The Dynamics of Black Sea Subregionalism


Book Description

Conflict and cooperation are two dynamics that have shaped the political economy and international relations around the Black Sea since the early nineties. Despite the negative structural environment and the persistence of a high security dilemma, cooperative efforts among Black Sea actors (primarily state elites but increasingly non-state actors) have been advancing, even though slowly. Representing a new development in the study of contemporary regionalism, Panagiota Manoli examines the process of institutionalized subregional cooperation and casts new light on the factors influencing the reconfiguration of subregional structures in the region. Focusing on the primary initiative in the region, Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), Manoli traces how subregionalism has evolved since the early nineties and what has been driving and conditioning this process. Questioning whether there is a definitive nature to subregionalism, Manoli then discusses Black Sea subregionalism within the European integration process, examining the impact of the European Union. Contributing to the conceptualization of the subregional phenomenon, this book should be read by scholars and policy-makers alike unclear on how local elements interface with extra-regional forces in the shaping of a subregion.




An Introduction to European Intergovernmental Organizations


Book Description

An Introduction to European Intergovernmental Organizations provides an up-to-date and accessible reference to European intergovernmental organizations other than the European Union. The EU is so dominant that people often overlook the multitude of older and newer, smaller and larger intergovernmental organizations rooted in the history of contemporary Europe which continue to help shape its future. The specialized character of these organizations adds value to cooperation in Europe as a whole, creates permanent channels of communication regardless of EU membership and allows the possibility for non-European involvement through organizations such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and NATO. It also allows sub regional groups of states, such as the Nordic countries or the Benelux countries to exist and express their own identity via their own organizations. This book looks at the history of Non-EU organizations, their decision-making characteristics, membership policies, legal powers actions and interactions with each other and the European Union. A uniform scheme of analysis is used to make European intergovernmental organizations comparable and by studying them we gain a deeper understanding and insight into European affairs.




Greek Maritime History


Book Description

This volume presents Greek Maritime History to a wider audience and unravels the historical trajectory of a maritime nation par excellence in the Eastern Mediterranean: the rise of the Greek merchant fleet and its transformation from a peripheral to an international carrier.




The Geopolitical Black Sea Encyclopaedia


Book Description

Today, we know what the Black Sea is not from a strategic perspective, but we do not know what it is. This strategic indecision is the explanation for all the conflicts, frozen or not, explicit or tacit, and all the political and geopolitical tensions that are now taking place in this space and that are becoming endemic. The story of the Black Sea continues… This text is the first encyclopaedia explicitly dedicated to the geopolitics of the Black Sea, written for Western audiences, an academic research which appeals to the wider academic community, PhD students, professors, and researchers, and to any reader interested in geopolitics, history, international relations, economy, sociology, history, and geography.




The Geopolitics of Region Building in the Black Sea


Book Description

Offering theoretical insights on region building, this book explores the attempts to formulate a political and institutional vision for the Black Sea region in the post-9/11 era and in the context of the enlargements of the EU and NATO.




Russia, NATO, and Black Sea Security


Book Description

Russia has long used political, military, economic, informational, and clandestine tools against countries in the Black Sea region. In this report, the authors present elements of a Western strategy to counter Russian malign influence and aggression.







Challenges and Opportunities for the EU Common Fisheries Policy Application in the Mediterranean and Black Sea


Book Description

The application of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) in the Mediterranean and Black Sea faces several challenges also because of large ecological, economic, political and institutional differences across the basin. The challenge of CFP application is exacerbated by the legal/administrative situation, with large areas outside national/EU jurisdictions, by the different development of fisheries that result in fleet capacities highly different on opposite shores of some sub-basins, as well as by uneven monitoring and data availability across the basins that result in situations that hamper sustainable management. This book collates analyses related to the application of the principles included in the CFP in Mediterranean and Black Sea, including assessments of current status, scenario analyses, visions of best solutions, evaluation of critical hot spots and effects of regionalization of fisheries management. The eBook tackles from local to transboundary issues and solutions and provides a broad vision of problems together with important practical solutions for CFP application in the Mediterranean and Black Sea.







Field Identification Guide to the Sharks and Rays of the Mediterranean and Black Sea


Book Description

This volume presents a fully illustrated field guide for the identification of the sharks and rays most relevant to the fisheries of the Mediterranean and Black Sea. An extensive literature review was carried out for the preparation of this document. A total of 49 sharks, 34 batoids and 1 chimaera are fully treated. The presence of 5 sharks and 2 batoids included in this field guide, need, however, to be confirmed. The guide includes sections on technical terms and measurements for sharks and batoids, and fully illustrated keys to those orders and families that occur in the region. Each species account includes: at least one annotated illustration of the species highlighting its relevant identification characters; basic information on nomenclature, synonyms and possible misidentifications; FAO common names; basic information on size, habitat and biology, distribution, importance to fisheries, and conservation and exploitation status.