Abstract: The article is dedicated to examining the trade and economic cooperation between the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Cambodia in the context of increasing regional economic integration and the transformation of the global economy. The study explores the main areas of bilateral interaction, including the development of foreign trade, investment cooperation, institutional mechanisms of economic partnership, and Cambodia's participation in the Chinese initiative "One Belt, One Road." Special attention is given to analyzing the structure of trade turnover between the two countries, identifying the characteristics of export-import flows, and assessing the role of Chinese investments in modernizing Cambodia's industry, infrastructure, and energy sector. The research investigates free trade agreements, the Comprehensive Regional Economic Partnership (CPTPP) mechanisms, and bilateral cooperation programs aimed at developing production chains and transport connectivity. The methodological framework of the study comprises comparative and institutional analysis methods, as well as a systematic approach to studying international economic relations. Data from international organizations, government agencies of Cambodia and China, as well as scientific and analytical research materials have been utilized. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the comprehensive analysis of the current state of trade and economic relations between China and Cambodia, taking into account new regional and global economic processes, including the functioning of the CPTPP and the expansion of the Chinese initiative "One Belt, One Road." The article identifies the characteristics of the formation of an asymmetric model of economic interaction, in which Cambodia primarily acts as a supplier of raw materials and agricultural products, while China is the main source of industrial goods, technologies, and investments. It has been established that Chinese investments contribute to the development of infrastructure, industrial production, and energy independence in Cambodia, while simultaneously enhancing its involvement in regional production chains. The author concludes that the further development of bilateral cooperation will depend on Cambodia's ability to diversify its economic structure, strengthen its national industrial base, and more effectively utilize the advantages of regional economic integration.

Keywords: China, Cambodia, economic cooperation, foreign trade, foreign direct investment, Belt and Road Initiative, RCEP, trade imbalance, regional integration, infrastructure development

Abstract: The subject of the research is the multidirectional foreign policy of the Republic of Tajikistan as a unique model of foreign policy behavior of a small post-Soviet state, operating under conditions of continental seclusion, a limited export base, dependence on external labor markets, and the necessity of attracting investment resources. The article examines multidirectionality not as diplomatic equidistance from leading power centers or a simple expansion of international contacts, but as a tool for aligning foreign policy relations with the goals of national development. Special attention is given to cooperation with Russia, China, Central Asia, and Iran, as these directions illustrate the different functions of foreign policy: maintaining social and educational stability, attracting capital, developing transport connectivity, reducing border risks, and expanding Tajikistan's foreign economic space. The methodological basis of the study includes systematic, historical-political, comparative-political, and institutional methods, as well as the analysis of normative documents, official communications, and contemporary academic research. The scientific novelty of the article lies in the justification of a functional understanding of the multidirectionality of Tajikistan's foreign policy. It is demonstrated that its effectiveness should be assessed not by the formal balance of relations with various partners, but by the ability of external connections to create internal development resources. The Russian direction remains significant for labor mobility, education, and security; however, it requires a shift from dependence on migration income to productive cooperation. The Chinese vector opens up opportunities for investment and infrastructure development but carries the risk of entrenching raw material and import dependency in the absence of localization of added value. Regional cooperation with Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan becomes important not only as a factor of good neighborliness but also as a condition for transport and border stability. The Iranian direction expands the southern geography of interaction; however, its effectiveness depends on transforming political agreements into sustainable economic projects. It is concluded that the prospects for the multidirectional course of the Republic of Tajikistan are linked to its transformation from a mechanism for attracting external resources into a system for accumulating internal advantages, primarily in the fields of employment, industrialization, export diversification, and strengthening economic sovereignty.

Keywords: Republic of Tajikistan, foreign policy, multivectorism, international cooperation, Central Asia, PRC (People's Republic of China), strategic partnership, foreign trade, investments, national development

Abstract: The subject of the study is the mechanisms of the political evolution of relations between the European Union and the United Kingdom, examined through the Trade and Cooperation Agreement and the practical application of its provisions. The author turns to the background of the Agreement's conclusion, its main provisions and its institutional architecture, and then examines such aspects of the topic as the content of the review clause (Article 776) and the practice of its application, the work of the Partnership Council and the specialised committees, and the conclusion of supplementing agreements after the 2025 summit. Particular attention is paid to the policy of resetting relations between the parties and to the price of access to sectoral EU markets that this policy entails. The economic dimension of the five-year period is considered, including the dynamics of mutual trade in goods and services. The first arbitration case between the parties and the role of the dispute settlement mechanism are considered separately. The approaching tariff threshold of 2027 under the rules of origin for electric vehicles is also addressed. The study covers the period from 2021 to 2026. The methodological basis comprises comparative legal analysis, a historical and descriptive approach to the background of the Agreement, event analysis of the activity of the treaty bodies, statistical analysis of foreign trade series, a case study of the arbitration proceedings, and scenario forecasting. The author draws on primary documents, official registers of decisions, trade statistics, and special scholarly literature. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that, for the first time in Russian scholarship, an aggregated count of the activity of the Agreement's treaty bodies over the entire five-year period has been carried out, and the first arbitration ruling under this treaty has been introduced into scholarly discussion. The legal evolution of the Agreement proceeds through decisions of the joint bodies, supplementing agreements, and political summits, rather than through the review clause, which has remained empty. The dispute settlement mechanism is used less often the higher the political significance of the matter in question. A particular contribution of the author is the conclusion about a persistent asymmetry of negotiating outcomes in favour of the EU and about the sectoral reproduction of the association model that Brussels presents to both London and Bern. It is also shown that the durability of the parties' rapprochement derives from the ongoing Ukrainian conflict, while the parties have deprived themselves of the ability to postpone the approaching tariff threshold of 2027. The results supplement Russian historiography of the post-Brexit settlement and outline directions for further research.

Keywords: European Union, United Kingdom, Brexit, Trade Agreement, Review clause, Rest of relations, Dispute settlement, Arbitration, Differentiated integration, Asymmetry of interdependence

Abstract: The subject of this study is the regional treaty-based, institutional, political, and diplomatic mechanisms for conflict prevention in the field of transboundary water use in Central Asia. The object of the study is interstate relations arising from the use of shared water resources in the Amu Darya and Syr Darya basins. The author examines in detail the political and institutional sources of conflict potential, the asymmetry of interests between upstream and downstream states, water–energy interdependence, the impact of major hydraulic infrastructure projects, and the specific features of Afghanistan’s participation in regional water cooperation. The analysis covers multilateral agreements, the activities of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination and the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea, bilateral commissions, international legal norms, and contemporary project-based formats. Particular attention is paid to the capacity of existing mechanisms to coordinate seasonal water-use regimes, prevent the politicization of technical disagreements, and maintain negotiation-based interaction. The study also addresses institutional fragmentation, the dependence of implementation on national authorities, and the gap between water-management regulation and political-diplomatic coordination. The methodological framework combines systemic and institutional approaches, political and legal analysis of interstate agreements, elements of conflict analysis, and a comparative assessment of multilateral, bilateral, and project-based formats of regional cooperation. The scientific novelty of the study lies in interpreting transboundary water cooperation in Central Asia as a fragmented, multi-level architecture of conflict prevention and in identifying the institutional gap between operational water management and the political-diplomatic regulation of interstate disagreements. The study proposes criteria for assessing the preventive effectiveness of regional mechanisms, including the scope of participation, the binding nature of decisions, interagency coordination, and the capacity to adapt to new infrastructure-related risks. It concludes that the existing system is relatively effective in coordinating current and seasonal issues, but is less suited to long-term changes, major infrastructure projects, and the expansion of the circle of water users. The article substantiates the need not to establish new supranational organizations, but to integrate existing institutions procedurally. Its practical significance lies in proposals to strengthen coordination between technical and political levels, introduce a consistent procedure for prior notification, joint assessment, and intergovernmental consultations, and gradually expand basin-level dialogue with the participation of Afghanistan.

Keywords: transboundary water use, Central Asia, conflict prevention, regional mechanisms, water diplomacy, interstate cooperation, water–energy interdependence, basin management, hydraulic infrastructure, institutional coordination