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Europeanisation of humanitarian aid spent to foreign countries from the perspective of the Czech Republic
Pöschl, Petr ; Kučerová, Irah (advisor) ; Knutelská, Viera (referee)
This master thesis deals with the Europeanization of humanitarian aid/assistance provided to foreign countries, from the perspective of the Czech Republic. Upon the accession of the Czech Republic into European Union in 2004, the country had to adopt the whole body of acquis communautaire on humanitarian assistance, which implied a range of rights and obligations. By doing so, the humanitarian aid system experienced and undergone major changes, which resulted in significant transformation of conceptual and principal layout constituting the aid provision system. The overall objective of this thesis is thus to prove that such changes have been caused by the misfit between European and Czech hard law and soft law documents. In that regard, the thesis aims to examine the above mentioned changes in several analytical dimensions, including humanitarian aid principles, aid goals, forms of humanitarian aid, territorial and sector aid distribution. To illustrate, this thesis analyses three different time periods, i.e. before, during and after the European influence is being examined. The author exclusively focuses on state actors, while paying attention to qualitative humanitarian assistance aspects.
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The Politics of European Union Enlargement: Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia
Hach, Tomáš ; Kučerová, Irah (advisor) ; Karlas, Jan (referee)
Tomáš Hach - The Politics of EU Enlargement: Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia Abstract The diploma thesis deals with the topic of the politics of EU enlargement and perspectives of future developments in this area. Its main objectives are to define the politics in theory, to introduce it in the context of the Western Balkans and apply it to the three selected cases - Montenegro, Macedonia and Serbia. The work considers the historical development since 1990's as an important factor with a huge influence on current negotiation, and therefore the thesis pays high attention to that. Besides the historical excursion, the thesis deals with topics of political development, introduces the status of current negotiations and the relationship between the European Union and certain countries since the establishment of the first official contact. Through the comparative case study, despite differing positions of states within the framework of negotiations, it is highlighted that all countries share common problems. The method of compliance and non-compliance generates common problems as well as underlines the particular specifics. An important contribution is also the comparison of individual countries based on fulfilment of the Copenhagen criteria in the context of current affairs.
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International relations between Azerbaijan and the EU, their background and perspectives
Hasanov, Namik ; Glazar, Ondřej (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
This master's thesis is aimed at analyzing the integration processes between the European Union and Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is a major oil and gas supplier, while the European Union actively seeks diversification of energy resource supplies for the purpose of reaching higher energy security. The aim of the research is to investigate the relations between Azerbaijan and the European Union. The nature of relations between the two stated subjects are being analyzed, and the main preconditions favoring such relations. In order to provide comprehensive analysis, the situation of Azerbaijan's relations with the European Union with the same bilateral relations with the EU of Turkey, Ukraine and China are being analyzed within this thesis.
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The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership - trade between the EU and the USA in the 21st century?
Hlavnička, Jindřich ; Jeřábek, Martin (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
The aim of this thesis it to offer a complex overview of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). This international agreement is being negotiated between the United States and the European Union. The main goal of this agreement is to create the largest free trade area to date. I wish to claim that the TTIP does not merely concern trade, but there is a clear geopolitical underlining for it too. When the communist world collapsed, the United States became the sole remaining superpower. Nowadays, the West is facing a different world that fosters new challenges as well as opportunities. The rise of China and Russia puts pressure on the West again. The TTIP seeks to reflect new challenges in world politics. A successful agreement would clearly demonstrate that countries across the Atlantic are still the closest partners. In this thesis I aim to find a causal link between this agreement and the current situation ushering in a shifting balance of power in world politics. I intend to employ two main branches of theories of international relations to verify my hypotheses. The first theory, realism, is equipped to answer questions about power and national interests. The second branch of theories, liberalism, is well applicable so as to indicate different actors and their participation in...
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Eurasian Economic Union: Towards Economic Prosperity, or towards Power Gains?
Pavlíček, Tomáš ; Parízek, Michal (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
The Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) emerged more than one year ago but so far there has been no consensus on the nature and the main aspects of the cooperation. Whereas some observers underline pure economic incentives of the integration, others see the regional organization as a tool for increasing the power of the strongest members, and especially Russia. Strongly echoed in public discourse is a comparison to the former Soviet Union. To tackle the issue, the thesis asks: What are the main motives for participation in the project? Which main benefits are expected by the members to be gained? These questions are answered through a content analysis of verbal expressions of five presidents who hold the main decision-making powers in EEU's member states. Based on theoretically generated analytical categories, the thesis conducts a quantitative analysis of the discourse, which is then discussed in the context of the post-Soviet space. The findings reveal the motives which the presidents use to legitimize the membership and show the main cleavages that threaten to undermine the development of the organization.
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Global and Local Initiatives: Advantages of "the Global" in Development Education Programmes
Šuráňová, Dorota ; Parízek, Michal (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
International development aid is one of the main elements of international relations and politics. It has taken place since the 1950's through great international organisations and institutions. Nevertheless, the international approach towards development has been considerably criticized. Critics have pointed out the generality of methods of development and the "one size fits all" paradigm. These programmes did not reflect and adapt enough to the conditions of specific areas, and preferred centralised approaches. At the same time a range of regional and local development initiatives has emerged. Despite the great success of local forms of aid, the international aid is still widely in demand and not decreasing. The aim of this thesis is to demonstrate the advantages of international presence in developing education programmes, with the following research question: What benefits do international organisations or institutions bring to national education programmes? Based on participatory observation of education systems in the Philippines and Myanmar, the thesis assesses the main advantages of international development programmes and the benefits for their participants. On the example of two international non-governmental organisations, namely Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult...
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Influence of EU's foreign and neighbourhood policy on neighbouring countries: The Case of Moldova
Kohút, Jakub ; Kučerová, Irah (advisor) ; Knutelská, Viera (referee)
This diploma thesis deals with the relations between European Union and Republic of Moldova. It presents the EU as a unique entity within European territory, which influences its neighbourhood through "soft power", i. e. through peaceful means. Although such means are not binding and legally enforceable, they have certain impact on countries concerned. The thesis aims at examining to what extent the Republic of Moldova is influenced by these means. A special attention is given to transmission of those values and norms, which are the most important for EU (democracy, rule of law, human rights protection, etc.). The issue is seen from a social constructivist perspective.
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International trade with waste: Ecosocialist perspective
Trnobranský, Jakub ; Střítecký, Vít (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
The thesis aims at providing a viable scheme that understand and describe international waste trade in three stages. It links together theoretical background proposed by (1) ecosocialism, namely work John O'Connor, (2) World system theory and (3) state - capital nexus by van Apeldoorn, in order to provide a structured theoretical base for further research. To illustrate the scheme, there is a case study called Trafigura 2006 at the end of the thesis. Purpose of the case study is to go through three stages of the scheme and suggest an example of motivation, logic, status of actors involved and impacts of international waste trade.
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Factors Determining the Allocation of Czech NGOs' Development Assistance Projects
Kofránková, Alžběta ; Parízek, Michal (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
Master thesis called Factors Determining the Allocation of Czech NGOs' Development Assistance Projects aims to find out what are the factors that determine the allocation of development assistance projects funded from private sources. The study is based on the humanitarian and development discourses that both have their origins in the constructivist theory. The study uses data from the year of 2013 provided by Czech NGOs that work in total of 34 countries. In order to achieve its aim, the master thesis uses a method of regression analysis. The first chapter provides a broader overview of the theory of development and presents the constructivist theory with both discourses. The second chapter explains the anchoring of Czech NGOs engaged in the field of the development assistance. In the third chapter, dependent and independent variables are introduced alongside with their descriptive characteristics. The fourth chapter provides tests and the empirical analysis of the models. The estimated results of both models confirm the humanitarian hypothesis, which states that the allocation of resources for development assistance projects by NGOs is greater in countries with a higher poverty level. The development hypothesis is, however, disproved and it can be concluded that the level of democracy and...
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Economic Implications of Turkish Accession to the EU: Advantages and Disadvantages
Gurbanov, Rashad ; Strielkowski, Wadim (advisor) ; Kučerová, Irah (referee)
The European Union has long established itself as the world's most powerful regional supranational formation, which is achieved thanks to its economic results, geopolitical influence, and military might. European integration offers countries with an opportunity to boost their development and have greater impact in the international arena. However, the EU accession criteria are quite hard to meet, and many countries face significant difficulties in this respect, which is the case of Turkey. Since 1987, when Turkey officially applied for membership in the EU, the country hasn't completed its integration in the European community yet. This thesis investigates the main economic advantages and disadvantages in the context of Turkey's prospective accession to the European Union as a full-fledged member state.
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