Showing papers on "Economic interdependence published in 2018"

Tourism and economic globalization: an emerging research agenda.

Abstract: Globalization characterizes the economic, social, political, and cultural spheres of the modern world. Tourism has long been claimed as a crucial force shaping globalization, while in turn the developments of the tourism sector are under the influences of growing interdependence across the world. As globalization proceeds, destination countries have become more and more susceptible to local and global events. By linking the existing literature coherently, this study explores a number of themes on economic globalization in tourism. It attempts to identify the forces underpinning globalization and assess the implications on both the supply side and the demand side of the tourism sector. In view of a lack of quantitative evidence, future directions for empirical research have been suggested to investigate the interdependence of tourism demand, the convergence of tourism productivity, and the impact of global events.

The New Silk Roads' impact on the Persian Gulf region : contextualizing China's economic ties and diplomatic relations with the Gulf States

Abstract: China’s rise and Middle Eastern insecurity are two dominating themes in international relations today Yet, their relevance for each other is less discussed The most important connection is China’s and the Persian Gulf region’s new economic interdependence – a part of Asia’s so-called New Silk Roads Energy and non-energy trade between the Gulf and China has grown fast and is increasingly accompanied by investment flows in both directions, as well as closer diplomatic relations The same has happened with regards to the ties between the Gulf and other Asian countries, like India Nevertheless, it is still the US that underwrites basic regional stability with its military presence So far, Asian countries, China included, have thus benefited by fee-riding on it However, as China’s power increases and US appetite for Middle Eastern engagement decreases, it needs to be asked whether China (or anyone else) will one day inherit the American mantle and geo-politically dominate the Gulf This PhD thesis seeks to answer that question via the help of three types of contextualization: Firstly, the use of the two most influential, but antagonistic IR theories – neo-liberal institutionalism and neo-realism – tests which is the more accurate for China’s Gulf role It ultimately argues in favour of a neo-neo synthesis around the concept of regional hegemonic stablity Secondly, a brief recap of historical analogies regarding previous external powers and their rivalries in the Gulf is provided These range from early-modern actors, over the British Raj and to the American hegemon Thirdly, the inter-regional context is provided by briefly outlining the Gulf states' relations with China's Asian competitors, Japan, South Korea, and India In the second part of the thesis, China's New Silk Roads across Eurasia and the Gulf are analysed via a regional overview and then via two case studies, on China-Saudi Arabia relations and China-United Arab Emirates relations The conclusion brings all these various threads together in order to undertake a comparison between current American, Chinese (and partly Indian) capabilities, and their future opportunities and risks This is done via theoretical assessments as well as historical contextualization and discussion of useful analogies Why is this research question important? On the one hand, the world economy’s hydrocarbon-dependence continues to rely on the Gulf’s huge reserves On the other, the region offers a long history of geo-strategic centrality to world affairs and will likely also help determine into which direction global power flows in the 21st century

China’s 16+1 and Belt and Road Initiative in Central and Eastern Europe: economic and political influence at a cheap price

Abstract: In September 2013, China’s President Xi Jinping announced the initiative of rebuilding the original Silk Road. China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) covers a broad network of railways, pipelines, ...

Constructing regionalism in South America: the cases of sectoral cooperation on transport infrastructure and energy

Abstract: This article contributes to the study of South American regionalism focusing on the emergence of sectoral cooperation starting in 2000. To do so, the article analyses two policy areas — transport infrastructure and energy integration — addressing two questions: Why has regional cooperation emerged despite the absence of economic interdependence and market-driven demand for economic integration? And why are policy outcomes evident in some areas (i.e. transport infrastructure) while limited in others (i.e. energy)? It is argued that the emergence of regional cooperation as well as the variation in policy outcomes between areas can be explained largely by the articulation of a regional leadership and its effect on the convergence of state preferences. The article shows how the Brazilian leadership, incentivised by the effects of the US-led Free Trade Area of the Americas negotiations and the financial crises that hit the region in the late 1990s, made state preferences converge towards a regionalist project encompassing all South American countries by making visible the mutual benefits of cooperation on transport infrastructure and energy. In the case of energy, however, the emergence of a second regional leadership project — pursued by Chavez’s Venezuela — and deep preference divergence led sectoral cooperation into a gridlock.

Urban occupational structures as information networks: The effect on network density of increasing number of occupations.

Abstract: Urban economies are composed of diverse activities, embodied in labor occupations, which depend on one another to produce goods and services. Yet little is known about how the nature and intensity of these interdependences change as cities increase in population size and economic complexity. Understanding the relationship between occupational interdependencies and the number of occupations defining an urban economy is relevant because interdependence within a networked system has implications for system resilience and for how easily can the structure of the network be modified. Here, we represent the interdependencies among occupations in a city as a non-spatial information network, where the strengths of interdependence between pairs of occupations determine the strengths of the links in the network. Using those quantified link strengths we calculate a single metric of interdependence-or connectedness-which is equivalent to the density of a city's weighted occupational network. We then examine urban systems in six industrialized countries, analyzing how the density of urban occupational networks changes with network size, measured as the number of unique occupations present in an urban workforce. We find that in all six countries, density, or economic interdependence, increases superlinearly with the number of distinct occupations. Because connections among occupations represent flows of information, we provide evidence that connectivity scales superlinearly with network size in information networks.

The Political Economy of Turkish-Russian Relations: Dynamics of Asymmetric Interdependence

Abstract: In examining Turkish-Russian economic relations, this paper puts forward three arguments. First, the relationship is characterized by an asymmetric interdependence that favors Russia over Turkey. The source of the asymmetry lies in the divergent domestic economic structures of the two countries. Moreover, the developments in the aftermath of the jet crisis of 2015 demonstrated Turkey’s vulnerability to Russian economic sanctions. To support this argument, I use trade and foreign direct investment data to analyze the evolution of Turkish- Russian economic ties over the past decade. Second, international developments such as the global financial crisis and the West’s sanctions against Russia have significantly diminished the capacity of Turkish-Russian economic cooperation. Third, Turkish-Russian economic interdependence cannot soon transform into complex interdependence that characterizes bilateral ties in the advanced c apitalist world. Despite the growing role of business groups and humanitarian ties, politics will continue to shape the prospects of Turkish-Russian economic cooperation in the foreseeable future.

Economic Competition, Policy Interdependence, and Labour Rights

Abstract: Extant scholarship treats national policies concerning labour rights as a function of economic factors and yet neglects influences of policies among economically competing states. Relying on the po...

How cosmopolitanism reduces conflict: A broad reading of Kant’s third ingredient for peace:

Abstract: Kant’s theory of peace has been reinterpreted under one of the most influential research programs of our times: The so-called democratic peace theory. In particular, the third ingredient of Kant’s “recipe” for peace —the cosmopolitan right to visit—has been recognized as a powerful and effective instrument to reduce militarized interstate conflicts. In the hands of political scientists, however, this ingredient has often become nothing more than a set of rules for securing and facilitating international trade and economic interdependence. This article argues that this narrow reading mistakes international trade as the essence of the third definitive article. Kant sees economic interdependence as a means to realize what cosmopolitan right is truly about, that is, the affirmation of a set of rules for protecting humans qua humans, the creation of communal bonds among individuals beyond national or group loyalties, and the promotion of a global moral conscience modeled on the natural rights of man. An accura...

Reversing Course: Fiscal Policy and Economic Interdependence

Abstract: In response to the 2008 financial crisis, countries throughout the developed world widely embraced fiscal stimulus policies. But about one year later, with their economies still weak, a majority of...

The Economic Leverage of International Organizations in Interstate Disputes

Abstract: Addressing a long-standing debate in international relations scholarship, this study shows that international governmental organizations (IGOs) with high economic leverage over their member states, such as some development banks, substantially lower the risk that political disputes experience the use of military force. Empirical tests covering cases of disputatious claims and international crises since 1946 make use of a new classification of IGOs that have economic leverage and use it toward increasing states’ cost of using force in disputes. When pairs of states are subject to the economic leverage of IGOs, they are substantially less likely to use force. For the understanding and practice of interstate dispute resolution and international conflict more generally, the study suggests a specific linkage between institutionalized economic interdependence and conflict escalation.

Protecting Trade By Legalizing Political Disputes: Why Countries Bring Cases to the International Court of Justice

Abstract: Why do countries use legal venues to solve disputes? In the absence of external enforcement, a court offers little leverage to change the underlying power distribution between states. Despite this lack of enforcement and a de facto requirement for mutual consent, 68 countries ranging in income and military capabilities have brought 134 cases to the ICJ since its inception in 1946. The literature suggests states are more likely to file cases when democratic leaders need political cover for difficult territorial concessions or when a state’s legal tradition supports the use of courts. We advance an alternative explanation that states use the ICJ to protect trade flows from disruption. The uncertainty arising from intense political disputes between countries can depress trade flows and give rise to issue linkage. Those states most vulnerable to such hold-up will seek legal venues as a means to avoid negative externalities for trade flows from the dispute. We assess this argument by analyzing how trade dependence shapes the likelihood of a state filing a case against another state in the ICJ. Using data on 190 countries from 1960 to 2013, we explain patterns of ICJ case initiation. Our findings show that countries are more likely to file ICJ cases against important trading partners than against states with low levels of shared trade. We conclude that economic interdependence changes the incentives for how states resolve their disputes.

Mutual Economic Interdependence or Economic Imbalance: Turkish Private Sector Presence in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Abstract: This article concentrates on the deepening of Ankara-Erbil relations, with a specific focus on the presence of the Turkish private sector in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) between 2004 and 2014...

Economic Interdependence and Peace: a Case Comparison Between the US-China and US-Japan Trade Disputes

Abstract: Liberalists have argued that increased economic interdependence will deter the likelihood of war as opportunity costs of a military conflict will not be fashionable for either side. Realists such as Waltz contended that while interdependence promotes peace to a certain extent, it also multiplies the occasions for conflicts. Dale Copeland drew perspectives from both sides to argue that interdependence may lead to peace depending on the expectations of the future trade environment. Now, with the United States’ (US) ongoing trade war with China and its legacy of trade conflicts with Japan in the 1990s, the question of whether economic interdependence brings peace deserves to be revisited. This article, through making a comparison between the cases of bilateral trade conflicts between the US and China and the US and Japan, contends that increased bilateral economic interdependence also increased the frequency of conflicts in the two respective cases. Moreover, it further argues that such increase in frequency was due to the US’s negative expectations on the future trade environment.

International Indigenous Economic Law

Abstract: Scholarship on the links between business and human rights is widespread. However, the specific ways in which globalization accommodates the economically marginalized and those who are likely most vulnerable to its negative effects has received scant attention. The increasingly obvious manifestations of discontent over the effects of globalization — from Brexit, to the election of President Trump — combined with the evidence that confirms the very uneven distribution of its benefits, indicate that this is an important scholarly gap. To bridge it, this Article explores the extent to which the main fields of international law that are tasked with promoting economic interdependence — international finance, investment, trade, and intellectual property — address the rights and interests of indigenous peoples, an expressly protected category of marginalized and/or vulnerable people under international law. Relying on recent legal practice and four case studies, the Article compares these fields and explains the different ways indigenous peoples’ interests are accommodated by international economic law. More broadly, the intersection between international economic law and indigenous rights — what I call international indigenous economic law — provides important lessons to current demands to address the negative effects of globalization. In particular, the Article argues that international economic law must recognize the need to more seriously incorporate the struggle for social and economic justice espoused by human rights law. At the same time, human rights advocates should utilize the growing set of possibilities from instruments that promote economic interdependence to create or renew strategies that advance human rights values and goals. This complex line has been at the core of indigenous rights advocacy, the relative success of which provides some hope for the future of international law at a challenging time.

China’s One Belt and One Road: Implications of ‘New Eurasian Land Bridge’ on Global Power Play in the Region

Abstract: China’s ‘One Belt and One Road Initiative’ (OBOR) transliterated from Chinese ‘Yi Dai Yi Lu’ is the prime focus of international politics. No other development has gained so much importance after Global war on terrorism. This paper will focus on impact of OBOR on regional politics with narrowed down focus on New Eurasian land bridge. This analysis of Eurasian belt will lead to study of counter policies of international players like USA and Russia to counter Chinese influence in the region. This analytical and prognostic study will bring into focus the impact of OBOR on international power play especially on the regional peace in Eurasia. To analyze the importance of OBOR and regional complexity we need to understand the theoretical aspects of connectivity and cooperation. Inter- Regional integration theory proposed in the work of Luk Van Langenhov with major tenants of regional integration is the best description of China’s initiative. Another important corridor will come under discussion given its role as ‘zipper’ in Belt and Road Initiative that is China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The last part of study will bring to attention international response of key players towards OBOR whose strategic and economic interest in this part of world are at stake which makes current global power play much more complex and uncertainty prevails. But in this age of economic interdependence, finding ways for peaceful co-existence is crucial as no one can afford otherwise.

Impact of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on Human Security and the Role of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB)

Abstract: Recent history of international relations suggests that economic interdependence largely contributes to the mitigation of the major political conflicts in the world. CPEC, a flagship mega development project of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), has not only initiated massive development projects in Pakistan, which will eventually help in socio-economic development of Pakistan but it will also ensure regional integration. Development of Pakistan through CPEC is desirably focused on a people centric growth model that primarily seeks to resolve the issues of human security. This paper seeks to establish the relationship between economic interdependence and regional integration with human security. Furthermore, this study looks into the role of Gilgit-Baltistan, a geographical lynchpin region, in making CPEC a successful developmental project. Findings of the study suggest that the viability and success of this mega project is highly dependent on the inclusiveness of projects in terms of engaging all stakeholders. The fruits of this mega project are expected to be positive. This is only possible if all the different dimensions of national security, i.e. social cohesion, economic development, and political stability are ensured by the state.

Uk policy options and the south atlantic

Abstract: This article utilises International Relations role theory to analyse a number of potential roles for the United Kingdom as an actor with vested interests in the South Atlantic. It assesses the contemporary context of the UK’s trading relationship with the South Atlantic in light of the ongoing dialogue between the EU and the UK with regard to BREXIT. It also recognises the strategic realities of the South Atlantic and the UK’s Overseas Territories in the region. It posits that the UK, as a strategic actor in the South Atlantic, is limited in its role choices and that the role of ‘Opportunistic Partner’ in terms of its relationship with Argentina, offers the most scope as the basis for future mutually beneficial trading relations to normalise further political relations between the two countries.

Theory and practices of economic regionalism: a case study of brics

Abstract: The BRICS is the new platform which enhances trade creates space in their regionalism process. This study is more relevant in the modern scenario, especially in the era of geographical conflicts between nation-states. This study fills the existing knowledge gap as regionalism versus multilateralism. The major argument of this study is that geographical proximity does not much influence regional integration, but concerns and mutual interest are more effective factors. This study analyzes theory and practices of economic regionalism working in the context of BRICS.

Economic Interdependence, Polity Type, Conflict and Peace: When Does Interdependence Cause Peace and Cause War?

Abstract: Competing IR paradigms have long debated the relationship between trade and conflict. Some view trade as causing interstate conflict whereas others see it as pacifying interstate relations. To address this ongoing scholarly debate, this study proposes an interactive relationship of interdependence and polity type in affecting peace. I argue that trade interdependence differently affects interstate relations between democracies and autocracies: interdependence causes conflict for autocracies while causing peace for democracies. This interactive hypothesis is tested against the directed-dyad sample of 1950-2001 for which all the relevant data are jointly available. My probit analysis reveals that interdependence increases the probability of conflict initiation for autocratic challengers but decreases it for democratic challengers.

Peran Liga Arab Pada Konflik di Timur Tengah dalam Perspektif Ekonomi-Politik Internasional

Abstract: The Arab League since its establishment in 1945 has failed to play a significant role in minimizing conflicts in the region. In some contemporary conflicts (Syria and Yemen), it is the the powerful countries of the League that became the main actors in the conflict. This raises the question, what is the reason behind this failure, especially political-economic reasons. Using the literature review, this paper finds that there are two factors contributing to the failure, namely economic interdependence between rich Arab countries and the United States, and secondly, a strong relationship between the United States and Israel. The later becomes the reason why the US takes advantage of its economic hegemony to defend the interests of Israel.

Natural Externalities of Economic Growth Stabilization in XXI Century: Geography Seeking Revenge

Abstract: Studying the factors of national economic growth stabilization is especially topical and relevant under the conditions of growing economic interdependence of the states which objectively limits the regulatory functions of national governments, in parallel to which regionalization gradually establishes oneself as an alter-trend to globalism. In our research we stem from the analysis of the macroeconomic statistics and of the dynamics of economic progress in the selected countries of the world, so that to determine the correlation between the indicators of economic growth stability for a selected group of countries with their integration into the world markets. Conclusions of our analysis outline the regularities in stable economic growth strategies’ implementation along with the key factors contributing to economic stabilization under contemporary conditions. The important role of geography is emphasized, inter alia, since geography is the key precondition for development and implementation of the long-term strategies of economic progress for world regions.

Polityka Turcji wobec Bałkanów Zachodnich po 2008 roku

Abstract: With the disintegration of Yugoslavia, all the balances in the Balkans were altered and the instability that arose from this process reached a level that threatened international peace. The historical ties between the peoples of Turkey and countries of the region have extended until today. There are Turkish minorities and communities as well as kin communities in the Balkan countries on the one hand; whereas there are citizens of Balkan‑origin in Turkey on the other. Turkey aims to initiate a psychological breakthrough in the Balkans to undo the negative memories of the past. At the regional level, Turkey follows three different sets of policies. The first is to develop bilateral relations to the possible highest extent. The second track is the creation of trilateral mechanisms, such as between Turkey, Serbia, and Bosnia; and Turkey, Croatia, and Bosnia‑Herzegovina. The third track aims to achieve region‑wide cooperation efforts and foster economic interdependence to secure the future of the political relations.

A Financial Analysis Approach on the Promotion of Peace through Economic Interdependence

Abstract: The question of whether economic interdependence promotes peace is more than ever relevant once and again due to a series of conflicts around the globe. Two schools advocate the two opposite beliefs; these are Realism and Liberalism. The former supports that economic interdependence does not necessarily promote peace, whereas the latter trusts that it does. In our paper, we use a financial analysis—econometric approach to realize that there is evidence that supports that economic interdependence between two states in conflict does not promote peace since it has no significant impact on the configuration of the conflict. Consequently, it does not provide a significant enhancement in the levels of national security.

The Evolving Diversity and Interdependence of Growth Regimes and De-industrialization in European Countries and Japan

Abstract: The transformations of growth regimes have proceeded with industrial structural changes in the increasing economic interdependence of European and East Asian countries. Most of the European economies have experienced de-industrialization as a long-term industrial structural change since the 1970s. De-industrialization is usually defined as a relative decline in output and employment in the manufacturing industry. This phenomenon has been observed universally, not only in European economies but in other advanced economies as well. In Japan, in particular, de-industrialization has accelerated rapidly since the 1990s amid institutional changes in the domestic economy and structural changes in international economic relations with other Asian countries in the process of Asian economic integration. In Europe, de-industrialization has exhibited different patterns with the evolving diversity and interdependence of European capitalisms in the process of European integration.

Is China an Exception to the Commercial Peace

Abstract: Author(s): Zhang, Jiakun Jack | Advisor(s): Haggard, Stephan; Lake, David | Abstract: Contrary to commercial peace theories, which predicted that economic engagement would make possible China’s peaceful rise, China seems to be engaging in more militarized disputes with its neighbors and trade partners. I offer an explanation for this apparent anomaly by examining the relationship between borders, trade, and conflict in a new dataset on Chinese Foreign Relations (CFR). I integrate the three main causal mechanisms in the commercial peace literature, constrain, inform, and transform, into a unified theoretical framework and use China’s foreign policy behavior to develop and test this theory. I show that economic engagement, while capable of creating new areas of cooperation, is not effective at resolving underlying causes of military conflict such as territorial disputes or constraining the use of military force during crisis bargaining. Though disputed borders have been found to depress international trade flows in other regions, they have not impeded China’s growing trade with its disputant neighbors. At the same time, China’s use of military force against trade partners does not disrupt economic ties or produce opportunity costs as previously assumed. I find that conflict over unresolved territorial disputes account for 87% of Chinese uses of military force and China is not constrained by growing trade dependence with other claimants. These results suggest that trade may lead to stability at higher intensities of conflict --making wars more unthinkable-- but can also create instability at lower intensities of conflict -- incentivizing calibrated uses of military force, against which revoking trade would not be a credible response. Therefore, as long as China’s territorial disputes remain unresolved, economic interdependence will not decrease the frequency with which China uses military force in these disputes but will put a ceiling on the intensity of these conflicts.

Emerging countries’ dilemmas in multilateral frameworks: the case of the Japanese “miracle”

Abstract: Regardless of economic interdependence, there is possibility that two countries occasionally have severe international stress. This is especially true between rising and ruling countries, which is referred to as “Thucydides’s Trap.” In order to analyze how a rising country can manage its growing presence in the world, the purpose of this paper is to examine the case of Japan as a rising power in the past.,There seem to be similarities between the “Japan problem” and the “China problem” such as the economic ascendance of a rising country and the failures of American leadership in spite of different time periods. Thus, analyzing Japan’s experience in the past can help understand how the growing international presence of a rising country can be managed.,When Japan created international economic policies, it aimed for the following three effects: for its trade liberalization to reduce western countries’ restrictions on its export products, for its economic assistance to contribute to developing countries’ stabilization and for its trade liberalization and its economic assistance to contribute to promoting its international trade and upgrading its international status. To accommodate an emerging country into the international system smoothly, not only the country itself but also others require comprehensive measures while considering policy interactions.,Most previous studies that analyze the relationship between a rising and a ruling country examine conflicts between the two parties from a bilateral perspective. However, since the conflicts do not only involve the two countries, but also other countries in the world, it is important to consider how the two countries and other affected countries manage the growing presence of a rising power. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze how an emerging country integrates itself into the existing international system from a multilateral perspective based on the case of Japan.

Evolution and contemporary trends of the international monetary system

Abstract: The growth dynamics of international exchange and capital flows is conditioned by the efficiency of the international monetary system whose basic task is to provide for international liquidity and smooth international payments. The tendencies in international economic relations in the time of globalisation have determined further directions for the development of the international monetary system. The breakup of the Bretton-Woods System initiated the establishment of a new European monetary system with the aim to stabilise the exchange rates and improve further process of integration and international economic relations. In this research paper we have pointed out to the fact that economic interdependence of souvereign countries leads to coordination of macroeconomic policies, and that it can motivate monetary integration within the monetary policy. The objective of this research paper is to emphasize the stability of the international monetary system as a prerequisite for sustainable growth of national economies and monetary union. The contemporary international monetary system is characterised by the trend of reduced number of national currencies, as this is a logical conseqence of increasing European integrations, but also beacuase of significant economic advanatages. Simultaneously, the costs of the euro changeover and introduction of a common currency are lower if economic performances of member countries mutualy converge.

Nationalism, Populism, Realism and the Intensification of East Asia's Maritime Disputes: The Northern Territories, Dokdo/Takeshima and Daoiyu/Senkaku

Abstract: The neo-realist paradigm in international relations scholarship holds that sovereign states are rational, unitary, value-maximizing actors capable of understanding and rank-ordering their tangible national interests while distinguishing between short- and long-term goals. In the neo-realist view, territorial conflicts, unless involving central security concerns, will be subordinated to larger foreign policy objectives. Neo-liberals, on the other hand, argue that the growth of trade and economic interdependence is conducive to cooperation. ?Trade dependency? on a state with which there is a territorial conflict will lead to sublimation, sidelining or delayed resolution of the dispute without the threat or use of force. This paper analyzes three of East Asia?s high-profile maritime disputes, those over the Southern Kurlies/Northern Territories (Russia and Japan), Dokdo/Takeshima (South Korea/Japan), and Diaoyu/Senkaku (China/Japan). The paper demonstrates that, to an increasing degree, nationalist and populist sentiment ? rather than neo-realist or neo-liberal calculation ? has been the prime mover in each of these conflicts. The four regional players ? China, Japan, South Korea and Russia ? have politically invested far more in these islands than an objective analysis would seem to warrant, leading to intensified diplomatic conflict, hampered cooperation, emotion-driven domestic populism, and the possibility of future military action. The paper rejects the reasoning of some recent scholarship on the resolution of maritime disputes. It argues that the increasing salience of populist nationalism as a force hampering the resolution of maritime conflict is part of a global trend in the second decade of the 21st century.

The Protocol on Trade and the Creation of the Southern African Development Community Free Trade Area

Abstract: The author offers a much-needed analysis of regional economic integration in the SADC and explains the successful establishment of the SADC Free Trade Area. He outlines the demand for regional market integration in the SADC’s member states from a structural perspective in consideration of intra-regional economic interdependence and trade relations. Against this background, this chapter provides an explanation of the specific provisions of the SADC Protocol on Trade that determined the institutional design of the free trade area. In this respect, Muntschick highlights the key role of South Africa as the regional economic hegemon. Finally, this chapter evaluates the performance of the SADC Free Trade Area on the basis of several indicators and concludes that the project is a success despite some shortcomings.

Barriers to Community-Building in Northeast Asia: Geopolitics, Nationalism, and Domestic Politics

Abstract: Since the 1980s, the Northeast Asian region has undergone a profound transformation. China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan have emerged as among the most successful economies in the world. And precarious cross-strait relations between Taiwan and China, and tense inter-Korean relations notwithstanding, growing economic interdependence, expanding social and cultural interactions, shared regional norms, and institutionalized networks of cooperation significantly contributed to enhancing chances for community-building in the region.