Small States and Regional Economic Integrations in the Multi-Polar World: Regional Differences in the Levels of Integration and Patterns of Small States' Vulnerability

Petar Kurecic Petar Kurecic

doi:10.13169/worlrevipoliecon.8.3.0317

Abstract

The contemporary world is a world of multi-polarity, signifying that US attempts to achieve hegemony have failed and there are no signs that this is likely to change in the near future. What about the position of small states, which by most of the widely accepted criteria comprise at between half and two thirds of all the world's states? Small states, because of their constraints, such as the size of population and/or economy are often considered more vulnerable to external pressures than mid-size or especially large states. What strategies should then small states pursue to assure their survival and increase their economic development and political influence? The responses of small states to multi-polarity in different regions of the world are different. In Europe, economic integration along with certain forms of political integration has been going on for more than six decades. In other parts of the world, in most cases, the integration has not developed beyond the level of free-trade area. It is the intention of this article to study the differences in small states' relation towards regional economic integrations in various regions of the world. The thesis that deeper economic integration contains the influence of large states (albeit only outside the integration itself) is then tested through comparative analysis of regional economic integrations' effects on small states in the various regions of the world.

Highlights

Multi-polarity, as an evolving condition, indicates that here are more power centres than before and that this trend will very likely continue
Among the several theories that explain the contemporary world political economy, the theory of uneven and combined development (UCD) about the dominant and contender states’ struggle is considered most suitable for explaining the patterns of dominance and challenging that same dominance in the world economy. It frames our understanding of the reactions of small states to the dominant and contender states distributed across the world’s regions in our multi-polar world
It can be studied through the framework of geopolitical economy, as the discipline of multi-polarity (Desai 2015, 2–3)

Summary

Introduction

Multi-polarity, as an evolving condition, indicates that here are more power centres than before and that this trend will very likely continue. The term geopolitical economy signifies the full integration of economic, political, and military dynamics between states in ways that elude international relations and international political economy to generate a more accurate understanding of multi-polarity and its history. In this understanding of international affairs, the dynamic interaction of chief dominant and contender states would provide the framework for the understanding of other international interactions

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Conclusion