INTERNATIONAL STUDIES JOURNAL
Year:2024 | Volume:20 | Issue:4|Papers Count:14

The Solomon Islands are a group of hundreds of islands east of Papua New Guinea in the South Pacific Ocean. As the US and its allies continue their provocative actions against China regarding Taiwan, China clarified the scale and scope of its geostrategic ambitions in the Pacific Islands in the first half of 2022. The first indication was the disclosure of the draft of a secret security treaty between China and the Solomon Islands in March. This descriptive-analytical study aims to discuss the nature of this security agreement and its effect on the power of China in the island chain. The main research questions were as follows: 1- What is the position of China’s power projection strategy in the island chain in the foreign policy of China? and 2- What is the role of the Solomon Islands in this strategy? The study findings generally suggested that China is attempting to broaden its sphere of influence over the "island chain" in order to change the balance of power against the superior pole. In addition, the strategic importance of the Solomon Islands to China lies in its geographical location as the third island chain.

The issue of central bank immunity in international law, except in the 2004 United Nations Convention on the Jurisdictional Immunity of States and their Property, was not explicitly discussed in international judicial procedure until the International Court of Justice's ruling in the case of "Certain Iranian Assets". There are some judicial procedures from the domestic courts of States in this regard, which mainly tend towards the absolute and sometimes restrictive immunity of the central banks. However, the Court's approach in the case of Certain Iranian Assets, although implicitly, showed that it is still paying attention to the immunity of the State and its agencies , i.e. the immunity of the State and important State agencies related to it, including the central bank. The question of the present article is what is the approach of the Court regarding the immunity of the central bank in this case and what international legal consequences does it bring? While describing the positions of the parties to the dispute and reviewing the judgment, in this paper, we will examine the approach of the parties to the dispute in the light of the 1955 Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations and Consular Rights, and we will analyze the findings of the Court regarding the Central Bank.

in this article, an attempt is made to explain Iran's foreign policy by emphasizing some variables of James Rosena, such as the government, society and the structure of the international system. In addition, its evaluation should be paid during the period (about 1.5 years) of the Rasis's state. The question of this article is: What changes has Iran's foreign policy undergone in the light of the demands, values and norms of the groups and middle classes of the society, the foreign tendencies of the government and the relationship with the great powers? The explanation to be proven is: the identity and value distinction of the 13th state with groups and the middle class, especially women and young people, is going on at different levels and dimensions, especially in the field of foreign policy. The similarity of identity between these groups with culture The West has caused America and Western European countries to align with them. On the other hand, the Rasis’s state is trying to confront the West, especially the United States, by strengthening its view of the East and trying to establish a strategic relationship with China and Russia. The findings of the research indicate that the variables of the state and the international system have the greatest impact, and the variables of the society, especially the values, norms and demands of the middle class, play a marginal role in the direction of the Rasis's foreign policy

In today's world, described as a global village, countries inevitably need to expand their interactions, collaborations, and international relations with each other. No country can claim to be self-sufficient, as thriving in the new global order is virtually impossible without transnational ties. States must regulate their relations with the rest of the world; Islamic states, additionally, must consider Sharia frameworks and norms when forming their international interactions. The term "governing rules of international relations" means that Muslims must adjust their relations with non-Muslim states in conformity to these guidelines. Given the gap in research, the present study employs a descriptive-analytical approach and problem-oriented perspective to explore the written Islamic heritage. The findings indicate that according to Sharia teachings and the opinions of Islamic jurists, four fundamental principles can be considered as the foundations of Islamic international relations: 1) The Rule of Dignity (Karāmah), 2) the Rule against Defamation of Religion, 3) Rule of Denying Means (Nafy al-Sabīl), and 4) Rule of No Harm (Lā Darar) with the Rule of Obligation (al-Iltizām) also being a subset and function of this rule.

Since the early 21st century, major changes have emerged in the attitudes of a few states toward counterterrorism. In this regard, Israel and the US have adopted unusual military strategies, e.g., targeted killings, in their martial doctrines to fight what they interpreted as terrorism. The foregoing strategy targets merely terrorist leaders and prevents massive campaigns against terrorism. However, no regulations in the international law have prescribed this strategy for counterterrorism. This study aims to determine the legal criticisms of military justifications for resorting to the targeted killing strategy. If it is essential to adopt this strategy, which has been neglected in the international law, what regulations must be observed? The authors used a descriptive-analytical method in this study as well as a comparative technique in some cases to address the foregoing question. In conclusion, although the targeting killing strategy is sometimes considered favorable from a martial perspective, it is difficult to legally justify this strategy. Therefore, five regulations should be followed if this strategy is deemed to be applicable.

LGBTQ rights have increasingly gained importance in an era of globalization and cultural diversity. Human rights are founded on certain principles such as the inherent dignity of humans and the equality of all people. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and relevant international treaties prohibit all forms of discrimination, e.g., those based on sexual orientation, and emphasize equal rights for everyone. Therefore, the LGBTQ community should have equal rights like everyone else from the perspective of human rights. However, LGBTQ relationships are considered against human nature by Islamic law, which is founded on the ethical precepts and standards of Islam. Accordingly, Islamic law not only opposes such relationships but also rejects the possibility of granting the LGBTQ community equal rights. The discrepancy in the approaches and attitudes of these two legal schools has resulted in major national and international challenges and conflicts over LGBTQ rights. Therefore, this descriptive-analytical study aimed to address the challenges and conflicts between these two legal schools regarding LGBTQ rights. According to the findings, there are significant philosophical and conceptual gaps between Islamic law and human rights, which have led to serious obstacles in this area. Human rights are predicated on equality, whereas Islamic law is based on ethical and religious principles. As a result, Islamic law takes a more pragmatic and realistic view of LGBTQ rights.

After the events that happened on 17 September 2022 in Moral Security Police building, protests started in Iran. These incidents started in the cities of Saqqez and Tehran and continued for several months in different cities of Iran and the world. After that, there were many reactions in Iran and other parts of the world. Following these protests, the United Nations Human Rights Council, by issuing Resolution A/HRC/S-35/L.1, established an "Independent International Fact-Finding Mission". The establishment of the fact-finding commission is one of the most important mechanisms of the Human Rights Council for protecting human rights through the investigation of violations in United Nation’s Member States when observing human rights in that country is worrying and the Council should confront with this situation and prevent from impunity. The research method of this article is analytical-descriptive and the method of collecting information is library method. The main question of this research is what will be the effects and legal consequences of the reports of this commission for Iran in the light of examining similar commissions’ activities? The hypothesis of the authors is that the universal jurisdiction of some mainly European courts to prosecute serious human rights violators may be activated.

Energy security has become intricately intertwined with state power, resulting in a complex web of interdependence among energy-producing and consuming countries. Any disruption in this network of interdependencies can have significant ripple effects on the international system. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 had a profound impact on the international system following the Cold War. Russia's substantial reserves of oil and gas have historically positioned it as the primary energy exporter to Europe, and the interconnected energy networks resulted in a significant level of interdependence. The main questions of this research are, considering the significance of energy in the dynamics between Russia and Europe, what has been the role of this prominent factor in the conflicts between Russia and Europe? And what changes did the consequences of the war in Ukraine create in the energy geopolitics of the international system? In this regard, this study seeks to find the correlation of energy in the Ukraine war within the framework of interdependence theories, and its findings indicate that energy, as a strong field of interdependence between Russia and Europe, for reasons such as ideological differences, long-standing distrust, and most importantly, the weaponized use of it by the parties not only failed to create a pluralistic security society but have also led to threatening perceptions. These perceptions have escalated to the point of war and have had an impact on international relations.

The main question of this article is what is good governance and what are its differences with bad governance? This article was compiled based on sources and library study in the field of governance . In the explanation of the article, descriptive-analytical methodology with the aim of examining two categories of defective governance and optimal governance. The findings and conclusions show that the development and progress as well as the backwardness of any nation is rooted in the country's governance. It is the quality and function of governance that determines whether governance is desirable or defective. Good governance requires the use of a set of policies and strategies in order to increase the efficiency and performance of the government in satisfying the people, also increasing the competition in the political and economic fields, as well as making the government more responsive and efficient and modern. Defective governance, which occurs by putting pressure on the people and imposing the desires of the rulers on different strata, causes a decrease in national satisfaction and a decrease in the performance as well as inefficiency of the government compared to other competing countries. In defective governance, those who have more qualifications and professional competence are left aside and those who have less competence take over the administration of the country's affairs. The results of this article will be able to evaluate, guide or modify a wide range of actions needed in the field of governance in the form of recommendations and policy packages.

Considering the growing number of human casualties that peacekeeping operations have entailed in recent years, protection and support for peacekeeping forces have drawn further attention. There are fundamental questions in this regard. What are the measures and mechanisms of the international legal system to protect UN peacekeepers? How successful have they been in protecting these forces? This descriptive-analytical study hypothesized that the international legal system used the Security Council resolutions, the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel (1994), the Geneva Conventions of 1949, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998), and other documents to devise certain mechanisms and measures for protecting UN peacekeepers. Nevertheless, these mechanisms and measures have failed to yield efficient and satisfactory outcomes as expected. Although all member states are obliged to obey the resolutions of the UN Security Council, the wording and tone of some of these resolutions do not oblige the member states to do so. The SOFA is a bilateral agreement with a limited scope of action in most cases. Moreover, the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel is a multilateral agreement that has not been welcomed and supported properly by member states, especially those that host UN peacekeepers. Finally, it is difficult to generalize the provisions and protocols of the Geneva Conventions (1949) and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998) to the issue of protecting UN peacekeepers.

This study examines the influential factors behind Trump’s aggressive foreign policy towards Iran. Following Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 US presidential election and his adoption of aggressive stances vis-à-vis Iran, the already fragile Iran-US ties, forged during the Obama administration under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), faced uncertainties. Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 exacerbated the tensions between the two countries, bringing them to the brink of a full-scale war. Trump’s primary objective in withdrawing from the deal and adopting hostile positions against Iran through a strategy of maximum pressure was to achieve an agreement aligning with the interests of the United States. He pursued his ideal agreement in line with the slogan "America First" and making America great again. For Trump, considerations such as ideology, international agreements, and even global public opinion held no significance. The main question addressed in this study is what factors influenced Trump’s aggressive foreign policy towards Iran. Trump’s aggressive foreign policy toward Iran reveals the motivations underlying his aggressive and hostile behavior toward Iran. The findings of this study are based on Mearsheimer’s offensive realism theory and an analytical-descriptive approach to examining Trump’s personality traits. The conclusion demonstrates that Trump’s aggressive foreign policy towards Iran was shaped by internal factors encompassing the roles and personalities of Trump himself, the Department of State, the Treasury Department, the National Security Council, Congress, think tanks, media outlets, and pro-Israeli lobbies. External factors such as the role of Israel and Saudi Arabia, the European Union, China, Russia, and most importantly, Iran’s regional conduct also played a significant role. Through the integration and overlap of offensive realism and Trump’s personality analysis, this study seeks to provide a better understanding of Trump’s aggressive foreign policy toward Iran.

"Identity politics" is among the prominent topics of novel sociology. In fact, the instances of identity politics include the politicization of ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and religious identities as well as the political activity and participation of ethnoreligious groups to pursue their desires, citizenship rights, and self-determination. The Middle East has emerged as the major focal point for terrorism and ethno-religious conflicts in recent decades. Egypt was among the first Arab states to undergo political and social changes following the onset of successive unrest and political movements in Arab states in 2011. Hence, the main research question is as follows: “What are the most important sociological and domestic factors affecting the politicization of ethnic and religious identities in post-Arab Spring Egypt?” To address this questions, a descriptive-analytical method was employed. According to the findings, the causes of ethnic and religious identity politicization in Egypt are directly related to the “political stability” of this African country. Due to a relatively strong civil society, Egypt managed to go through the transition stage and make progress in various indicators such as political stability, plurality of parties, unemployment rate, inflation rate, and poverty rate. Nevertheless, the lack of consensus on national identity, disruption in the stable transfer of power, and the deep and broad scope of the army's activities still remain the obstacles to successful political stability in Egypt.

Turkey's policies have undergone various ebbs and flows over the past two decades. These policies have been characterized by both friendly relations with neighbors and inference in the internal affairs of certain countries, including Syria. These changes fall under the broader strategic objectives of the Turkish government, which require further examination. This article aims to investigate the reasons behind Turkey's strategic policy shift towards Syria. The significance of Syria's position in Turkey's regional political-security strategy has influenced the Erdogan government's change in strategy. This article addresses the question of the impact of Erdogan's policy shift towards Syria on Turkey's strategic policies in the region. The research findings, based on an explanatory-analytical approach using secondary data, indicate several reasons, including Erdogan's perceptual-psychological nature and personality, his inclination to enhance Turkey's position, the internal political and economic instability, as well as national security concerns, particularly in dealing with Kurdish groups. These factors have constrained the Turkish government to adopt a new policy towards Syria. This shift of policy will change Turkey's strategies in the Middle East and cause it to abandon its neo-Ottomanist policies. The economic instability of Turkey, national security considerations, the long border between the two countries, the issue of the Kurds, terrorism, and the presence of millions of Syrian refugees in Turkey are all significant factors in this strategic shift. Currently, Turkey is more pragmatic in changing its neo-Ottomanist policies.

Turkey’s presence in Afghanistan since 2001 suggests Ankara’s smart diplomacy toward Kabul. Turkey tried to spread its persuasive power, popularity, and appeal in Afghanistan in the framework of this diplomacy and thus pursue its national interests. The main question this paper addresses is: What were the components of Turkey’s smart diplomacy in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021, and what factors influenced their presence? The raw data used in this article was collected using desk research and processed through a descriptive-analytical method. According to the findings, Turkey’s strategy was influenced by diplomacy in a post-modern environment and acceptance of the change in its meaning, and was applied in the framework of of parameters such as  humanitarian aid, economic-commercial projects, exertion of influence on ethnic and political leaders, and mediation. Identity-oriented, internal values of Turkey and Afghanistan and their common benefit-oriented constructs, and the perceptions of the leaders of both countries  concerning the threats and opportunities, and hence of the dynamic environment of the international order, were among the factors that facilitated this diplomacy. The general conclusion of this article indicates  that the internal conditions in Turkey and Afghanistan and the international developments are among the factors driving Turkey to pursue this smart diplomacy in Afghanistan. This diplomacy in the mentioned period included applying all of its soft and hard elements such as using cultural, political, military, diplomatic, and trade capacities and providing economic assistance.