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No. 36, December 2017

Why has the world come unstuck? Sven Sakkov

What kind of impact will emerging technologies have on the armed forces over the next 10 years? Enno Mõts

The birth of the national defence of Estonia. 1991–2017. Ants Laaneots

Controlling the chaos: How Russia manages its political war in Europe. Mark Galeotti

The Nuclear Age. Introduction to the translation of Chapter 24 “The Nuclear Age” from “A Concise History of Warfare”* by Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery. Mart Raudsaar

Summaries of articles are in English.

Full articles in Estonian

Editor-in-Chief’s Column

  • How to survive in the changed security situation

    Security is the focus topic of the new issue of Riigikogu Toimetised. As the members of the Riigikogu who participated in the Riigikogu Toimetised conversation circle found, security cannot be divided into external and internal security any more, and there are new aspects in it due to global developments. This is why we can say without exaggeration that security involves all fields of life. Besides war, it is also necessary to take into account humanitarian and natural disasters, and unexpected technological collapses that do not have to be the direct result of the activities of an enemy state (for example, solar flares that can knock out all electronics).

RiTo conversation circle

Focus

Politics

Studies

  • Adaptation of newly arrived immigrants in Estonia, according to the data of integration monitoring

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    This article is the first analysis that quantitatively studies the adaptation of newly arrived immigrants in Estonia. The attitudes of newly arrived immigrants in regard to several issues relating to the life and society of Estonia are analysed, using the data of a large-scale study conducted among the newly arrived immigrants in spring 2017 as source material. 2850 respondents participated in the study conducted within the framework of the Estonian integration monitoring. A majority of them were the foreigners – citizens of the European Union and third country nationals – who had arrived in Estonia in 2012–2016.

  • Theoretical premises for Islamic radicalism, and the perception thereof in the responsible agencies of Estonia

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    The importance of the topic is related to counter-radicalization activity, and its effectiveness proven through scientific theories and practice. This topic is relatively new in Estonia and is lacking academic research so far.

  • European Union as normative power in Ukrainian-Russian conflict

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    Over the last 20 years, the European Union has been associated with the export of certain universal norms, rules and practices to other countries. In academic circles, this concept is called the „normative power Europe“. Democracy, rule of law, strong commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms, and social justice – these principles form the core of the identity of the European Union. Based on shared political, economic and cultural ties among the Member States, the EU has also sought to promote these norms in the neighbouring countries, including Russia. However, the outbreak of a violent conflict between Russia and Ukraine at the end of 2013 clearly demonstrates that the EU has failed in its pursuits in Russia despite the extensive mutual relations and comprehensive financial support provided by the EU. As the EU has generally failed in bringing Russia over to embracing and upholding the European values, this raises the question of the authority of the EU as a normative power. Against this backdrop, the aim of the article is to analyse how consistent the EU has been in defending and promoting European values and norms in the international arena during the Ukrainian conflict. The topic is of particular importance for the EU Member States that are potentially targeted or indirectly influenced by Russia’s actions.

  • Electoral Availability in the Estonian Parliamentary Elections, 2015 *

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    Estonian electoral system seems to be very stable when looking at the volatility of parliamentary elections. However, the individual voting behaviour indicates a different situation. The process behind the discrete vote in the parliamentary elections is far more complicated because voters differ in the level of political availability. Some voters are strong supporters of one specific political party and other parties probably do not have a chance to change their preferences. Other voters are more flexible in that matter and they are open to giving their vote to different parties at different elections. The latter is the main focus group for electoral competition because there is indeed a higher probability that they would change their voting preference.

    * Peer-reviewed article.

  • Voter turnout, particularly in merged local governments

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    The administrative-territorial reform of 2017 was the most thorough one ever in the history of the Republic of Estonia. The number of local municipalities decreased by nearly three times – from 213 to 79. As a result of that, 50 new local municipalities were formed which consisted of at least two, and in the most extreme case, seven, old local municipalities. Elections in the neighbouring countries of Estonia – specifically in Finland and Latvia – have shown that voter turnout tends to fall in merged local municipalities. In the debates before the elections, that was thought to happen in Estonia, too – the reason being the potential disappointment of the electorate when the state clearly prefers quantitative indicators when organising the administrative-territorial reform. In the Government’s opinion, a rural municipality or city with at least 5000 residents is a viable local municipality.

  • Young people running as candidates in (local) elections

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    Young people running as candidates in (local) elections should be recognized and acknowledged as: an important type of political participation; a transition from a (largely) passive voter and bystander into an active participant in politics; an activity that is good in itself irrespective of its consequences and successes. Young candidates in elections are as important as young voters.

  • How to achieve uniform quality of local public services – A view of municipal real estate

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    As a result of the administrative reform, in 2018, the number of local municipalities will decrease and bigger municipalities will presumably be better prepared to perform their functions. However, the municipalities will still need help with real estate maintenance in the future. The local municipalities own too many buildings and the floor plans of the buildings are inadequate. Over a half of these buildings are in a bad condition due to age and poor maintenance. In the new situation, the leaders of local municipalities have to decide which property is really needed by the locals and how to provide services as optimally as possible, so that the maintenance of superfluous and costly real estate wouldn’t become an objective in and of itself.

  • Gender Gaps in Education

    07 December 2017

    Studies

    RiTo No. 36, 2017

    The present article analyses gender gaps in education in Estonia based on research papers and proposes several ways for dealing with it.

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