Nº 3 (2023)

Unlike the multilateral institutions of the past, formed by hegemons in accordance with their interests, the SCO multilateral format has given a new impetus to inclusive multilateral regional cooperation. In order to promote inclusive cooperation in Eurasia, the SCO member states have formulated strategic plans for cooperation in the main subregions and key areas of organization’s activities. New SCO plans to intensify cooperation take into account the principle of inclusiveness, and promote a system interests compatibility between members. Taking into consideration the relatively vague and "blurred" forms of cooperation between the member states, an increase in the SCO membership can create both new challenges and contribute to the emergence of new formats of interaction. Thus, the introduction of new forms of small multilateralism may become relevant for increasing the effectiveness of the SCO. Cooperation within the framework of new formats of small multilateralism should be established in accordance with the political preferences and readiness of the SCO Member States in order to increase the effectiveness of intra-organizational interaction. Institutional flexibility in pragmatic cooperation brings mutually beneficial results and has great potential for extending the format of such cooperation to a wide range of issues. An inclusive approach and multilateral cooperation within the framework of the SCO helps to strengthen cooperation in various fields and contribute to the creation of a democratic and fair political and economic environment. It seems that China and Russia, as the leading powers in the SCO, will be interested in promoting new formats of cooperation and reforming the regional system of interaction. The combination of classical large-scale multilateralism with small forms of multilateral cooperation within the SCO will help to deal with the current difficulties in regional governance and improve the effectiveness of the organization.

The Indo-Pacific Strategy, formulated in the US National security strategy in December 2017, is a link in the global system of military-political blocs and associations. These structures have been created by the United States to preserve the dominance of the historical West in an era of global changes that challenge to the spread of the so-called unipolar world with the United States playing a dominant role worldwide. Moreover, it is clear that the more the role of the suzerain of the unipolar world is undermined, the more quirky, diverse and dangerous become the attempts to preserve this dominant role by involving countries that previously took a neutral position to the actions of the unilateralists.  The article analyzes South Korean policy regarding the Indo-Pacific Strategy. The authors of this article consider its political and economic aspects, including the role of the ROK in the institutionalization of the association, which includes countries that support it. At the same time, the authors premise that South Korea, being within the structure of the American global influence system for many decades, cannot ignore any American strategy. Therefore, discussion resolves around the pace and conditions that South Korea must fulfill in order to engage and implement this externally imposed structure, and what benefits it seeks to gain from its participation. At the same time, the authors express doubt in the possibility of transforming the Indo-Pacific block, being created under the auspices of the US, into a significant international structure capable of altering the vector of ongoing global changes. And this leads to the conclusion about how consistent with the national interests, even in the medium term, of the Republic of Korea and its participation in the American strategy of IPR. Moreover, the Indo-Pacific Initiative of the ROK, which has pro-American orientation, both in foreign policy and economic spheres, including priority (military industry, IT industry, "green" technologies, etc.), may inadvertently harm its own interests and cooperation with the main economic partner - China. This could result in adverse consequences for South Korea in the near future.

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the development of the energy system of modern China. The analysis of the main directions of the formation of the system of renewable energy sources in the country is carried out, the current regulatory and legal acts regulating the direction of development in the field of energy are considered. In the PRC, under the current conditions, preference is given to economic growth and ensuring energy security due to a moderate increase in generating capacity from fossil sources using modern available technologies to minimize damage from their use, while simultaneously increasing renewable energy sources (RES). One of the main reasons for increasing renewable energy in China is strategic in nature: by increasing the share of renewable sources in its energy balance for electricity consumption, China can reduce geopolitical tensions, making the country less dependent on unstable regions in terms of energy security. The energy market, dependent on fossil fuels, depends on ensuring the safety of oil and gas transportation routes, but one of the main reasons why the Chinese government is promoting renewable energy is to reduce air pollution. The NPC Environmental Protection Committee has repeatedly noted that the production and consumption of fossil fuel energy is responsible for 90% of sulfur dioxide emissions in the country and that for this reason, 7 of the 10 most polluted cities in the world are located in China. The country is working on the reconstruction and modernization of production facilities in order to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, technologies for carbon capture, use and storage are being developed. Currently, the country is implementing a very important transition from control over the total volume of energy consumption and the energy intensity of GDP to a new “double control” — control over the total amount of carbon emissions and the intensity of emissions.

This article analyzes electoral competition between key parties in the Republic of Korea. Although the electoral geography of RoK is atypical, the presence of an almost two-party system and the use of single-member districts allow for the analysis of competition in Korean elections in the same context as in more studied countries such as the United States, Canada, and New Zealand. We define the stably swing constituencies in 2000-2020’s, their location and factors of high volatility. The overwhelming majority of districts which regularly change their political orientation are located in the north of the country — Capital Region and Chungcheon — where high competition is observed in the largest cities. Electoral differentiation of urban agglomerations is complex and subject to the influence of multiple factors, but several patterns can be identified. A significant portion of swing constituencies are in this state due to their location in transitional zones between areas with high support for candidates from the conservative camp (center and far periphery of the city) and their opponents (suburban semi-periphery). The main factor of differentiation is the electoral divide between different generations of voters. In small cities, the electorate of the main parties balances each other out, resulting in these constituencies regularly changing their party orientation. Some constituencies in the center of Seoul have special significance for both parties, so political heavyweights traditionally run in them, attracting attention to their constituencies and making them swing.

Historically Germany and Japan have both played significant roles in the creation of a new world order. Today it is evident that each of the two countries has impact over the transformation of the “collective” West and its relations with the non-West. The roles of Germany and Japan in the processes could increase significantly if they establish multi-track and comprehensive cooperation in the field of security and defense. The article seeks to explore the features and its prospects in the early 2020s. The scientific paper notes the parallelism of the historic experience of each country in the realization of power`s ambitions, especially during the Second World War, capitulation and further joining the group of Western democracies. The reasons of rather limited German-Japanese cooperation during the 1990-s — 2010-s are explored. The confrontations between the Euro-Atlantic community and Russia, as well as between USA, increasing number of their partners (including Japan) and China have set the framework conditions for the development of German-Japanese cooperation in political and military fields. However, the process only fully began at the turn of the 2010s — 2020s. The article issues the role of Japan as Germany`s partner in the region, the content and narrow places of political dialogue and military cooperation. The author contemplates how the influence of the USA as Japan’s key ally, Tokyo’s participation in Quad and Partners in the Blue Pacific might impact Japanese cooperation with Germany in the context of its participation in the PRC`s containment.

A key factor in China's economic success over the past 70 years has been the rapid and qualitative growth of human capital. The article examines the concept of human capital, the related elements of ancient Chinese culture, and explains the historical reasons why the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has paid special attention to education and human capital. The findings show that the PRC's great achievements in human capital development and economic growth are due, on the one hand, to the CCP's emphasis on education, especially during the period of reform and opening up, and on the other hand, to the long-term influence of Chinese ancient Confucianism philosophy. In the past, academia attempted to explain the brief decline in the mid-nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries by the negative influence of Chinese traditional culture, while ignoring its role in providing high potential human capital, which in turn contributed to long-term economic growth. The ideas of China's leaders echo the theory of human capital put forward by European scholars. China is placing increasing emphasis on the economic function of education. The education sector is now seen as an important sector for raising scientific and cultural standards. Xi Jinping, the current leader of China, also attaches great importance to the inheritance and development of Confucian educational thought. In his speeches he repeatedly calls on young people to strengthen moral education and self-education. The priority of education is stressed, as well as the separate importance of the educational function of higher education. At a time when science and technology are developing rapidly without any constraints, they reduce the role of the human factor in the development of civilization to a certain extent. In this context, it may be appropriate to consider the value of the human being and the importance of education in the context of traditional oriental culture. Confucianism not only played a key role in the educational and economic development of Chinese society, but also had a wide impact on the countries of Southeast Asia.