The editorial article

“Peculiarities of the Development of the Geopolitical Situation in the World in 2016 and the New Challenges and Threats to Global Security in 2017 in the Context of Ukraine's National Interests and Security”

• Peculiarities of the development of the geopolitical situation in the USA, Europe and Eurasia in 2016, their influence on Ukraine's national interests and security.
  • Ukraine's western partners: common perception of the threats from Russia;
  • Russia and its allies heading for a geopolitical catastrophe.
• Key challenges and threats to the world and national security systems in 2016.
  • Islamic extremism as an important factor of influence on the world and European security, Russia's geopolitics and Ukraine's interests.
    • Assessment of the interests of the West and Russia on the Syrian issue;
    • The parties' approaches to the issue of the Syrian settlement;
    • Turkey's policy and practice regarding the Syrian issue;
    • Disagreements between the West and Russia on other Middle-Eastern issues.
  • Russia's military aggression against Ukraine as the basis for the aggravation of the geopolitical confrontation between Russia and the West.
    • Key trends in the development of relations between Russia and the United States, NATO and the EU in the military-political sphere;
    • The situation in the conflict zones in Ukraine;
    • The international community's reaction to the situation around Ukraine.
• Peculiarities of the development of the situation in 2016 in other regions of the world.
  • Peculiarities of the development of the situation in the Middle East Region;
  • Peculiarities of the development of the situation in the Asia-Pacific Region;
  • New hybrid challenges and threats in the Arctic.
• General conclusions and a forecast of the geopolitical situation in the world and around Ukraine for 2017.

Du Wei,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Ukraine

“Ukraine in the future, fully using its unique advantages, will be able to play an important role in the project “One Belt, One Road”

“The fact that in recent years China has made remarkable achievements in its development cannot be the matter of an accident.

…We have a peaceful and independent foreign policy. China is a great country, the development of which needs extensive use of external forces. But more importantly, this is an independent development.

…The initiative “One Belt, One Road” is the proposed by China map of joint development with all the surrounding states.

…Ukraine is one of the sixty states that have become members of the project, and last year China and Ukraine signed an agreement on cooperation within the above-mentioned initiative.

…Ukraine in the future, fully using its unique advantages, will be able to play an important role in the project “One Belt, One Road”.

H. Perepelytsya,
Director of the Foreign Policy Institute of the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine

“On the Results of the Russian-Ukrainian War in the Donbas”

“The almost three years of the so-called ATO (which today some in Ukraine are trying to present as peace) need thorough understanding. The consequences of the fighting are estimated according to losses and gains, which usually determine a victory or a defeat of the warring parties”.

A. Kudryachenko,
Director of the Institute of World History of the NAS of Ukraine

“Joining Europe requires successful economic development and restructuring the domestic life on the principles of responsibility, social justice and respect for human rights”

“The trend to further aggravation of geopolitical competition was quite predictable.

…The state of anarchy in international relations (an expression of which is international conflicts) is a derivative of the leading states' political decisions and actions. Or consequence of their inaction.

…In the spheres of foreign policy and international security the EU is a relatively weak political actor.

…Today's situation of Ukraine is very difficult. The economy has suffered significant losses and is suffering from the decline in the share of Ukrainian exports to the markets of the CIS countries. The European market so far has not compensated for these losses.

…It is impossible to enter the EU with the burden of the current problems.

S. Rudyuk,
Historian

“Ukraine Must Be Armed as Long as Russia Is Armed”

“…We, the Ukrainian, are extremely sensitive to the process of our neighbours' not observing the principles of law and justice in relations with us, since we have repeatedly been victims of unscrupulous partners' cheating.

…Russia in its geopolitics has always relied on force and been behind in force.

“Legal and Political Aspects of the Activity of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine”

In the face of the very complex geopolitical situation in the world, Russia's military aggression in the Donbas, the annexation of the Crimea and constant information war against our country, there was an urgent need to teach our students, so to speak, to use modern tools of critical thinking and communication, to analyze different information, to give a correct assessment of the situation and to make appropriate conclusions that would help them continue to work effectively in the future.

To solve exactly these problems, the management of the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and President of the Independent Analytical Center for Geopolitical Studies “Borysfen Intel”, PhD in Military Sciences, Lieutenant-General Victor Hvozd offered and for the first time introduced a new training course “Legal and Political Aspects of the Activity of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine”.

The course analyzes historical aspects of the intelligence services in general and the history and development of the Ukrainian Intelligence since the times of Kyivan Rus to present, in particular, it introduces and compares the legal and political aspects of the activity of the intelligence services of leading countries of the world and shows their role in the system of ensuring national security.

The author and course leader Victor Hvozd, being the only Ukrainian expert who in his time headed the two leading intelligence agencies of Ukraine, was able to support the theoretical material with real practical examples from the activity of intelligence officers.