In 2013 Suzuki Kazuto suggested that the regional space organizations of Japan and China, initially created as instruments of regional diplomatic competition, are moving towards cooperation. This article is devoted to the analysis of possible rapprochement between APRSAF and APSCO within the astropolitical framework. To do this, the organizations’ activities are analyzed from 2013 to 2023, a comparative description for programs is carried out, an assessment of organizations’ involvement is provided. Comparative analysis within the specified timeframe with focus on specific programs and points of interaction has not previously been attempted. Within astropolitics, China and Japan are defined as a space power and an autonomous space nation, respectively. States engage in regional competition to maximize their space power, a limited resource built up from the sum of all space programs and capabilities of each state. The spheres of regional influence of the two organizations overlap partially. For APSCO, eight countries are involved: Bangladesh, Iran, China, Mongolia, Thailand, Turkey, Pakistan and Peru. The most active participants in APRSAF include: Australia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Mongolia and the Philippines. The two organizations have developed 12 initiatives, six on each side. Within the timeframe, attention was focused on three areas where the organizations indicated their presence: disaster management, environmental monitoring and space law. In all three areas, APSCO and APRSAF initiatives focus on almost identical issues within the same region, and cooperation could hypothetically lead to higher quality of the programs. However, the organizations refrain from any form of cooperation and thus continue to be diplomatic tools of China and Japan used to strengthen their positions in the region. China and APSCO attending the Japanese forum can be explained by China’s broader strategy to assert its presence in all organizations and dialogues related to the space domain to consolidate its status as a modern center of space activities.

The article addresses the issue of separatism in the Kingdom of Spain, examining the factors influencing the nature of relations between Catalonia and the central government of the country. The problem of Catalan separatism cannot be considered in isolation from the historical context of the formation of the Spanish state, as it is one of the key factors driving separatist sentiments and processes in Catalonia. The cultural factor, especially the Catalan language and the national consciousness of the Catalans, also plays a significant role. Among the factors contributing to the transformation of Catalan regionalism into separatism are the following: the global economic crisis, which has significantly worsened the situation in the region; the constitutional crisis; the internal political crisis, particularly the issue of Spain’s administrative-territorial structure – regional asymmetry; and the lack of an adequate response from the Spanish government to the rise of nationalist sentiments and the spread of separatist ideas.

At the moment, France exerts a huge political and economic influence on the countries of West and Central Africa through the franc zone — the monetary union of France and its former African colonies, which uses the CFA franc currency pegged to the main currency of France (currently it is the euro). The CFA Franc was introduced as a currency unit in 1945, when African countries still were colonies. Then the French government decided to impede decolonization by means of financial methods of influence – a monetary union. One of the principles of the franc zone is the requirement for African States to keep part of their foreign exchange reserves in France. It is this principle that causes the greatest outrage not only in Africa, but also on the European continent. Opponents of the franc zone point out that the former colonies still pay «tribute» to the French government. The purpose of this study is to detect the reasons for France’s success in maintaining the franc zone, as well as to determine the benefits that France receives and the losses incurred by African countries from maintaining the CFA franc system. The study highlighted the following conclusions: the main reasons for France’s success in West and Central Africa are the weak economic development of the region; the desire of the elites of the countries of the region to receive assistance from the former metropoly, including for personal enrichment. The CFA franc represents the only case of preserving the colonial monetary unit, with the help of which the economic exploitation of West and Central Africa continues to the present day using the «old methods». For France, the franc zone provides an opportunity to maintain political and economic influence in the region. For African countries, this system hinders their development by withdrawing a significant part of national resources from the economy and sending them to France.

Youth cooperation between the BRICS countries in the field of ecology is a topic that has not received sufficient coverage in modern Russian and foreign science. The purpose of the article is to identify the main problems and prospects of youth cooperation in the field of ecology based on the analysis of current trends in the interaction of youth organizations of the BRICS countries. Due to the predominantly extensive economic development, the BRICS states face common environmental problems, such as climate change, reduced species diversity, air and water pollution. However, the development of a unified concept of the environmental policy of the BRICS countries is a task that this interstate association has yet to solve. Another promising area of joint activity of the BRICS countries is the development of youth cooperation. However, the environmental agenda has not yet become a central issue in BRICS youth projects. The main problem is the imperfection of the concept of the existing BRICS youth projects. Often, the decisions taken by delegates are declarative in nature and do not have a real impact on the environmental policy of states, since there is no strong connection between youth projects, governments and the business community. There is also uneven development and differences in the priorities of youth policy of different BRICS countries, which may complicate their youth cooperation. In addition, there is a lack of funding for the implementation of various youth projects, including environmental initiatives. The media development trend of the activities of youth organizations poses the task for BRICS to create an interactive media resource to inform the public about the activities and achievements of the community and to ensure the interaction of participants in an online format. Thus, the youth cooperation of the BRICS countries in the field of ecology is quite a promising area. Obviously, the implementation of already adopted initiatives will continue, but some areas still need to be developed based on the principles of continuity, equal dialogue and support from the BRICS states.