained in the National Archives, London-Kew as well as modern literature and scientific studies.

1982年4月2日，阿根廷入侵福克蘭/馬爾維納斯群島，震驚英國朝野。時任首相的柴契爾夫人在4月7日成立戰爭內閣，並決定出兵奪島，不到三個月的時間，英軍於6月14日克復福克蘭/馬爾維納斯群島，阿根廷戰敗，聯合軍政府總統加爾鐵里下台。 柴契爾夫人的領導風格揉合法理型及卡理斯瑪式的支配型權威，以及轉換型的領導方式，在處理這場危機時掌握快速反應及賦予危機定義的要領，指出阿根廷入侵已危害英國的基本利益，一面派遣特遣隊開赴戰場，同時以外交談判方式拖延掩護特遣隊行蹤。阿根廷駐軍雖是以逸待勞，但軍隊指揮調度的反覆埋下戰敗的禍根，軍政府想要移轉國內焦點的動機並未如願，反而加速本身的崩解，開啟民選政府的扉頁，阿方辛成為戰後首位民選總統。 英國在戰爭之後有意與阿根廷恢復正常的外交關係，與90年代阿根廷梅南上台後以發展經濟為主的外交政策不謀而合，在主權保護傘的前提下共同開發與勘探油氣。但到了2001年德拉魯阿上台後一改外交政策，強調阿根廷擁有福克蘭/馬爾維納斯群島的主權，歷經多位總統至今仍維持一貫的基調。而英國自2010年國家安全戰略報告發表後，確立保障該群島島民安全與自決的權利，促成2013年島民決定政治地位的公投，結果是壓倒性的贊成票決定仍由英國管轄，英阿爭議依舊紛擾。 / On 2 April 1982, UK was stunned with the news that Argentina had invaded the Falkland/Malvinas islands. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher set up the war cabinet rapidly at 7 April and decided to dispatch the military to take the island back. In three months, the British military recovered the Falkland/Malvinas islands on 14 June, Argentina was defeated, President Leopoldo Galtieri stepped down. The leadership of Thatcher was composed of legal-rational authority and charismatic authority, as well as transformational leadership. When she faced the crisis she realized the essentiality of the fast-reaction and make-a-definition-to-the-crisis, so she accused the invasion had undermined the Britain's interest and dispatched the armed forces to the battlefield, at the same time used diplomatic negotiations to cover up the military actions. On the other hand, Argentina's military had the advantage of having the island under their control, but the advantage was undermined with the change in command, which eventually lost the war. The Junta not only failed to shift the focus of the society, but also dug its own grave. After the collapse of the Junta, Raúl Alfosin the elected president, and started a new era of Argentina. After the war, the UK intended to normalize the relationship with Argentina. That coincided with the diplomatic policy of President Carlos Menan in the 90s, whose main focus was developing the economy. Under the sovereign umbrella, UK and Argentina cooperated and exploited natural gas and oil in the sea surrounding the Falkland/Malvinas islands. Until 2001 Fernando de la Rua was elected and changed the diplomatic policy to emphasize Argentine’s sovereignty over the Falkland/Malvinas islands. That policy was consistently upheld by several presidencies afterwards. Nevertheless, with the promulgation of the "National Security Strategy", UK assured to safeguard the islanders' safety and the right of self-determination. A referendum was facilitated in 2013 on the Falkland Islands. An overwhelming 90% of voters chose to remain as UK territory. The dispute is still unsettled.

When Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands in 1982, it was the beginning of a two month long war. The aim of this essay is to find alternative explanations to the Falklands war with the main question being whether there were hidden motives for Thatcher and her reactions in 1982.   The essay will focus on the period 1965-1982 in which different texts will be analyzed by applying theories. The diversionary war theory describes how state leaders can improve their political popularity by intentionally escalating a conflict. The geopolitical theory explains how a state, by investments, constructions and military, can create demographic and international perceptions regarding a territory while foreign political theory describes how decision making is affected by the bureaucracy, psychology and the international system.   The ministry of defense and the navy was heavily affected by the financial cuts during the conflict and may also have affected the manner in which they advised Thatcher in 1982. Because of the British unwillingness to invest geopolitically in the Falklands and their aggravation of the diplomatically efforts to find a peaceful solution, the conflict got worse. In addition, Thatchers intentions to implement economic reforms and her record low political popularity make it plausible to suspect her for having, intentionally, escalated the conflict to gain political popularity and to enable the economic reforms.

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Diploma thesis Special Relationship? British-U.S. Relations, 1979-1990 examines the nature of relations between the United Kingdom and the United States, focusing predominantly on the period of parallel governance of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan. The aim is to study both the extent to which the relationship was genuinely special and anticipations both countries connected with it. Providing an overview of the development of the special relationship after the WWII the paper addresses foreign, political, economic and ideological bonds between the countries and their political leaders. It considers not only the basic similarities of domestic and foreign policies, but also tensions and conflicts accompanying this alliance. The paper also describes the influence of the special relationship on the relations with European states and the Soviet Union. The uniqueness of the special relationship is identified in both the nuclear, defence and intelligence cooperation and in the British Prime Minister's and American President's ideological and political comprehension.

My doctoral project investigates the impact of Ronald Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative on transatlantic relations during the period 1983-86. The dissertation focuses on the three main European powers, namely Britain, France, and the Federal Republic of Germany, and examines their reaction to SDI both individually and comparatively. The study exploits SDI’s position at the intersection of nuclear strategy, political ideology, Cold War diplomacy, and industrial politics to offer a multifaceted, multi-national, and primary source-based analysis of US-European relations during the Reagan Presidency. The picture of the transatlantic relationship which emerges from the dissertation is a complex and nuanced one. On the one hand, the analysis argues that relations across the Atlantic during the Reagan era cannot be reduced to a scenario of accelerating ‘drift’ between the United States and Western Europe. Instead, on SDI as well as on other matters, moments of acute friction alternated with a constantly renewed search for dialogue, cooperation, and compromise on the part of the Europeans and also, if to a lesser degree, of the Americans. On the other hand, the ‘exceptionalist’ ideology and worldview underpinning SDI, the prevailing indifference in Washington to its implications for NATO, and most importantly the persistent anti-nuclear rhetoric and ambitions associated with the initiative revealed a distinct lack of sensitivity to European interest by the Reagan administration. As the dissertation shows, the anti-nuclear drive inherent in SDI, which both reflected and reinforced Reagan’s deep-seated interest in nuclear abolition, constituted the most disruptive aspect of the initiative from the viewpoint of European leaders. In these respects, the SDI controversy epitomises the unilateral tendencies and increasingly divergent priorities from those of the European allies which characterised much of the Reagan administration’s foreign policy – making the 1980s a decade of recurrent tensions in transatlantic relations.

Kiekviena politinės lyderystės apraiška 1990 – 1991 metais vykusio Irako – Kuveito konflikto kontekste buvo skirtinga priklausomai nuo JAV, Didžiosios Britanijos, Prancūzijos ir Irako politinių lyderių asmeninių savybių, lyderiavimo motyvų, nuo skirtingai suvokiamų atskiros visuomenės tikslų įgyvendinimo specifikos, nuo tarptautinės grupės ypatybių ir kitų socialinių, politinių, ekonominių bei kultūrinių sąlygų. Vieni politiniais lyderiais tapo dėl asmeninio patrauklumo, charizmos, kiti atsidūrė tam tikru momentu tam tikroje situacijoje, treti veikė vedini savo asmeninių ambicijų. Kaip tik todėl magistro darbo objektas yra politinių lyderių vaidmuo Irako – Kuveito konflikte. Darbo aktualumas. 1990 – 1991 metais Persijos įlankoje netrūko radikalių permainų: pagrindiniu tikslu buvo laikomas Irako prezidento Sadamo Huseino nuvertimas, o tai reiškė, jog sąjungininkai privalėjo užimti Irako sostinę Bagdadą ir kontroliuoti visus strateginius jame esančius objektus. Būtent šioje situacijoje politiniams lyderiams atsirado puiki terpė pasireikšti. Magistro darbe aiškinamasi apie galingiausių to meto valstybių verbalinį ir fizinį ryšį, jų vykdomus ar ketinamus vykdyti veiksmus. Kadangi nebuvo ir vis dar nėra jokios paprastos lyderystės formulės ar griežtos mokslinės disciplinos, kuria būtų galėję vadovautis nagrinėjami politiniai lyderiai, tai tapo akstinu pažvelgti į šią problemą iš naujo. Darbo chronologinės ribos. Pavadinime įvardintas 1990 – 1991 metų laikotarpis. Konfliktas... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Every political clash leaves a trace in World history. The conflict between Iraq and Kuwait in the end of XX century is not the exception. Amid growing tension between the two Persian Gulf neighbors, Saddam Hussein concluded that the United States and the rest of the outside world would not interfere to defend Kuwait. On August 2, 1990, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait and quickly seized control of the small nation. Within days, the United States, along with the United Nations, demanded Iraq’s immediate withdrawal. U.S. and other UN member nations began deploying troops in Saudi Arabia within the week, and the worldwide coalition began to form under UN authority. On January 16, 1991, Allied forces began devastating bombing of Iraq and its forces in Kuwait. The Allied bombing sought to damage Iraq’s infrastructure so as to hinder its ability to make war while also hurting both civilian and military morale. Unfortunately, Allied air strikes and cruise missile attacks against Iraq proved more devastating than expected. When the Allied armies launched the ground war on February 23, the Iraqi occupation forces in Kuwait were already beaten. On March 3, 1991, Iraq accepted the terms of the cease-fire and the fighting ended. So the object of master‘s work has been the evaluation of the role, substantiality and particularity of political leaders during the conflict between Iraq and Kuwait in 1990 – 1991. The goal has been to point out the connection between the expression of political... [to full text]

This essay examines two different female political leaders' ways to top positions. Even though it is over a century since women received voting rights in both the United Kingdom and Sweden, quite few women leaders have reached top positions. The purpose of this essay is to find explanation factors to why Margaret Thatcher succeeded to reach the top and why Anna Kinberg Batra did not. The method in this essay is a comparing case study between Great Britain's Margaret Thatcher and Sweden's Anna Kinberg Batra and it is analysed through Jane S Jensens theory that tries to give explanations behind the low representation of female political leadership. Yvonne Hirdmans gender theory is also a part of the analytical framework. The result of this study offers several factors as helpful for succeeding in reaching top positions such as growing up in a supportive family, having an attitude that gender would not be an obstacle and to be able to step outside one’s gender role seems essential to reach the political leadership as a female.

The aim of this Master thesis is to analyse the British civil service reforms both in theory and practice. The author picked three areas where the reforms would be scrutinized. By analysing four essential documents that contributed to the reforms of the civil service: The Northcote-Trevelyan report, The Fulton report, Next Steps and Modernising Government, we would be able to evaluate the impact of these changes in the following areas: 1) Human Resources (recruitment, training and the promotion of the civil servants) 2) Administration and Accountability (the aspects of ministerial responsibility, accountability, special advisers) 3) Decentralisation and Fragmentation (impact of the multi-level governance including deconcentration, devolution and EU membership). The first chapter is the necessary introductory part that deals with the basic principles of the British civil service, its history and the challenges it faces today. The second chapter provides analysis and historical background of the four documents that are used in the next section. Finally, the third chapter discusses the three above mentioned problematic areas. By analysing and comparing the documents, we seek to understand the reforms of the British civil service and their impact.