Jan served as the editor in chief of Checks & Balances in the 2019-2020 academic year, having fulfilled the role of a reporter in the year prior. Recognising the benefits of general awareness, he hopes to enrich the audiences’ comprehension of our intriguing, tightly interconnected political world through his writings. As a Czech IRIO student who grew up in Qatar, his primary areas of interest include Middle Eastern international politics, Russia-EU relations, geopolitics, and modern history with a pinch of IR theory.

A Study of Pressure and Time: Polemic Surrounding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Nears an Uneasy Resolution

When Morgan Freeman’s character in the iconic 1994 movie The Shawshank Redemption pondered about the study of pressure and time, he likened the gradual but mighty power of geology to

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The Fear Factor: Driving Cooperation Forward?

In the realm of international relations, few policy decisions are made on grounds other than fear. Indeed, as the neorealist Kenneth Waltz argues, “alliances are made by states that have

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Soft Power of Stone: Defending the Narrative of the Great Patriotic War

The statue of marshal Ivan Stepanovich Konev on Prague’s International Brigades’ Square has been a source of controversy for several years. Installed in May 1980 to commemorate the 35th anniversary

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Building Bridges, Burning Bridges: A Unity Government in Israel is Likely to Divide the Israeli Centre

While the enduring global public health crisis continues to bring uncertainty to all areas of society, a period of relative stability may lie ahead of the Israeli domestic political scene.

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Death of a Democratic Commodity: Ambivalent, Kenya Mourns Daniel arap Moi

Nairobi’s Nyayo National Stadium rarely serves as a venue for state funerals. Indeed, the home of Kenya’s AFC Leopards is far from the customary cathedrals, boulevards and grand auditoria that

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Preserving Power, for Life: Making Sense of the Russian Government’s Resignation

In his annual address to Russia’s Federal Assembly this Wednesday, President Putin made a surprising, yet not unexpected claim. Alongside reporting on the state of Russia’s overall political situation and

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A Decade of Disappointment: MENA’s Arab Winter Likely to Persist Well into the 2020s

Predicting the future of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is a herculean task. The area’s heterogeneity, often underestimated by generalisations that the term ‘Arab World’ evokes, is

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Scars Too Deep to Heal: Historical Legacies and the Japanese-South Korean Trade Dispute

As territorial claims in the South China Sea continue to test the patience of regional hegemons and superpowers alike, an economic conflict of a less visible, yet equally significant nature,

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Beyond the Tax Intifada: Understanding the Meaning of the Lebanon Protests

After eight days of persistent protests, which brought Lebanon to a standstill, it was about time that the country’s president finally addressed the demonstrators in a televised broadcast. Yesterday, Michel

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Online, In Line: Cuba’s Internet Liberalisation Only a Small Reason to Celebrate

Last Wednesday, Cuba’s Ministry of Communication announced that as of July 29, business owners and citizens of the island nation will be permitted to set up private Wi-Fi networks within

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