Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture

Historical Reconciliation: Hungarian Lessons

2023-12-11T09:06:32+00:00

The article surveys attempts of historical reconciliation between Hungary and its neighbours after 1990. As Hungary’s neighbours are also successor states of the Kingdom of Hungary dissolved in 1918, their entangled history, often marred by violence and mutual discrimination was an important and conflictual issue around the change of regime. EU integration efforts led to attempts to implement historical reconciliation following the German model of Vergangenheitsbewältigung and Aufarbeitung and the Franco-German reconciliation. I argue that the result was ambiguous at best. Political tensions abated with all neighbours but without historical reconciliation. One reason for this failure was the division within the historiographic field that made politics easy to instrumentalize or intervene. Tensions receded more because politics started to abandon a historical argumentation in bilateral relations and tha could be a model to follow for states like North Macedonia and Bulgaria.

Author(s): Gábor Egry

Title (English): Historical Reconciliation: Hungarian Lessons

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 8-19

Page Count: 12

Citation (English): Gábor Egry, "Historical Reconciliation: Hungarian Lessons,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 8-19.

EU Enlargement and Geopolitics: Is it Relevant Today?

2023-12-11T13:28:14+00:00

After the Russian full-scale invasion in Ukraine geopolitics has entered anew the European integration vocabulary. The EU official rhetoric consistently reiterates geopolitics as a driving factor for its renewed enlargement mobilization. The swift appearance of the enlargement perspective for Ukraine and Moldova as well as the pursiut of geopolitical momentum for the approximation with the Western Balkans countries provoked diverse reactions from enthusiasm to questions about the practical consequences for the EU, its enlargement policy and the particular member states. This article raises the argument that the EU’s geopolitical rhetoric plays much more important role in the search for an exit from the EU’s internal political deadlock, than as a genuinely new geopolitical boost that will revive or speed up the enlargement process. The geopolitical argument aims to instrumentalize the enlargement policy in search of a new step towards the deepening of the European integration, making enlargement a hostage to EU’s internal problems.

Author(s): Spasimir Domaradzki

Title (English): EU Enlargement and Geopolitics: Is it Relevant Today?

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 20-31

Page Count: 12

Citation (English): Spasimir Domaradzki, "EU Enlargement and Geopolitics: Is it Relevant Today?,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 20-31.

In Search of Principles of Visegrad (Economic) Cooperation and its Inspiration for Bilateral Relations between North Macedonia and Bulgaria

2023-12-11T13:40:12+00:00

This paper examines the economic cooperation within the Visegrád Four (V4) in the context of EU membership and its potential inspiration for bilateral relations between North Macedonia and Bulgaria. It explores the alignment of political values and economic relations in the V4, highlighting the EU’s role in fostering cross-border collaboration. The analysis delves into the shared priorities of the V4 towards EU enlargement and how these experiences can guide Western Balkan countries. It discusses the transformation of economic cooperation in the V4, emphasizing the strategic role of Germany and the evolution of regional dynamics. The paper also analyzes the challenges and limitations in applying the V4 model to Bulgarian-North Macedonian relations, considering the differences in historical experiences, economic convergence, and the impact of EU-driven Europeanization. It concludes by assessing the unique nature of bilateral relations in the context of EU integration and enlargement, emphasizing the need for a distinct approach for effective collaboration between Bulgaria and North Macedonia.

Author(s): Michal Vit

Title (English): In Search of Principles of Visegrad (Economic) Cooperation and its Inspiration for Bilateral Relations between North Macedonia and Bulgaria

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 32-39

Page Count: 8

Citation (English): Michal Vit, "In Search of Principles of Visegrad (Economic) Cooperation and its Inspiration for Bilateral Relations between North Macedonia and Bulgaria,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 32-39.

Slovakia and North Macedonia: A Comparison of Experiences in Resolving Neighbourly Disputes

2023-12-11T14:06:43+00:00

The aim of the present article is to compare the experiences of Slovakia and North Macedonia – countries with similar path of problematic nation-state formation and at the same time to identify to what extent Slovakia’s experience in improving relations with its neighbors can serve as an example of “good practice” for North Macedonia. In the case of Slovakia and North Macedonia, which have been chosen as the subject of comparative research, it is possible to speak of the existence of a number of “unresolved” problems in relations with neighboring states, which they have to face as newly “nationalizing” states. In the case of Slovakia, bilateral relations with Hungary are key, in the case of North Macedonia, relations with Greece and Bulgaria. The following research question is, what role the factor of Europeanization of internal and foreign policy played in this case.

Paper is comparing the historical genesis of the disputes with the neighboring states as well as their nature and way of solution chosen by both countries. What they have in common is the lack of respect on the part of Bulgaria, or Hungary, for the sovereignty of the neighbouring states. As the issue of the status of minorities abroad is one of the highly sensitive topics of internal politics in both states, and similarly the so-called Hungarian card in Slovakia and the Bulgarian card in North Macedonia, the escalation of the above conflicts depends on the dynamics of internal political developments in the respective countries. For these reasons, there is little chance that a change in the positions of the two states could occur in the short term.

Author(s): Juraj Marušiak

Title (English): Slovakia and North Macedonia: A Comparison of Experiences in Resolving Neighbourly Disputes

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 40-59

Page Count: 20

Citation (English): Juraj Marušiak, "Slovakia and North Macedonia: A Comparison of Experiences in Resolving Neighbourly Disputes,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 40-59.

For a Geopolitical Instead of Technocratic Approach to the EU Enlargement Process: Addressing the Aftermath of the Lifted Bulgarian Veto

2023-12-11T14:16:20+00:00

The paper argues that the European Commission and the Union itself ought to adopt a more hands-on political rather than technocratic approach to the issue of EU enlargement. In a context when Europe redefines geopolitics, including technology, science, education as well as combating climate change and digitalisation in its geopolitical self-repositioning, the issue of enlargement should be treated as an internal geopolitical concern of the European Union itself and not just as the concern of the applicant countries.

Author(s): Katerina Kolozova

Title (English): SFor a Geopolitical Instead of Technocratic Approach to the EU Enlargement Process: Addressing the Aftermath of the Lifted Bulgarian Veto

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 60-67

Page Count: 8

Citation (English): Katerina Kolozova, "For a Geopolitical Instead of Technocratic Approach to the EU Enlargement Process: Addressing the Aftermath of the Lifted Bulgarian Veto,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 60-67.

The Pro-Russian Propaganda Machine in Bulgaria, and the Russian Style Representations of North Macedonia

2023-12-11T14:42:50+00:00

The article is based on the large-scale collective research on the topic "Anti-democratic propaganda in Bulgaria", within which an analysis of the national populist and (pro) Russian propaganda in the Bulgarian online media for 2013-2022 was made.
This article sets out two main tasks:
1) To outline the global Russian narratives that circulated in the Bulgarian media space online from 2013 to 2022, as well as to outline the means and ways of their dissemination in 2022 - the year of the full-scale war against Ukraine. Part 1 is dedicated to answering these questions.
2) To show how the Russian propaganda package presents the fate of small countries in the global world: how it tries to tempt them to be "sovereign," while, at the same time, not recognizing their capacity to achieve sovereignty. It also shows how Bulgarian speakers denigrate North Macedonia in the same way that Russian propaganda denigrates Ukraine. This is explored in Part 2.

Author(s): Dimitar Vatsov, Veronika Dimitrova, Ljubomir Donchev, Valentin Valkanov, Milena Iakimova

Title (English): The Pro-Russian Propaganda Machine in Bulgaria, and the Russian Style Representations of North Macedonia

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 68-91

Page Count: 24

Citation (English): Dimitar Vatsov, Veronika Dimitrova, Ljubomir Donchev, Valentin Valkanov, Milena Iakimova, "The Pro-Russian Propaganda Machine in Bulgaria, and the Russian Style Representations of North Macedonia,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 68-91.

Deportations from Macedonia and their Place in Bulgarian-Macedonian Relationships

2023-12-12T08:28:19+00:00

The proposed article reveals how the very deportation of Jews from Macedonia in March 1943 is intertwined and strongly depends on the ideas and memory in the two neighboring countries - the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia - for the period of 1941-1944, the Holocaust itself, the subsequent time of communist rule, and the transition period after late 1980s and the beginning of 1990s. It shows how a peculiar beginning of the entry of the problem of the deportation of the Jews into the diplomatic quarrel along the Sofia-Skopje axis appeared in 1998. The following first decade of the new 21st century was distinguished by the strong and tangible presence of various Jewish worlds and narratives about the Jews of Macedonia and the old borders of Bulgaria during the Second World War. As a result the narratives about the deportation of Macedonian Jews and the salvation of Bulgarian ones fight each other. In recent years the international Jewish community, more often indirectly than directly, has played an important role in rounding, smoothing and refining both positions - the Bulgarian and the Macedonian one – with necessary corrections in both narratives.

Author(s): Stefan Detchev

Title (English): Deportations from Macedonia and their Place in Bulgarian-Macedonian Relationships

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 92-103

Page Count: 12

Citation (English): Stefan Detchev, "Deportations from Macedonia and their Place in Bulgarian-Macedonian Relationships,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 92-103.

Venturi Philosophically Revisited (Robert Venturi and the revival of modernism)

2023-12-12T08:44:36+00:00

This article explores the significant implications of Robert Venturi’s “Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture” on architectural discourse. By delving into Venturi’s theoretical foundation, we gain an understanding of the evolution of discursive paradigms that have shaped architectural projects in recent years. The distinction between modern and postmodern architecture primarily hinges on the argument for the necessity of architectural inclusivity advocated by Venturi. This revision challenges the entire paradigm of modern architectural exclusivity. Venturi’s concept of complexity holds a crucial place in postmodern philosophical discourse, as exemplified by Lyotard. The incommensurability of language games, which Lyotard considers as an argument for the impossibility of reducing them to a single universal judgment, parallels the incommensurability of architectural elements. Venturi emphasizes that architectural elements should not be excluded from a universal architectural premise. This complexity introduces a nuanced situation, necessitating, according to Lyotard, a new kind of sensibility to appreciate their incommensurability. Meanwhile, in Venturi’s perspective, this situation reflects the complexity that must be realized in achieving a delicate balance between inclusion and the potential avoidance of an abusive unity of exclusion. The schemata used by Lyotard to describe the transformation and liberation of various linguistic contents are generally applicable in Venturi’s context, offering insights into the liberation of architectural content.

Author(s): Astrit Salihu

Title (English): Venturi Philosophically Revisited (Robert Venturi and the revival of modernism)

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 104-115

Page Count: 12

Citation (English): Astrit Salihu, "Venturi Philosophically Revisited (Robert Venturi and the revival of modernism),” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 104-115.

Survival of the Human in the Flux of Language

2023-12-12T09:07:00+00:00

The lecture examines aspects of the political, intellectual, and artistic contexts which triggered Julia Kristeva’s lifelong theoretical exploration of the “psychic revolution of matter” and which led to the formation of some of Kristeva’s major concepts.

Author(s): Miglena Nikolchina

Title (English): Survival of the Human in the Flux of Language (Transcript of a lecture given as part of the School of Materialist Research - Intensive Study Program)

Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023).

Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities - Skopje

Page Range: 116-127

Page Count: 12

Citation (English): Miglena Nikolchina, "Survival of the Human in the Flux of Language (Transcript of a lecture given as part of the School of Materialist Research - Intensive Study Program),” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 20, No. 1-2 (2023): 116-127.