International Relations Essay. ONLY PROTOJE

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The Globalization of World Politics (6e)

2. The evolution of international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

The idea of international society

• Somewhere between a struggle of all against all and a world government

• Any notion of an international society must refer to some level of common rules and practice

• The term is commonly used to denote the emergence of the European state system with its principles of sovereign equality and non- intervention

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

The English School

• A basic condition: international anarchy

• What order there is derives in part from the existence of an international society, and a common fear of unrestricted violence

• A common culture can assist the degree of communication and mutual understanding required for common rules and institutions to emerge

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

The English School

• Criticism against such notions include that such international societies may just as well legitimize and perpetuate oppressive and exploitative orders

• The main point, however, is to explain the fundamental logics and structure of international order (whatever its moral implications)

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

The evolution of an international society

• Elements of international society may be found from the time of the first organized human communities

• Ancient Greece, India, China and Rome are all examples of societies with highly evolved ideas about the conduct of international affairs, including warfare

• Christianity and Islam profoundly impacted the understanding of international society in medieval times

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• The Peace of Westphalia is considered the key event ushering in a contemporary international system

• The peace represents the first formal acceptance of sovereign equality for a large number of states

• The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht established the idea of a balance of power

The evolution of an international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• The French revolution linked sovereignty to nations rather than to rulers, engendering the idea of “national self-determination”

• A consequence of this was that empires were seen as denying the right of nations to become proper sovereign states

• After the defeat of Napoleon, the idea of “great powers” was made manifest in the “Concert of Europe”

The evolution of an international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• The Concert of Europe and the idea of a sort of joint hegemony by the great powers was brought to an end after the end of WW1

• The League of Nations was to embody the principle of collective security, but in fact still relied on a balance of power structure – in a time when there was a marked inbalance of power

The evolution of an international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

A Post-Westphalian Chronology

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• After WW2, the US decided to participate in the League replacement: the United Nations

• Cold War rivalries prevented the UN from operating effectively

• De-colonisation led to a broader adoption of “Westphalian-derived” ideas of sovereignty

• The collapse of the Soviet Union also meant the collapse of a strong competing conception of international society

The evolution of an international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• Globalization itself is eroding traditional identities

• The post-cold war order has produced several collapsed, failing or fragmenting states

• Today the United States military power overwhelmingly dominates, creating a “unipolar moment” in history. This moment, and its structural implications, is challenged by economic trends

Problems of global international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• The shared values that evolved in European societies and that became the basis for the conceptualization of international society are challenged by competing models

• Issues such as climate change and poverty are hard to accommodate within a sovereignty-based international society

• In the long run: can an international society founded on the principle of sovereignty endure?

Problems of global international society

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• Since 1941, the role had been governed by Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi – an ally of the United States

• his regime was increasingly viewed as corrupt, brutal and wasteful of its oil wealth

• There was widespread opposition, including from liberals and leftists groups

• The Iranian Revolution was led by Muslim clerics challenging American power and the prevailing conception of international society

Case study 1: The Iranian revolution (1979)

Baylis, Smith & Owens: The Globalization of World Politics 6e

• The leader of the new Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Khomeini, believed that disregard of Islamic principles had caused the problems of the Middle East

• He rejected the Westphalian notion of a world divided into sovereign states

• The correct approach to international relations was to be determined by Islam

• International law should only be observed when in accordance with the Koran

Case study 1: The Iranian revolution (1979)