Democratic Peace Research Articles

Militarization, globalization and liberal democracy: a nexus?

PurposeUsing composite indices, the paper examines the nexus between militarization, globalization and liberal democracy. The democratic peace theory, the conflict inhibiting effects of international trade – a key and dominant facet of globalization – and the democracy promoting globalization hypothesis form the theoretical underpinnings of the empirical investigation.Design/methodology/approachTo probe into the issue at hand, the paper adopts a dynamic panel VAR estimation procedure. Given the usual data constraints, the sample consists of 113 countries, and the estimations span the period 1995–2019.FindingsThe findings from the dynamic panel VAR estimations suggest the presence of a negative and statistically significant nexus between the level of globalization and the level of militarization. No statistically traceable nexus between globalization and liberal democracy was found.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings offer empirical support to the hypothesis that the strong links of interdependence shaped by globalization reduce the need for military preparedness. The results lead to a tentative inference in favor of the doux commerce thesis. Nonetheless, given that the estimations span a historically specific period – the entire post-bipolar era – the inferences that stem from the findings should be treated with caution.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, the composite indices Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC) militarization index, the globalization index of the Swiss Economic Institute (Konjunkturforschungsstelle) (KOF), LibDem, polyarchy have not hitherto been jointly used in previous studies to examine the nexus between militarization, globalization and liberal democracy.

Give peace a chance … for what? Paine, Kant and democratic peace

AbstractPaul Kelly pays scant attention to the so‐called ‘democratic peace’ thesis that has played a major role in recent International Relations scholarship, a lacuna which we regard to be serious. Our paper investigates the normative background to the connection between democracy and peace, commonly associated with Immanuel Kant. We argue that attention should be devoted instead to the critique of international conflict found in the writings of Thomas Paine, who (unlike Kant) offers a politically grounded account of both why peace among nations is desirable and how that might be achieved. In particular, we consider Paine's views on democratic peace through the lens of his goals of eliminating the tyranny of kings and aristocrats and of ameliorating the material conditions of the poor. Paine contended that the establishment of global peace paralleled a process of global democratisation that would liberate the masses from their political and economic exploitation at the hands of a powerful few, whose interests converged in the prosecution of war.

Democratic Peace and Liberal Peace: Argumentative and Intentions


 Some people believe that the concept of liberal peace should be seen in relation to the thesis of democratic peace. This literature focused more on whether democratic countries are more peaceful in their foreign relations and tried to provide a theoretical and empirical explanation for this. The democratic peace thesis states the following: 1) Democratic states rarely fight each other. 2) Democratic countries tend to be more open to international trade than non-democratic ones, which creates interdependencies that prevent war from breaking out between them.3) Democracies tend to be more internally peaceful than other systems. Here, it is important to point out that the thesis of democratic peace is closely related to Immanuel Kant’s idea of “perpetual peace”. As for the liberal peace thesis, from Richmond’s point of view, it bears four main aspects that emerged from the discussions in international theory and the different historical contexts related to the subject, especially in the West. These include the four aspects of liberal peace (victorious peace, constitutional peace, institutional peace, and civil peace). Richmond noted that the peace of the victor is the result of the old realist argument that peace depends on military victory and on the domination of the victor. But the peace of the victor may result in political resistance, as in Iraq and Afghanistan. The second, constitutional peace, derives from the Kantian argument that peace is the result of democracy, commerce, and a set of universal values based on individualism. Richmond notes that "the constitutional peace struggles with those who do not want to share power, and who do not want to entrench local legal structures that might prohibit their activities." As for institutional peace, it is the peace that results from normative and legal institutional arrangements between countries that agree - in a multilateral manner - on ways to act and impose or define their behavior. This can be found in international institutions such as the United Nations as well as regional organizations such as the European Union, the African Union (AU), the League of Arab States (AL), the Organization of American States (OAS), and subregional organizations such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The fourth aspect, (civil peace), which emphasizes the importance of the participation of citizens and civil society institutions in making peace. Unlike the other three aspects of liberal peace, the contribution of individuals rather than the state or international organization is included in this strategy.
 

“Institutional Similarity Effect” or “Selection Effect”? Revisiting the Relationship between “Political Institution Similarity” and “Militarized Interstate Disputes” in Democratic Peace Effects

“Institutional Similarity Effect” or “Selection Effect”? Revisiting the Relationship between “Political Institution Similarity” and “Militarized Interstate Disputes” in Democratic Peace Effects

The Justification of Democracy Peace Theory in the 21st Century

Dependent on liberal ideologies , the democratic peace theory assumes that democracies rarely wage war on one another than non- democracies. But critics argue that merely being democratic in nature may not be the main reason for peace between democracies. Throughout the 21st century, we have witnessed the “War on Terrorism” after 9/11, the rise of multipolarity, several buffer zones underpinning major powers’ divisive politics and reflection of national leaders’ decisions on regional cooperatives and international institutions, etc., which have had varying effects on international politics. Therefore, this study begs a question that whether the implications of democratic peace theory are justified in the 21st century or not. Answering this question required a thorough review of the arguments put forward by democratic peace theorists and detractors. This article examines the justification of democratic peace theory by focusing on the remarkable political phenomena in the 21st century. The method of this study is based on the thematic literature review and in-depth study of the documents and summaries comprised of articles and journals. This study found that authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, the rise of populism, contentious politics, border and regional conflicts, violent annexation, etc. have become critical issues in democracies where neither the values of democracy are protected, nor the liberal ideology is followed in the state mechanisms. Social Science Review, Vol. 39(1), June 2022 Page 211-229

IRAN-CHINA DEAL: GEOSTRATEGIC-BALANCING AGAINST US

The signing of a $400 billion 25-year strategic and economic deal between Iran and China in March 2021 is the latest sign of the two countries' resolve to work together more closely. As a counterbalance to the US and its allies in the Middle East (ME), this bilateral deal is expected to reduce the US influence in the ME. In this context, this paper focuses on China’s strategic objectives behind the deal and explores Iran’s procures from this deal. Further, the paper also analyses the nature of regional implications incurred by the bilateral arrangement. The study underlines that by strengthening strategic connections with Iran, China will have an unaffected and uninterrupted oil supplies from the Persian Gulf. Apart from the energy supplies, the recent deal offers China a relative strategic advantage in Middle East. Owing to the mounting influence of China through its extensive investments in the Middle East, the paper examines the region as a new front for Beijing to challenge the American supremacy—this time through Iran. Unlike the US, China has taken a development-oriented approach to the region, leveraging Iran's regional power to expand economic ties with neighboring countries through what it refers to as the developmental peace, rather than the Western concept of democratic peace. On the other hand, through this strategic and economic accord, Iran has found it more profitable to pursue an eastward policy for economic and strategic dividends. Likewise, India is cautious of Beijing's two-pronged embrace, with its shrinking cooperation with Iran, notably at the Chabahar, and its recent battle with China in the Himalayas. Given that, this paper not only examines the economic and strategic gains associated with the strategic partnership but also explores its implications over the US footprints in the Middle East and South Asian regions. Keywords: Iran- China 25-year Economic and Strategic Deal, Belt and Road Initiative, Middle East, South Asia, East ward Policy, Chabahar, Gwadar

Policy Objective of Military Intervention and Public Attitudes: A Conjoint Experiment from US and Turkey

This paper scrutinizes the role of the principal policy objective of military intervention in conditioning citizen attitudes for the use of force. Extending the scope of analysis beyond the independent effects, it next assesses how the effects of two core variables of intervention, namely international organizations’ approval of the operation and the regime type of the target country, vary for interventions with differing mandates. The results of the conjoint experiment in two dissimilar cases, the US and Turkey, show that despite substantial changes in relative support for different types of operations, policy objective is still a highly potent determinant of individual attitudes. The results also concur that compared to foreign policy restraint and humanitarian missions, individuals are more sensitive to international organizations’ endorsements of the use of force for peace and internal political change operations. Finally, individuals are significantly disapproving of operations that seek internal political changes in democratic targets, though in contrast to the democratic peace theory, for other types of interventions, they are indifferent to the regime type of the opponent.

A Twenty Years’ Crisis? Rethinking the Cases for U.S. Economic Engagement with China

Structural realists accuse U.S. economic engagement with China as a mistake driven by liberal idealism and lack of realism. I suggest that this increasingly popular narrative reflecting the traditional idealism-realism distinction is misplaced. First, liberal approaches to international relations can clash with each other when a democratic state engages with an authoritarian state, and engagement is justified by one strand of liberalism—economic interdependence liberalism—whereas a different liberal perspective—democratic peace liberalism—opposes economic engagement with an oppressive regime. Second, realism—in particular, structural realism—posits that important state behaviors reflect the need to attain more relative power than others. Then, if economic engagement better serves a state’s relative capacity vis-à-vis other states, economic exchanges with a potential strategic contender would be an unavoidable choice. The liberal case for economic engagement is much more restrictive than it is often articulated, while a structural realist case for engagement can be convincingly made. For about two decades since the mid-1990s, U.S. administrations defended economic engagement with China not only with economic interdependence liberalism but also by utilizing an argument in line with the structural realist case for engagement. Blaming one foreign policy idea as responsible for today’s strategic difficulties is misleading.

A ‘fateful compromise’? Transnational religious organizations and regional governance in Africa

ABSTRACT This article uses the activities of the Catholic and mainline Protestant churches in West Africa to explore how transnational theologically inspired actors are co-constructing a ‘new regionalism’ in Africa. It contends that through a strategy of ‘fateful compromise’ with states, rather than co-optation, mainline churches have evolved well-developed institutional platforms and coordination mechanisms capable of ‘re-scaling’ the governance of transboundary ‘peace–democracy–development nexus’ issues to the regional level. The empirical evidence is derived from the activities of the Regional Catholic Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA) and the Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in West Africa (FECCCIWA). Pivoting to regional spaces is a strategic response to inter-religious hegemonic competition, especially with Pentecostalism and revivalist Islam; shrinking domestic space for civil society organizations (CSOs); and de-secularization that diminished the historic churches’ erstwhile political influence in national policy. Furthermore, limited access to regional policy process granted to selected CSOs, particularly in Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), turned regional spaces into complementary or alternative sites of citizenship. The West African experience enriches the ‘new regionalism’ scholarship by introducing the concept of ‘fateful compromise’, which suggests multiple trajectories in church–state relations rather than presumption of ‘elite co-optation’ as the only option for inclusive or collaborative governance in regressive democracies in Africa.

Democratic Peace Concepts Beyond the Abyss: Examples from Afghanistan, Nagaland, and Kurdistan

Democratic Peace Concepts Beyond the Abyss: Examples from Afghanistan, Nagaland, and Kurdistan

The Dynamics of European Union Foreign Electoral Assistance: Case of Kenya’s General Elections

Electoral integrity is widely recognized as an indispensable element of democratic consolidation in the developing world. However, achieving electoral integrity in these countries has been hindered, in part, by their deficient capacity to invest in the essential resources required to enable key sectors to fulfill their roles in ensuring free, fair, and credible elections. Additionally, elections in these regions often report malpractice characteristics such as electoral fraud, contested results, and protracted legal disputes over outcomes. Consequently, external actors have been called upon to help bridge these gaps, foster peaceful political transitions, and bolster the process of democratization. Despite substantial support from foreign actors, there is a paucity of research focusing on the dynamics of their involvement through technical and capacity-building initiatives. Existing research often presents passive assertions about specific African countries, leaving a dearth of empirical evidence regarding the extent and manner of external actors’ engagement in these nations. Consequently, fundamental questions concerning when, how, and to what effect external actors intervene in foreign electoral support efforts remain unanswered. This study investigates the European Union’s contribution in supporting democratization in Kenya through technical and capacity-building assistance. Employing a case study approach and interpretive descriptive designs, the research delves into the intricacies of EU electoral support in Kenya. By conducting purposive Key Informant Interviews with representatives from key stakeholder institutions and administering surveys to 384 respondents, this study discerns that foreign technical and capacity-building assistance primarily occurs during elections, despite EU policy documents emphasizing that elections are a process rather than a one-time event. The findings reveal that capacity building and technical support, while closely intertwined, are analytically distinct components of EU support, both delivered through the basket fund mechanism. This support is targeted at both governmental institutions involved in elections and non-governmental stakeholders. Crucially, the study establishes that the extent to which the EU’s support can contribute to free, fair, and credible elections hinges on the degree of “political hygiene” practiced by the political class and political parties. In essence, the effectiveness of EU support is profoundly influenced by the conduct of domestic political actors, highlighting the intricate interplay between foreign assistance and internal political dynamics. The theoretical framework is guided by Professor Michal Doyle’s Liberal Democratic Peace Theory.

ВІДНОСИНИ ЄВРОПЕЙСЬКОГО СОЮЗУ ТА США ЗА УМОВ РОСІЙСЬКОЇ АГРЕСІЇ ПРОТИ УКРАЇНИ (2022 – ПОЧАТОК 2023 РР.)

The article is devoted to highlighting the problem of consolidating the position of the European Union and the United States in the context of the scaling of Russian aggression against Ukraine. The research is focused on the analysis of the peculiarities of the process of evolution of relations between the European Union and the United States regarding the development trends of the European and world security systems. The attempts of the Russian Federation and China to destroy the Euro-Atlantic unity of democratic states in order to create the prerequisites for the emergence of a «multipolar» system of international relations are shown. The methodological basis of the article rests on the principles of systematic research of the modern history of international relations. Historical-genetic, comparative, descriptive methods are used. The theoretical foundations of the article are the conceptual approaches of the theory of democratic peace (idealistic intentions to create a world safe for democracy) in discourse with the theory of neorealism in international relations. The scientific novelty of the study consists in monitoring the development trends of relations between the European Union and the United States under the crisis conditions of the formation of a «multipolar» system of international relations. Conclusions. Russian revanchism, aimed at revising the parameters of the world order after the Cold War, focused on the split between the EU and the USA. This was a prerequisite for achieving the desired result for the Kremlin. The closest the Russian Federation came to solving this problem was during the presidency of D. Trump. The pandemic gave the Kremlin reason to hope that Ukraine would not receive direct large-scale Western aid in the event of the escalation of aggression. This challenge has become essential for Euro-Atlantic liberal democracies. Faced with this trend, the Russian Federation chose the tactics of a war of attrition. This factor increased the value of Euro-Atlantic solidarity as a factor in the victory of democracy over authoritarianism.

Democratic peace theory

Democratic peace theory

Analyzing the Democratic Peace Theory on US-French Foreign Policy in Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria in 21st Century.

The main thrust of this paper is to critically analyze the relevance and potential of Democratic Peace Theory in promoting peace, security and stability in international relations. United States of America and France as the cradles of contemporary democracy, in this paper shall be used as models of democratic peace theory. This analysis and evaluation is merely based on designated secondary material or paper review. France and America have analogous foreign policy which for bilateral or multilateral relations demand democracy, rule of law, accountability, transparency, decentralization, devolution of power and respect for human rights in recipient regimes. The study wants to comprehend how French and American foreign policies in Afghanistan, Libya and Syria complied with tenants of democratic peace theory. Contemporary academic contributions are lacking consensus on whether French and American foreign policies are idealist (pro-democratic) or realist (pro-authoritarian) in international relations. The formation of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) which the two are the most influential members is widely debatable between realists and idealists. The organization has very dreadful since Cold War and particularly promotes the self-interests of the Allies, the Capitalist world. In light of fighting dictatorship and restore democracy, America and France are highly criticized for promoting internal political instability, gross human abuse, environmental insecurity, endless fighting and infrastructural destruction.

The Perils of Democratism

The article examines an aspect of the meta-theoretical context of the renewed confrontation between the political West and Russia. A distinction is drawn between democratism, the purposive instrumentalization of democracy agendas in great power conflict, and democracy as a responsive, reflexive and participatory mechanism of popular control over government. In the post-Cold War era this gave rise to inter-democracy, the combination of NATO and the European Union as the basis for the continued predominance of Atlanticism in the political West. This served to exclude alternative security arrangements in post-Cold War Europe, notably pan-continental variants. At the same time, the political West, a constellation of power that was created during and shaped by the Cold War, advanced transdemocracy, the view that democracy was the foundation for the creation of a genuine security community. Drawing on democratic peace theory, this approach substituted democratic internationalism for the sovereign internationalism at the heart of the UN-based Charter international system established in 1945. This gave rise to a distinctive style of international politics, described as democratism in this paper. Rather than overcoming conflict, democratism serves to sharpen antagonisms and thus helped to regenerate Cold War practices and undermined the credibility of liberal internationalism itself. The blowback effects, however, should be distinguished from the continuing struggle for democracy and a style of international politics that remains true to Charter principles.

Abolishing Military and Cultivating Pacifism in Costa Rica: Reflective but Limited Peace?

Existing literature on peace, security and civil-military relations in Latin America only recently recognises the historical institutional sources of Costa Rican exceptionalism. While the Cold War's security predicament and the military dictatorship are common antecedents for most Central American states, Costa Rican demilitarisation and pacifism origins are unique and incomparable. Rather than treating post-1948 civil war development as exceptionalism, this paper seeks to normalise their success. The paper examines the political development of Costa Ricans in the 1950s and whether José María Hipólito Figueres Ferrer's historic decision to permanently abolish the military after the war helped to explain the institutionalisation process of organic civilian peace. While Costa Rican decisions to abandon its defence rights are always romanticised as "progressive" and an anomaly during the Cold War. The reality of relations between military abolishment, pacifism and democratic peace is multidimensional and complex. To perpetuate illogical pacificism reflections from Costa Rica in the 1950s and prescribes into present arguments for global democratic peace is somewhat imprecise. Drawing from years of research on Security in Latin America, this article reinvigorates Costa Rican exceptionalism. It analyses the cultivation of pacificism of those that have made the right choices in the face of adverse circumstances. Considering the historical institutional approach in researching local peace history, the paper illustrates a critical juncture that set peculiar peace formation, the path-dependent that ends the war, and the eventual decision to abolish the military in Costa Rica. The path dependence on national progress in education, health, and productivity only confirmed the unique political trajectory of Costa Rica, wherein they cannot be easily replicated or comparable. Understanding this distinctiveness should serve as a reminder of any renewed debate of Costa Rican exceptionalism in Central American security or democratic peace theory in liberal peacebuilding.

Islam and the Making of a Non-Violent and Peaceful Public Sphere in Indonesia

This article attempts to elaborate on the position of Islam in creating a non-violent and peaceful public sphere in Indonesia. Through a critical review of previous studies and research on the issue, this article aims to answer the following main questions: How does Islam take a particular position in creating a peaceful public sphere in Indonesia? Second, what are the opportunities and challenges involved in making the sufficient role of constructing peaceful democracy and politics in Indonesia? Third, what lessons can be learned from Indonesia's position as the largest Muslim population in strengthening friendly public space? One of the focuses of this paper is to highlight the key role of Islamic civil society, which refers to Islamic organizations that significantly contribute to developing a peaceful public space in Indonesia.

안중근의 평화사상과 칸트

This article attempts to critically revisit such comparative works which are in vogue in recent years. First, this article argues that extant studies’ comparative focus on Kant’s peace federation with Ahn’s Oriental peace conference elaborate only half of their peace theory. It is reasonable attempt to compare Kant’s emphasis on free nations’ membership of federation with Ahn’s peace conference with a certain degree of authority on the supranational peace conference. Second, extant comparative studies have neglected the other crucial dimension of Kant and Ahn’s peace thought, that is, the centrality of national states’ sovereignty and non-intervention principle. The so-called democratic peace theorists, who claimed their inheritance of Kantian legacy and Ahn’-Kant comparativists shared such intellectual negligence. Contrary to this theoretical distortion, both Kant and Ahn have placed prominent meaning to the principle of sovereignty and non-intervention. They both believed that such principles were not only preconditions but also consequences of peace federation. In this sense, this article reveals key intellectual loopholes and distortion among extant studies on Kantian legacy and Ahn’s peace thought.

Strengthening multilevel governance of public goods through democratic and republican constitutionalism*

Russia’s invasions of Ukraine confirm the historical experience that governance of public goods (PGs) demanded by citizens (such as human rights, democratic peace, and the sustainable development goals (SDGs) as universally confirmed by the United Nations General Assembly) depends on defending principles of democratic constitutionalism (such as citizenship, democratic governance, ‘mixed government’, and courts of justice), republican constitutionalism (such as separation of power, the rule of law, and jus gentium since ancient Rome), and common law constitutionalism (such as parliamentary and judicial protection of fundamental rights and property rights) against abuses of power. The United Nations (UN) and its 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda recommend these constitutional principles also for multilevel governance protecting the SDGs and related PGs. Yet constitutionalism depends on multilevel legislative, administrative and judicial implementing measures transforming the SDGs into concrete duties of governments and corresponding rights and remedies of citizens. The global health, environmental, energy, security, economic and human rights crises reveal the systemic ‘market failures’, ‘governance failures’, and ‘constitutional implementation deficits’ undermining UN and World Trade Organization governance of PGs. Liberal order can only survive as ‘militant constitutional demoi-cracy’ if citizens defend freedom against tyranny at home and abroad, notably in authoritarian States which, notwithstanding their formal constitutions, suppress democratic constitutionalism.

Top Gun: The Orbán Government’s Position on the War in Ukraine

Top Gun: The Orbán Government’s Position on the War in Ukraine