In the modern context, digital diplomacy is undergoing rapid transformation, driven by both internal challenges and external factors such as internet fragmentation and deplatforming. Topic modeling has become an important method for analyzing these processes, allowing researchers to analyze a large volume of unstructured textual data, identify key thematic patterns and uncover hidden semantic structures in the field. The aim of this review is to systematize and standardize the practices in applying topic modeling to digital diplomacy research based on an analysis of published empirical studies. The study was conducted using a systematic literature review following the PRISMA protocol, searching in Scopus and the Open Alex data bases (k = 273). The review was structured according to four stages of topic modelling: 1) text, 2) data preprocessing and cleansing, 3) modelling, and 4) analysis. The systematization of practices across these stages allows us to offer methodological recommendations for a comprehensive and well-grounded analysis of data in the field of digital diplomacy. As part of the work, twelve research questions were formulated: three for each stage of topic modeling. These questions concern the justification of the relevance and representativeness of the sample (RQ 1-3), text cleaning methods and handling of non-standard elements (RQ 4-6), the rationale for model selection and its parameters (RQ 7-9), as well as approaches to the interpretation and visualization of results (RQ 10-12). The results obtained contribute to the formation of standards and the improvement of research quality in this interdisciplinary field.

Large language models (LLMs) are becoming increasingly popular within the academic community, and their use is now more frequently observed in social science. This article summarizes the emerging opportunities for integrating LLMs into textual data analysis and systematizes the limitations that scholars encounter along the way. The authors identify the most effective «points of entry» for incorporating LLMs into research, while devoting particular attention to issues of model bias, validation, and the replication of results produced with the AI-assistance. The paper proposes several possible strategies for enhancing the quality of work with generative models in accordance with the triangulation procedure. These include examining alternative prompts, testing various data samples, and employing a combination of models. Existing studies show that, when properly configured, LLMs can reduce time costs, expand researchers’ analytical capacities, and help uncover hidden patterns within large textual corpora. However, the effectiveness of scientific applications of LLMs directly depends on scholarly diligence, including a clear understanding of the tool’s scope, careful problem formulation, high-quality input data, and the ability to normalize unstructured data. Without these conditions, the use of such models risks devolving into a simulation of scientific inquiry. The article is intended to serve as a starting point for political scientists and international relations researchers interested in integrating of LLMs into their analytical work.

The article examines methodological aspects of applying dynamic network analysis in contemporary international political science. The study is motivated by the limitations of standard statistical methods, particularly logistic regression, which ignores network autocorrelation and endogenous interdependence of observations, leading to biased estimates in the analysis of international processes. The paper aims to demonstrate the analytical potential and limits of applicability of Temporal Exponential Random Graph Models (TERGM) for studying the evolution of regional security subsystems.

Using the example of modeling the dynamics of military alliance networks in the post-Soviet space, a methodology for constructing and specifying TERGM models is presented. The procedure for incorporating both endogenous structural configurations (inertia, triadic closure) and exogenous covariates (trade flows, sanctions status, influence of external powers) into the analysis is described. The analysis was conducted in the R programming environment using the «btergm» package.

The practical challenges of interpreting stochastic modeling results in small-sample conditions are demonstrated. In particular, it is shown that the inclusion of deterministic covariates can lead to statistical distortions requiring specific interpretation. The limitations of the method in assessing the influence of node attributes, specifically sanctions status, are identified in cases where these attributes are present in only a small number of network participants. It is concluded that TERGM is an effective tool for measuring structural effects; however, when analyzing small regional network structures, its application requires rigorous preliminary data diagnostics and combination with alternative verification methods.

Against the backdrop of growing external risks and internal structural constraints, China’s food security policy is undergoing transformation. The state seeks to enhance its effectiveness by developing a more integrated system for ensuring food security. In this context, a new initiative has been proposed, namely the establishment of a National Food Security Industry Belt, a spatial-institutional model of cooperation aimed at coordinating the development of key food-producing regions and integrating production, logistics, and resource components into a unified system. The article examines the extent to which the ideas of interregional coordination are reflected in regional policies. The study draws upon a corpus of fourteen socio-economic development plans of the PRC for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), encompassing both the national plan and regional plans of three key agricultural and food-producing regions – the Northeast Plain, the Huang – Huai – Hai Plain, and the middle and lower Yangtze River region. To uncover their distinctive features, there was conducted a thematic analysis using ChatGPT (GPT-5 version) in accordance with the Guided AI Thematic Analysis (GAITA) protocol. The article contributes to the understanding of the language of Chinese planning by revealing how the discourse of food security is reproduced across strategic documents of different administrative levels. The analysis revealed a high degree of uniformity in the wording of both national and regional plans. Significant signs of interregional coordination were found only in the plans of the administrative units of the Northeast Plain. This suggests that horizontal mechanisms of interaction have not yet become a priority within the food policy planning system and are still being developed in a pilot format.

As international communication methods transform, digital diplomacy is becoming a defining tool of influence. While previous research focused on content analysis of publications, today, understanding the corresponding strategies requires examining the network interactions of diplomatic missions. The authors argue that the communications strategy of the US Embassy in Russia is a prime example of this evolution and is directly influenced by presidential changes. Using network analysis, the authors demonstrate that US digital diplomacy has undergone significant changes: from active engagement with the media, universities, and opposition actors under Barack Obama to a phased-out focus on direct official contacts under Donald Trump, and further stagnation under Joe Biden, with a focus on supporting civic activists. The analysis is based on data from the X*2 social network for 2013, 2017, and 2021, collected using the Popsters service and visualized in Gephi. This article contributes to the study of digital diplomacy by demonstrating how network analysis reveals shifts in strategies and fundamental differences in the approaches of Republican and Democratic administrations to interacting with Russian society and the state. The findings demonstrate that network analysis can capture institutional and ideological shifts in digital diplomacy, revealing how changes in political strategies are reflected in the configuration and dynamics of communication networks.

The evolving international landscape is reshaping not only the foreign policy strategy of the United States but also exerting a profound influence on its domestic political dynamics. The US discourse on threats from adversaries has intensified public concern over foreign influence, prompting heightened regulatory attention to foreign activities within the country. Following federal trends, US states have developed their own policy responses that might either complement Washington initiatives or expand regulatory frameworks within their local jurisdictions. Acts based on defending «critical» infrastructure or «strategic» property near military installations, which are considered national security risks, are often designed to reduce opportunities for foreign persons or entities affiliated directly or indirectly with China. The research covers US state legislative acts, with particular attention to foreign property ownership regulations, which have prompted bipartisan support for protective measures and become a widespread practice since 2018. The analysis reveals patterns of similarities and differences between states’ approaches to implementing new regulations on foreign land ownership. Using thematic modeling, the authors rank the state’s legislative activity on land regulations and identify major thematic clusters within the collected body of legal texts. The authors argue that the US policy initiatives framed around countering foreign adversaries have fostered a climate of «foreign threat» alarmism at the state level, leading to broadening regulatory control over foreign activities even within domains formally regulated by federal authorities.

The problem of the study lies in the systemic crisis of the institutional architecture of the United Nations peacekeeping activities. This is expressed in a departure from the fundamental principles of impartiality and neutrality, violation of the sovereignty of states under the pretext of humanitarian interventions, as well as the use of peacekeeping mechanisms for implementing the geopolitical strategies by the collective West. This crisis highlights the need to find alternative conceptual models for ensuring international security and post-conflict settlement that would meet the national interests of the Russian Federation. The main scientific results of the study include a critical analysis of the destructive practices of UN peacekeeping, a generalization of the extensive and legitimate experience of Russian peacekeeping activities outside the UN structure, as well as modeling potential scenarios for post-conflict settlement in Southwestern Russia, taking into account modern geopolitical realities. The findings of the study indicate that in the context of modern bipolar confrontation, the direct application of UN peacekeeping models to resolve conflict situations in new regions of the Russian Federation seems unlikely and counterproductive. A promising direction is the development of alternative, non-Western peacekeeping mechanisms based on the principles of regional cooperation, synergy of positive domestic and international experience (SCO, BRICS, ASEAN), as well as the conceptual design of a new paradigm of peacekeeping activities that ensures legitimacy and compliance with the national interests of the Russian Federation. The study highlights the need to rethink existing approaches to peacekeeping in the context of new global challenges and threats, as well as to develop innovative strategies that contribute to strengthen international security and promote post-conflict resolution in the interests of sovereign states.

This article analyses the dynamics of communication regimes in post-Soviet countries, based on the fifth monitoring conducted by the National Research Institute for Communication Development in 2025. Communication regimes are seen as institutionalized systems of rules, actors and practices that regulate information production, communication channels and cross-border interactions. A comprehensive methodology has been used to assess 12 communication groups and 74 indicators of friendliness, resulting in an integrated ranking of countries according to favourable conditions and opportunities for interaction with Russia. The empirical basis for the study includes regulatory legal acts, strategic documents, public discourse, media discourse, interstate interaction and expert assessments. The findings demonstrate the stability of groups of friendly and unfriendly communication regimes. Key trends identified include the development of humanitarian multivector approaches, the pragmatisation of external communications, increased government regulation of the media and civil communications spheres, and the growing securitization of the Russian presence in a number of countries. It is shown that institutionalization of rules and practices has a stronger impact on communication quality than public political rhetoric. The results obtained allow us to consider communication regimes as indicators of sovereignty models and mechanisms for the formation of new interaction configurations in the post-Soviet space. The author studies in detail the factors determining dynamics of interstate and intrastate interactions to identify key trends in transformation of communication models. Analysis yields substantiated forecasts about prospects for development of these relations providing a comprehensive view of current state and future directions of cooperation at regional level.

In this article, the author examines the interaction between the perception of the Netherlands by its policymakers and supranational regulation in the context of the country’s artificial intelligence (AI) policy. The relevance of the study is due to the increasing role of AI in international relations and the adoption of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act in 2025, which raises the question about the influence of national factors on the development of AI strategies in EU countries. Based on topic modeling and manual coding of ten official Dutch government documents from 2013 until 2030, the comparative relevance of key topics in government discourse – AI regulation, opportunities and risks associated with using AI, its applications in various fields and the image that the country intends to project in relation to AI-is identified. The results show that the Dutch AI policy combines elements of national identity, such as high-tech prowess, expertise in high technologies, and the desire to become a leader in this field, with European values of cooperation and ethical use of AI. At the same time, characteristics such as openness and small size of Dutch identity are not reflected in the Dutch discourse on AI, which distinguishes it from other areas of foreign policy. The study confirms that the AI policy is shaped by both national characteristics and supranational trends of the EU, which is important for understanding mechanisms of policymaking and predicting foreign policy decisions. The novelty of this study lies in its constructivist approach to analysing high-tech policies through the lens of self-perception of the nation.

Against the backdrop of a tightening policy on digital sovereignty, the Russian government has consistently advanced a course towards import substitution in the field of digital platforms. It has positioned the Rutube video hosting service and the MAX messaging service as key alternatives to foreign services. This article presents an empirical study on public perceptions of these technologies, based on Telegram discourse. The study encompasses more than 600 posts, 2,000 comments and 12,000 emoji reactions on news, political and technology channels from 2022 to 2025. By combining sentiment analysis (RuBERT) with lexical weak supervision and emoji classification, it reconstructs the emotional structure of users’ attitudes (trust, fear, sarcasm, skepticism and toxicity) and identifies differences between channel types and the dynamics of their development. The findings show that key factors shaping attitudes towards domestic platforms include willingness to switch to new technologies, institutional trust, and assessments of the government’s import substitution policy. However, the classical variables of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) – perceived usefulness and ease of use-play a secondary role in this context. In Russia, acceptance or rejection of platforms such as Rutube and MAX is largely influenced by political, psychological factors, including trust in government and regulatory bodies, perceived risks of privacy breaches, threats of digital surveillance, and coercive aspects of use. This study extends the Technology Acceptance Framework by incorporating the variable of institutional trust and the concept of «digital skeptics,» contributing to the understanding of politicized digitalization and the development of stable patterns of public confidence in contemporary digital technologies.

This article proposes an interdisciplinary framework, based on Daniel Kahneman’s dual-system model of thought, to analyse the affective and structural shifts within the media landscape during political crises. The proposed framework is applied to the coverage by the state-affiliated outlet Russia Today (RT) of the shock event – the assassination attempt on Donald Trump - on July 14, 2024. Using an integrated application of sentiment analysis and topic modelling, the study identifies the «selective shock» model. This model is characterized by an immediate but short-term concentration of editorial resources on the event (a System 1 activation), accompanied by a sharp peak in negative sentiment. The topic modeling confirms that this affective peak is achieved through the near-total monopolization of the news agenda by the crisis narrative. Following a brief period of maximum emotional intensity, there is a rapid «reset» back to the routine editorial policy. The findings indicate that the cognitive patterns of state media can be determined by their institutional role and strategic objectives within the context of global information confrontation. The paper contributes to the methodology of international security studies by offering an analytical toolkit for the quantitative measurement of cognitive patterns within media discourse and opening perspectives for studying information operations in the digital age.

The article examines the phenomenon of network autocracy as a new form of political regime that preserves formal democratic institutions while institutionalizing algorithmic control over participation and decision-making processes. Based on an author’s analysis of 194 countries, the study proposes an integrated quantitative tool

– the GASI (Governance Algorithmic Sovereignty Index), which allows diagnosing and forecasting (within a 12–18-month horizon) the transition of political systems toward various forms of digital power – from network democracy to stable network autocracy. The GASI methodology combines three parameters: resource rent (RENTA), digital integration (DIGITAL), and algorithmic governance (ALGO). This approach captures the functional mechanisms of power reproduction and eliminates dependence on subjective expert judgments typical of existing democracy indices (Freedom House, V-Dem, Economist Intelligence Unit). Empirical comparison revealed approximately 80% consistency with international ratings and about 20% of systemic anomalies that expose the politicization of expert assessments. Countries of the Global South, the Middle East, and East Asia with high levels of digital sovereignty are systematically underrated, whereas Euro-Atlantic states receive inflated democracy scores. These discrepancies confirm the presence of normative and political biases in the global index field. The results demonstrate that GASI can serve as an independent assessment tool for digital regimes, based on objective data suitable for use in political analysis, international studies, investment, and ESG monitoring.

The article develops a conceptual model of political networks as infrastructures of global governance, enabling analysis of coordination mechanisms that remain outside institutionalist explanations. The relevance of the study is driven by the increasing complexity of the global environment, the rise of multi-actor configurations, and the expansion of distributed forms of influence not reducible to formal international institutions. In this context, material and cognitive-normative processes that sustain the circulation of resources, knowledge, and interpretations gain importance yet remain insufficiently addressed in global governance research. Methodologically, the study integrates actor-network theory, network society theory, infrastructure studies, and constructivist approaches to norms and knowledge. On this basis, the proposed model identifies key infrastructural parameters: mechanisms of circulation, norm-production procedures, configurations of inclusion and exclusion, and epistemic regimes shaping the boundaries of legitimate political action. A comparative analysis of hierarchical and infrastructural logics demonstrates the limits of institutionalist perspectives and underscores the centrality of distributed network mechanisms for sustaining global processes. The typology of political networks reflects variations in organizational density and functional roles within the global order. The findings conceptualize political networks as hybrid infrastructures that condition norm formation, resource distribution, and the production of legitimacy. The model offers a foundation for further empirical verification and for examining multi-level transnational network configurations.

Abstract. The article examines the official public discourse of Argentina under the administration of J. Milei between 2023 and 2025. J. Milei’s electoral victory was a result of a structural crisis, public exhaustion with traditional political elites, and polarization of the national electorate. Media exposure and an appealing political narrative were also important factors, which allow us to consider this case in terms of both political and socioeconomic aspects, as well as from the communication perspective. The research aims to identify the main vectors of transformation in the public discourse during the first half of Milei’s term as president (2023–2024). The complex of quantitative and qualitative methods, including topic modeling and content analysis with manual coding, allowed us to, first, identify latent semantic structures in the text corpus, and, second, carry out a more indepth analysis of the content of presidential office public communication and its thematic and strategic components. The author concludes that the official government discourse underwent a series of transformations during the period under review. Active campaigning and the promotion of the narrative of a system crisis gave way to a stabilization phase, which then transitioned into a mobilization phase leading up to national parliamentary elections. Overtly confrontational narratives against opposition forces have shifted towards institutional pragmatism and compromise with moderate opposition. The internal political mobilization typical of the early stages of Milei’s rule was gradually replaced by intensified efforts to construct a renewed Argentine foreign policy identity.