Сравнительная политика (Dec 2017)
Poisk transregional’nykh al’ternativ v Evrazii: fenomen MIKTA (In Search for Transregional Alternatives in Eurasia: the Phenomenon of MIKTA)
Abstract
The papers analyses new integration initiative of the middle powers namely MIKTA (Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, Australia) against the background of evolution of trans-regional integration processes in Asia and Europe. The phenomenon of MIKTA is analyzed in comparison with other most successful trans-regional integration projects like G20, BRICS and IBSA (Dialogue forum of India, Brazil and South Africa). MIKTA represents a very interesting pattern of middle powers’ aspiration to create multilateral international institutions which they can use to produce much stronger infl uence on the global politics in comparison with a simple sum of these countries’ individual efforts outside the framework of such trans-regional institutions. The key question is how trans-regional integration initiatives similar to MIKTA could infl uence political and economic processes on the regional and macro-regional levels and whether it is possible to speak about new format of trans-regional integration models. Unlike other integration projects of middle powers MIKTA is not a formal association of different countries according to some common features (like N-11 or the Next Eleven Group or MIST/MIKT). On the contrary MIKTA represents a joint voluntary initiative for creation of multilateral trans-regional institution fostering fi nancial, economic, political and diplomatic cooperation. For South Korea MIKTA should have become a mechanism for increasing its infl uence in the international organizations, Indonesia expected MIKTA to make it stronger politically and diplomatically in the world affairs, both Turkey and Mexico wanted MIKTA to perform an instrument for solving their economic problems (increase international trade volume, attract foreign investments etc.). Special political, diplomatic, trade and economical potential of MIKTA is based on the fact that its member countries claim to play a role of regional pivots which are located as bridges among various continents and geographies like Turkey (between Europe and Asia) and Mexico (between North and South America) or serve as a sort of a portal for the West to the region of Southeast Asia, specifi cally to its Muslim populated part, (Indonesia) and Asia-Pacifi c (Australia).
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