Abstract: As China's status as a global power strengthens, Western countries have adopted and continue to adopt multiple measures aimed at containing the growth of China's influence in the region and the world. These conditions require China to continually improve its foreign policy strategies. Thus, the establishment of think tanks has become one of the key tools operated by China's public diplomacy in the 21st century. The object of this study is the public diplomacy of contemporary China, while the subject of the research is Chinese think tanks. The author pays special attention to the significance of these centers in the framework of the "Belt and Road" initiative, as well as their role in combating the stigmatization of China in the world during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this research is to analyze the role that think tanks play in the implementation of contemporary China's "soft power." To achieve this aim, descriptive and analytical methods were used. The main conclusions drawn by the author are as follows: the state significance of think tanks in China has been gradually increasing since the 2010s, and this trend not only continues but also strengthens in the 2020s. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the task of shaping and regulating the country's international image has gained particular importance for China. Think tanks today are a key link in the process of implementing this complex task. Their activities also contribute to ensuring more coordinated regional cooperation with China's partner countries. The scientific novelty of this study lies in exploring the unique research and propaganda roles of Chinese think tanks in the 2010s and 2020s, as well as proposing a hypothesis about the future of these centers within China.

Keywords: stigma, pandemic, politics, COVID-19, think tanks, foreign policy, public diplomacy, USA, international relations, China

Abstract: The subject of the study is the evolution of protectionist policy, including key stages and trends in historical and analytical contexts. Protectionism is one of the key tools used by governments to control and protect the national economy. It is applied both to ensure economic security and to support key industries. The historical-political analysis of the concept of protectionism is particularly relevant after the emergence of asymmetric security threats caused by international factors, which led to the return of protectionist practices after decades of globalization, economic liberalization, and trade policy implementation. During the formation of the foreign trade strategy based on protectionist principles, mercantilism served as the theoretical foundation. Accordingly, the aim of the study is to provide a comprehensive analysis of key historical stages and trends in the formation and development of the concept of protectionism. The research is based on the comprehensive application of various scientific methods, such as logical, comparative, structural analysis, synthesis, and historical analysis. A key methodological principle is the integration of theoretical and practical aspects, which determines the direction and content of the analytical work. To achieve the research objective, the main methodological approaches have been applied, including the dialectical method, retrospective analysis, and systemic analysis. The analysis of the evolution of mercantilist ideas allows for the conclusion that there has been a shift in protectionist policy from the use of monetary tools to those that stimulate domestic production and exports. Protectionism is actively applied in conditions of economic instability. However, the transition to trade liberalization occurs when the economic situation stabilizes and the level of development increases. At the same time, free trade may be accompanied by the use of hidden forms of protectionism. Despite forecasts from some experts that protectionist policies would gradually lose relevance in the context of globalization, it has not only persisted but has also successfully integrated into the new economic reality. The article proposes an author's definition of the concept of "protectionism," based on the results of a retrospective analysis of protectionism as a policy consisting of a set of tools aimed at supporting the economy of the state.

Keywords: restrictions, tariffs, nationalism, national industry, economic security, international trade, state economic policy, trade liberalization, protectionism, mercantilism

Abstract: The article examines the ethnopolitical narratives and symbolic politics technologies used by candidates during the 2024 presidential elections in the Republic of North Macedonia (RNM). It focuses on analyzing electoral programs, public speeches, and the symbolic visualization of political strategies that reflect candidates' positions on issues of national identity, euro-integration, and interethnic relations. The subject of the research includes ethnopolitical (including identity) narratives and their embodiment in the electoral campaign through symbolic politics technologies. The emphasis is placed on the political and managerial potentials of the presidency in the context of developing ethnopolitical contradictions between the Macedonian majority and the Albanian minority. The research revealed that the key narrative of the campaign became the theme of euro-integration; however, candidates interpreted its implications for Macedonian identity differently. The methodological framework includes systemic and institutional approaches for analyzing the political mechanisms in RNM; comparative ethnopolitical analysis that allows for the comparison of candidates' strategies in the context of the country's ethnic heterogeneity; discourse analysis of electoral programs and public speeches; analysis of the symbolic visualization techniques of political concepts (including the design of campaign materials); and analysis of secondary statistical data. The conclusions of the article emphasize that, despite evident ethnopolitical polarization, candidates from the largest political parties vying for victory avoided radical statements, striving to maintain the symbolic-political role of the president as a guarantor of the unity of the civil nation. Macedonian candidates sought to preserve national identity while criticizing concessions to Greece and Bulgaria, whereas Albanian candidates emphasized consociational democracy and the priority of European values. The incumbent president occupied a compromise position, combining support for euro-integration with the rhetoric of all-Macedonian civic unity. However, the electoral programs of the candidates reflected deep differences that exist among ethnic Macedonians and Albanians in understanding the future of the country, indicating the persistence of significant ethnopolitical tensions in Macedonian society.

Keywords: political narratives, technologies of symbolic politics, presidential elections, institution of the presidency, Albanian minority, interethnic relations, national identity, ethnopolitics, nation-state building, Republic of North Macedonia

Abstract: The subject of the study is globalization processes actively occurring in the global economy in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The focus of the research is the socio-economic and political consequences of globalization processes for world development. The goal of this work is a systematic theoretical investigation of globalization processes and their consequences for the global economy. In this study, the authors analyze the costs of globalization, manifested in the intensification of inter-country differentiation in levels of socio-economic development, marginalization of certain states and regions, a slowdown in their economic growth rates, an increase in conflict potential and associated military expenditures, which have prompted the activation of deglobalization trends in the world. The informational foundation for writing this work was provided by official data from the World Bank, the international information platform Statista, international analytical centers, information published in periodic scientific publications, and online resources. The research was based on a systematic approach to studying multi-level and hierarchical socio-economic systems. In the process of developing the research problem, the authors used dynamic, structural, and comparative analyses, synthesis, logical modeling, ranking, generalization, analogy, induction, and deduction. The theoretical basis of the presented research consists of fundamental analytical works dedicated to the analysis of globalization processes in the global economy. The authors reveal the stages of the development of globalization processes and present their theoretical foundation. The authors conclude that despite existing beliefs that globalization should lead to higher growth rates and improve the standard of living, this has not occurred in practice. While some countries managed to benefit from globalization, the economic situation in other countries has practically not changed or even worsened. The costs of globalization have been systematized: the marginalization of certain countries and regions accompanied by increasing unemployment, poverty, and inequality; the growing conflict potential in the world and associated military expenditures. The conclusion is substantiated about the significant slowdown in the dynamics of global trade and foreign direct investment after 2008, alongside the rise in tariff and non-tariff trade restrictions, and the widespread use of sanctions in international relations. A trend towards dynamically developing regionalization has been established, representing a fragmentation of the global economic space.

Keywords: increasing conflictogenicity, marginalization of regions, openness of the economy, regionalization, deglobalization trends, costs of globalization, liberalism, socio-economic development, deglobalization, globalization