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Articles by Paul Tap

1. Investigating russian berlin in weimar Germany Culture and Displacement in the Age of War and Revolution

   The author argues that, despite the disastrous effects of the enormous brain drain for Russia’s development, the emergence of Russian communities abroad can also be seen as an indicator of a normalization resulting from the opening up of the country after a long period of isolation. For Berlin, it is the regeneration of the mixed and more cosmopolitan society of the pre-Nazi and prewar epoch.

2. The 2011 extraordinary parliamentary elections in Latvia

   When the preliminary electoral results came in the evening of 17 September, two things were rather clear. First, the Harmony Centre (Saskaņas centrs, SC) seems to be the winner of the extraordinary parliamentary elections in Latvia. Second, the so-called oligarch parties have suffered a humiliating defeat.

3. Modernization is much needed in Russia

   Natalia Zubarevich, Department of Geography, Moscow State University, is keynote speaker at Baltic Worlds Annual Roundtable: Market Reform and Socio-Economic Change in Russia, October 6. She notes a growing polarization between people and regions. Modernization is necessary.

4. Stasi watched Sweden during the Cold War

   By matching agent lists with agent reports from the Stasi archives, Professor Almgren, who is affiliated with Södertörn University, has delved deeper into issues relating to particular individuals than the Swedish security police have. She has established the incompetence of the Swedish security police and their inability to uncover threats to Sweden at the time.

5. Zeichen setzen Zum Gedenken an Dag Hammarskjölds Tagebuch „Vägmärken“

   Dag Hammarskjöld died on the night of September 17, 1961 after a still unexplained crash landing in the border area between the former Belgian Congo and Northern Rhodesia, when he was on his way to negotiate during the Congo Crisis. The author argues that Dag Hammarskjöld as a cosmopolitan is the trailblazer of a way of thinking that is still totally absent despite economic globalization: respect for those who are different.

6. Festival with young people, opera, and Hammarskjöld

   This year’s Baltic Sea Festival, held for nine days in late summer in Stockholm and focusing on music and the environment, was true to form with Esa-Pekka Salonen at the helm. Not only that: the thematic threads were unusually well intertwined.

7. Denmark before the election

   The 2011 election will differ from the previous elections in two important ways: First, there is a real likelihood for a change in government with Social Democratic leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt taking over as prime minister. Second, the campaign so far has been dominated by debates about the state of the economy while immigration and health care, the major themes of the three previous campaigns, have played only a minor role.

8. Latvia´s newest saviour

   Populist temptation has always haunted Latvia. Not less now, when voters are struggling to recover from Europe´s deepest GDP-fall. “People want change”, says professor Runcis who fears that Zatlers can not deliver that, and so distrust of politicians might grow. The political scientist is worried about the ex-presidents lack of competence in the economic field, and he is critical of Zatler´s political ambitions.

9. Baltic Worlds Roundtable 2011 Market Reform and Socio-Economic Change in Russia

   Baltic Worlds Roundtable illuminates the tremendous changes that Russian social and economic life has undergone due to the introduction of market economy after the fall of state socialism. The Rondtable takes place October 6, 2011.

10. BOTH VICTIM AND PERPETRATOR Ukraine’s problematic relationship to the Holocaust

    For various reasons, Ukraine’s relationship to the Holocaust and the Jews has been overshadowed by the similar, but more striking […]

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