No 3 (2026)

The socio-political process in Israel is characterized by the strengthening of a religious-nationalist component and the exacerbation of differences between the secular and ultra-Orthodox sectors of Israeli Jewish society. Left-wing Zionists have lost ground to the religious nationalist camp, whose political leader is Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister. His ideology and personal motives have exacerbated the conflictual nature of the domestic political process in the State of Israel, founded on divisive, contradictory identities. The article examines these factors as the explanation of the logic of the Netanyahu-led coalition's decisions, which determine the direction of policy and the realistic goals of future military-political actions in the context of the diversity of identities in Israeli society. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study is an approach to political leadership within the framework of social identity theory as a result of the process of effective “identity management,” when influence is achieved through the leader's ability to reformat the collective self-perception of a significant part of society and present their political projects as a common vision of “who we are,” “what we do,” and “who we want to be”.

The article examines the institutional mechanisms of Russia’s public diplomacy in the Global South. Particular attention is paid to Africa, Asia, and the Middle East as some of the priority areas of the Russian Federation’s soft power strategy. The analysis demonstrates that public diplomacy functions as a systemic component of foreign policy, providing the humanitarian dimension of a multipolar world order. The study identifies the main forms of educational, cultural, religious, and media diplomacy, as well as the role of state and non-state actors in shaping Russia’s positive image abroad. It is argued that the effectiveness of soft power depends on the degree of institutional coordination and the stability of humanitarian cooperation channels. The author concludes that a unified strategy of Russian public diplomacy in the Global South is required.

The article presents an analysis of the prospects for the development of India’s Arctic policy. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Delhi has been increasing its presence in the Arctic, primarily focusing on scientific endeavors. At the same time, India’s approach remains largely reactive: its actions tend to mirror the initiatives of other Asian countries with interests in the region. Moreover, at present, New Delhi lacks a high level of coordination and strategic planning in its Arctic policy and participates only in a limited capacity in international forums dedicated to the Far North. The analysis reveals that, despite a high level of cooperation with Norway, it would be most beneficial for India to strengthen its economic and scientific collaboration with Russia in order to adopt a more integrated approach and maintain its presence in the Arctic region. This is due to the limited potential for deepening ties with other Arctic nations, as well as Russia’s growing interest in attracting foreign partners and investors for Arctic development.

This qualitative study examines barriers to implementing gender equality laws in rural Ghana that occur despite progressive constitutional provisions. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 15 experts from NGOs, government, and academia, the analysis applies Margaret Archer's morphogenetic theory of structure, culture, and agency. Structural barriers include institutional underfunding and weak enforcement mechanisms. Cultural conditioning manifests in entrenched norms such as gender stereotypes, witchcraft accusations, pacification practices, and emerging issues like technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Agency constraints encompass insufficient reflexivity and low legal awareness among stakeholders, exacerbating rural Ghanaian women's vulnerability. Findings reveal a disconnection between legal framework and practice, hindering progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 5 and female representation targets. The study recommends integrated strategies: combining legal enforcement, cultural transformation, and empowerment initiatives to overcome structural, cultural, and agency-related barriers and achieve sustainable gender equality in rural Ghana.

This research examines how the implementation of the three-child policy has unfolded in 4 province-level administrative divisions of the People’s Republic of China: Qinghai, Liaoning, Jiangsu and Guangdong, and analyses the gendered implications embedded in their provincial adaptations. Despite national pro-natalist targets, heterogeneous local adaptations reveal an inconsistent relationship between fertility incentives and women’s empowerment. Qinghai offers maximum maternity and childcare leave but lacks gender equity; Liaoning protects public-sector workers; Jiangsu promotes female entrepreneurship, while childcare support remains comparatively limited; and Guangdong places particular emphasis on housing subsidies for raising children. Although the policy is explicitly pro-natalist, its implementation continues to be constrained by gender-biased parental-leave arrangements and entrenched urban-rural disparities in women’s autonomy. Province-specific population and family planning laws suggest that financial, institutional, and cultural empowerment proposals might perform more effectively than universal rules. The fertility-empowerment paradox is criticised and gender-sensitive measures are suggested to achieve demographic goals and equal labour participation. This research suggests that relevant local authorities strengthen rural mother assistance (Qinghai), childcare facilities (Liaoning/Jiangsu), and corporate responsibility (Guangdong) to reduce gendered trade-offs.

The article is devoted to the formation of the national literature of Jordan, which is unthinkable without the influence of the Palestinian intelligentsia. The authors note the late emergence of the national literature of Jordan in comparison to other countries of the Arab region and distinguish 3 stages of its development – the emergence (before 1946), partial fusion with the literature of Palestine and the dominance of the Palestinian theme (1946–1967), and the modern stage. At the same time, the dominant themes of Jordanian literature that continue to shape it today include social inequality, violation of human rights, the sense of hopelessness, etc. Attention is paid to poets and writers of Palestinian origin who lived in Jordan – Fadwa Tukan, Mahmoud Shukair, Ibrahim Nasrallah, Jamal Naji, and others. The article also examines the works of Jordanian writers who were deeply affected by the tragedy of the Palestinian people, which was reflected in their work – Mustafa Wahbi Tal, Issa al-Nauri, Kafa al-Zoobi, and others.