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Internet governance in Putin's Russia - a long term perspective
Novák, Adam ; Solovyeva, Anzhelika (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
Master's thesis abstract Internet Governance in Putin's Russia - a long-term perspective This longitudinal case study is dedicated to the analysis of the development behind Russia's approach to Internet governance. By qualitatively researching the development of the Kremlin's approach to Internet governance, this thesis aims to capture the learning process behind regulating the cyberspace in Russia. As such, the aim is to understand what kind of events have shaped its perception of how Internet and the underpinning infrastructure should be approached to increase the regime's stability. Building on the concepts of digital authoritarianism and authoritarian learning and by understanding learning as a long-term process with turning points, this thesis aims to answer these research questions. How does Russia's digital authoritarianism manifest? Which events, both domestic and international, hastened the pace and intensity of cyberspace regulation in Russia? Can we identify a learning process behind Russia's long-term approach towards Internet regulation? For these ends, the turning points refer to events after which we can identify a change in the perception of Internet governance and/or intensification in controlling the online information space. As such, with the help of periodization, the thesis traces the...
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Geopolitics of faith: Russian Orthodox Church in Western Balkans
Maraš, Darija ; Romancov, Michael (advisor) ; Doboš, Bohumil (referee)
The study seeks to explore the Russian Orthodox Church's influence on the Western Balkan region from 2005 to 2014, using the soft power theory pioneered by Joseph Nye. The existing cultural ties between majority Orthodox countries in the region and Russian Orthodox Church created an environment that is prone to cultural influence coming from the Church. Using Joseph Nye's description of the public diplomacy mechanism (which is behind soft power application), this work analyzes Russian Orthodox Church activities in the region, establishing that Serbia appeared to be the most prioritized in the Church's public diplomacy, followed by Montenegro, North Macedonia and Republika Srpska respectively. As soft power theory assumes, its application must bring out certain changes, that are produced by the power of attraction. Not surprisingly, Serbia adopted a number of laws that correspond to the stimuli coming from the Church, with less success in the remaining three countries, but with visible results associated with the Church's public diplomacy. The work solidifies the notion that the Russian Orthodox Church has a measurable effect on certain political outcomes in the Western Balkan countries.
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Taiwan Scholarships as a Source of Soft Power
Šilhánová, Barbora ; Bečka, Jan (advisor) ; Sehnálková, Jana (referee)
Bachelor thesis "Taiwan Scholarships as a source of Soft Power" deals with the Taiwanese view of the concept of soft power, it introduces the scholarships offered to foreign students and finally assess the impact those scholarship have on their recipients. The core of the thesis is the research carried out by the author using semi-structured questionare and interview. The researched subjects were defined in advance as Czech students who went to one of Taiwan scholarships. The first chapter is an introduction to historical context of Taiwan's contemporary situation. It also describes the Taiwanese soft power interpretation and application in practise. The second chapter focuses on the Taiwanese scholarships offer for foreign students. The third chapter presents the foundings the research.
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Environmental topics in nation branding: the case of Slovenia
Havlíčková, Marta ; Tomalová, Eliška (advisor) ; Váška, Jan (referee)
This thesis focuses on the approach of Slovenia to the promotion of the state abroad. It is a small country with two million inhabitants, suffering from poor visibility and being confused with Slovakia. Slovenia has decided to change this by creating a national brand. Positive perception of a country contributes to economic development of the state. It is also an ideal means by which small states can maximise their influence in the international arena. The thesis describes the gradual development of the national brand and its implementation. The thesis also describes the institutional background, the work being coordinated by the Government Office for Communication. Slovenia has succeeded in creating the brand of a green country with a quality of life for all. For a national brand to be successful, it must be based on real national priorities. In the case of Slovenia, ecology is also part of its domestic and foreign policy priorities. The monitored indicators show that Slovenia's environmental performance varies in different areas. In some areas Slovenia is a leader in the EU, in others, for example in transport, its performance is below average. The work concludes that the label is based on real foundations because some part of environmental policy is effective.
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EU Soft Power in the Eastern Partnership countries: The Case of Ukraine
Shagivaleeva, Akime ; Tomalová, Eliška (advisor) ; Váška, Jan (referee)
SHAGIVALEEVA, Akime. EU Soft Power in the Eastern Partnership countries: the Case of Ukraine. 89 p. Mater thesis. Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of International Studies. Supervisor prof. Mgr. Eliška Tomalová, Ph.D. Abstract The thesis studies the EU as a soft power actor, seeking to analyse the way it is favouring soft power tools in its foreign policy, establishing the relations with the neighbouring countries and guaranteeing security across its borders. The research is aiming to prove that the soft power is a relevant approach and an effective foreign policy tool for the EU to persuade Eastern Partnership countries for closer cooperation. The topic is relevant for the EU security, prosperity and its role as a global political actor. The thesis makes a contribution to the debate, providing with the characterization of the theoretical concept of 'soft' and 'hard' power, description of the use of soft power by the EU, its sources and limits and the argumentation for the effectiveness and relevance of 'soft power' approach having studied how soft power sources are being applied. The thesis represents a qualitative research structured to investigate primarily the theoretical framework and further apply it onto the policy on regional level (Eastern Partnership states) and then more...
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The Norwegian policy of cooperation in Education and Research as a soft-power tool for Norway's foreign policy
Rozsypal Pajerová, Anna ; Kasáková, Zuzana (advisor) ; Svobodný, Petr (referee)
This diploma thesis examines the Norwegian policy of cooperation in Education and Research as a soft-power tool for Norway's foreign policy. Within a European context, three levels of Norway's participation in Education and Research programmes will be analyzed. The first level is Norway's cooperation policy toward the EU, though as a weaker actor. The second is Norway's value of cooperation as an equal partner, which is typical in the Nordic region. And the third is cooperation via EEA Grants and Norway Grants, in which Norway is a dominant player. This thesis combines a theory of international cooperation and Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye's theory of soft-power, complex interdependence and asymmetry of relations between the participants. In the research, a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods are used. This thesis reveals that Norway decreases the financial spending to the areas where it has more influence and can utilize more of its soft power, while it also invests into areas where it plays the role of substandard actor. An explanation is found in the theory of international cooperation and the game of Chicken, where the longstanding and successful corporation strives to achieve a compromise rather than a win, i.e. to moderate any power fluctuation and strive for an equilibrium state.
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The Norwegian policy of cooperation in Education and Research as a soft-power tool for Norway's foreign policy
Rozsypal Pajerová, Anna ; Kasáková, Zuzana (advisor) ; Svobodný, Petr (referee)
This diploma thesis examines the Norwegian policy of cooperation in Education and Research as a soft-power tool for Norway's foreign policy. Within a European context, three levels of Norway's participation in Education and Research programmes will be analyzed. The first level is Norway's cooperation policy toward the EU, though as a weaker actor. The second is Norway's value of cooperation as an equal partner, which is typical in the Nordic region. And the third is cooperation via EEA Grants and Norway Grants, in which Norway is a dominant player. This thesis combines a theory of international cooperation and Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye's theory of soft-power, complex interdependence and asymmetry of relations between the participants. In the research, a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods are used. This thesis reveals that Norway decreases the financial spending to the areas where it has more influence and can utilize more of its soft power, while it also invests into areas where it plays the role of substandard actor. An explanation is found in the theory of international cooperation and the game of Chicken, where the longstanding and successful corporation strives to achieve a compromise rather than a win, i.e. to moderate any power fluctuation and strive for an equilibrium state.
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Public diplomacy of Great Britain, Germany, and France in the Czech Republic taking into account the question of the European Union
Blažková, Adéla ; Karlas, Jan (advisor) ; Jeřábek, Martin (referee)
This diploma thesis deals with public diplomacy of France, Great Britain, and Germany in the Czech Republic. Based on the theoretical parts, two models of public diplomacy are formulated. The main criteria for the division of the models are the goals of public diplomacy. The first one is a model of promoting a positive image of a state abroad that is used for improving the image of the state in front of the foreign public. In the case of the second model, states can use the interests of public diplomacy to actively promote the values and views of the state that uses public diplomacy. After the presentation of public diplomacy organisations of the selected states and the historical development of their activities in the Czech Republic, an analysis was performed based on data collected from social networks, websites, and interviews with several representatives of public diplomacy. The practices of British, French, and German public diplomacy were categorized based on the goals mentioned within the official documents, the goals of individual public diplomacy institutions, partners, topics, and the tools they use to work the topics. Based on the analysis, none of the public diplomacy of the selected countries operating in the Czech Republic can be assigned a model of promoting values.
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