Review: This article is dedicated to the analysis of Turkey's foreign policy aimed at achieving regional leadership after the Cold War, as well as the changes that took place therein under the rule of the Justice and Development Party) since 2002. The author describes the principles of Turkey's policy in the Balkans under the rule of the Justice and Development Party, which are founded on the doctrine of strategic depth proposed by Ahmet Davutoğlu in 2001, who was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2009 (until 2014). The following questions arise: are the political priorities and goals outlined in the theory compatible with the Turkey’s foreign policy in the Balkans, which holds an important place in the doctrine; and what is the impact of the neo-Ottoman approach adopted in relation to Muslim communities in the Balkans affect the policy conducted against the non-Muslim communities? Besides the Davutoğlu’s doctrine, the article employs archival documents obtained from the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, as well as publications and books by various Turkish and foreign experts that allow reconstructing the true picture of events. The goal of this work is to comprise a broad picture of Turkey's position on the international arena in the 2000s and foreign policy perception of the Justice and Development party overall. In this regard, analysis is conducted on Turkey’s interests in the Balkans and the policy for achieving them under the rule of the Justice and Development Party.

Keywords: Justice and Development Party, Military, Diplomacy, Economy, Geopolitics, Balkans, Post-Cold War, Turkish foreign policy, Strategic depth, Ahmet Davutoglu effect

Review: The object of this research is the analysis of the personal archives of Russian historians. The subject of this research is the examination of the personal archive of Professor Valery Ivanovich Bovykin, preserved in the Department of Manuscripts of the Russian State Library since 1998. Leaning on the aforementioned sources, the article explores the history of the project “The Fate of Russia's Debt”, which was among unaccomplished plans of the scholar. The author attempted to assess the role of V. I. Bovykin in project organization on studying Russia's debts in the early XX century. The article touches upon the topic of discovery of the scholar’s laboratory, his archive for finding new scientific historical knowledge. The author analyzes how the Professor's personal archive allows following the process of creating the project infrastructure, since all the materials on the project were accumulated by the scholar, which defines the novelty of this work. It is revealed that the project of V. I. Bovykin was against the foreign policy conducted by the Russian Federation in the 1990s. The conclusion is made that the key components of the scientific method, followed by Valery Ivanovich Bovykin in his research, imply a solid empirical base, as well as advancing the topic to the international level.

Keywords: scientist's laboratory, scientist, international project, indebtedness, personal fund, archive of the historian, empirical base, agreement, collection of documents, negotiation

Review: This article is dedicated to examination of the activity of the Russian publicist A. A. Bashmakov (1858-1943) as editor-in-chief of the “Government Gazette” in the period from May 1906 to February 1913. The introductory part of the article provides an overview of the used historiography and sources. The first part of the article explores the peculiarities of issuing newspaper in the early XX century, the circumstances of A. A. Bashmakov's appointment to the post, his daily tasks as the editor, and criticism of the published materials. The second part traces the changes in the newspaper “Addendum to the Government Gazette” due to the appointment of a new editor. The third part analyzes the question of his resignation. In conclusion, the author analyzes the results achieved by A. A. Bashmakov. The research employs a range of poorly studied archival sources and newspaper materials, as well as reminiscences. The novelty of this work is defined by the absence of information about A. A. Bashmakov as an editor, as well as insignificant number of literary sources dedicated to the central official government press of this period. This article contributes to the study of functionality of government print media in 1906 – 1907, which are the first years of A. A. Bashmakov in the role of editor-in-chief.. In feuilletons and articles, the editor-in-chief had an opportunity to express personal point of view on various matters. The content of the “Addendum to the Government Gazette” was left to his discretion; however, the newspaper was shut down due to reasons beyond control of the editor-in-chief.

Keywords: the Russian Revolution of 1905-1907, official press, government official, official evening newspaper, feuilleton, the Slavic banquets, the First Balkan War, The Government Bulletin, Alexey Bellegarde, Alexandre Baschmakoff

Review: The object of this research is the policy of Great Britain in Egypt from August 1936 to April 1938. The subject of this research is the trends in Foreign Office policy and local British authorities concerning Egypt in the context of external and internal challenges. Major attention is given to the situation that formed after signing the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936. The author explores Britain’s responses to the aggressive policy of Italy in the region, as well as during the “palace crisis” in Egypt, which followed the death of King Fuad and transition of the throne to his son Farouk. These events threatened Britain’s presence in the region, which the Empire has been fighting for since the middle of 1930s. The scientific novelty consists in introduction of new sources, namely the diaries of the British High Commissioner Miles Lampson. The author notes that Great Britain continues to soften the style of governance and avoid hash and radical decisions. For example, the antagonism with Italy was settled by diplomatic negotiation and led to signing the Anglo-Italian Agreement in April of 1938. In terms of the domestic political situation, the “palace crisis had been overcome using soft means by creating a positive balance of power for Britain’s presence in the Egyptian political system, as well as through negotiations with anti-British forces.

Keywords: international relations, Anglo-Italian relations, Italy, Egypt, colonial policy, foreign policy, the Great Britain, the Eastern Mediterranean, the king of Egypt, the areas of influence

Review: Sociocultural processes that have taken place over the past three decades in the former Soviet republics are in the limelight of political, economic, and historical research. The Korean diaspora of the Republic of Kazakhstan is the object of particular interest, as it reflects the essence of the national political course and the level of development of democratic institutions in the country. Special attention is given to ethnocultural and business diasporic organizations and institutions of the Kazakh Koreans. The period from 1991 to 2020 demonstrates fruitful activity of the diaspora in the area of ethnic policy, establishment of domestic and international business relations. The last 30 years mark the renaissance of national culture of the Koreans in Kazakhstan due to the work of the Korean theater, performance groups, and educational centers across the country. This article discusses the following questions: institutionalization of the Korean diaspora in Kazakhstan; special role of the institutions in preservation of the centers of ethnic culture; impact of the activity of diasporic structures upon the relations with the state and historical homeland; functional role of ethnic organizations in socialization of the members of the diaspora and their advancement in the economic and political spheres. The answers to these questions define the relevance and novelty of this research in studying the problems of historical and national development of the new independent states of the post-Soviet region.

Keywords: Korean young people in Kazakhstan, Korean theatre of Kazakhstan, interethnic relations, koryo saram, Association of Koreans in Kazakhstan, korean organizations, national policy of Kazakhstan, korean diaspora, koryo ilbo, koreans of Kazakhstan

Review: This article examines the establishment of private periodical press of the Taurida Governorate in the late XIX century. The object of this research is the first private newspaper – “Crimean Leaflet”. The author explores the socioeconomic processes and censorship conditions, which affected the emergence of the Crimean private periodicals. An overview is given to the historiography and sources used in this work. The first part of the article studies the sociopolitical and cultural-historical prerequisites for the emergence of mass media in the governorate. The second part examines the process of opening and operation of the newspaper, its outline, biography of the publisher, as well as composition of the editorial board. The third part reveals the subject matter of the published materials and the peculiarities of interaction of the newspaper with the provincial administration and censorship authorities. The author also analyzes the reasons why the newspaper was shut down. In conclusion, the author reviews the role of the newspaper in formation of private provincial press, and its impact upon public relations in the Taurida Governorate. The scientific novelty consists in introduction into the scientific discourse of previously unstudied archival materials, as the historiography virtually had no records on the newspaper and the personality of the publisher. This work contributes to studying the development of private press in the Taurida Governorate, as well as reveals certain details of state policy with regards to provincial press in the late XIX century.

Keywords: Mikhno, Simferopol, censorship, Crimean leaf, newspaper, Taurida province, Periodical press, editor, press, development

Review: The subject of this research is response of the government, political parties, and society of the Republic of China to signing the Neutrality Pact between the USSR and Japan on April 13, 1941 – one of the crucial bilateral agreements of the World War II, which entailed fundamental changes to the Far Eastern international system. The Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact negatively affected the relations between the Soviet Union and the Republic of China. The goal of this work is to objectively assess the impact of the Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact of April 13, 1941 upon the domestic and foreign policy of the Chinese government, as well as further development of the Sino-Soviet relations. The novelty of this work consists in the fact that based on the poorly studied Russian and foreign documentary materials, the author examines the questions that have been rarely touched upon within the Russian historiography, such as: China’s response to conclusion of the Neutrality Pact between the USSR and Japan; its effect upon Sino-Soviet relations. The conclusion is made that the Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact of April 13, 1941, which marked the most difficult moment of the Sino-Japanese War, was a psychological blow to China. The position of the Kuomintang government was ambivalent: on the one hand, it refrained from the public anti-Soviet propaganda; while on the other hand, used dissatisfaction of China’s population to enhance pressure on its major political opponent – China’s Communist Party. Therefore, the Sino-Soviet relations in general did not experience severe problems; however, the internal split in the Chinese society has worsened, which substantially undermined the formation of Second United Front.

Keywords: China's foreign policy, the Japanese-Chinese war, Soviet-Chinese relations, Soviet-Japanese relations, Far Eastern policy of the USSR, Far eastern international situation, Soviet-Japanese neutrality, Chiang Kai-shek, foreign policy position CCP, China's internal split