Other News
The Hidden Cities of North Korea
A Pinpoint Politics article by Frank Mouritz
This year the fall of the Berlin Wall, which initiated the end of the Cold War, had its 23rd anniversary. Since then many members of the former Warsaw Pact became free and democratic states. Some of them even joined the European Union so that now former enemies of the Cold War are united through one institution that just recently received the Nobel Peace Prize for its inspiring vision to establish peace and friendship among the many diverse nations who call Europe their home. Unaffected by this development, one Cold War conflict survives to the present day and still divides the people of one nation into two countries. I am talking of course about Korea. The liberal democratic south is still officially at war with the communist north.
Launch of URSS Scheme 2012/13
The Undergraduate Research Scholarship Scheme is being launched on Monday, 3rd December 2012. The scheme offers the opportunity for undergraduate students to undertake a short (4 to 10 week) research project with a bursary of up to £1000. Information on the scheme, including past projects, the application forms and related information can be found on the URSS website (www.go.warwick.ac.uk/urss).
Dr Christopher Moran featured in BBC Radio 4 documentary
Dr Christopher Moran, Assistant Professor in US National Security, was recently featured in a BBC Radio 4 documentary entitled 'Great Spy Books: Fact or Fiction?' on 1 December. This feature follows closely on the heels of several other press interviews Dr Moran has participated in recently as a result of his consultancy work for the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC.
Report: Attitudes towards security threats uncovered
Politics researchers at the Universities of Warwick and Exeter, including Dr Nick Vaughan-Williams, led detailed focus groups across the UK and conducted a nationwide survey as part of an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded project which looked at public attitudes towards security threats.
This project used focus groups and an internet survey to identify whether people agree with, or are even aware of, the government’s attempts to make them feel more secure and whether these attempts have any impact. Dr Vaughan-Williams said: “Focus groups told us that they understand ‘security’ to be first and foremost about physical threats to personal safety. Respondents rarely talked about security threats in national terms and most disagreed with the government’s priorities in the ‘National Security Strategy’".
Interview: Mark Allworthy (IISS) on Regional Security in the Middle-East
A Pinpoint Politics interview by Andrew Kelly
The political landscape of the Middle-East continues to remain restless; like layers of lava cascading down a volcano – where and when it settles is anyone’s guess. Recently, Bahrain was unsettled by five home-made bombs, one of which went off near my home in the capital. Israel and Gaza have resumed their usual exchanges; trading in rockets, bullets, and civilian causalities. The Jordanians have taken to the streets to oust their King over rising gas prices. Iran, may still be building a nuclear weapon, and Syria continues to bleed.
Understandably, security (in all its broad definitions) is a major concern in the region. Therefore, in order to gain some perspective on how we might begin to approach security within the Middle-East, Mark Allworthy, Managing Director at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) based out of Bahrain, briefly shared his thoughts with us earlier this month on a few questions.