IR Scholars Research Articles

Existentialism and International Relations: In it up to our necks

AbstractWhat, this essay asks, is the relation between contemporary IR scholarship and the existentialist intellectual and cultural tradition? How is our discipline informed and animated by existentialist thinking? Is existentialism a heritage to be recovered, claimed, and embraced by IR scholars, or a shadow to be escaped? And what resources does it furnish us for thinking through the kind of issues that IR scholars are called upon to grapple with today? These questions are not purely theoretical. There are practical and political reasons, not only for considering them, but for considering them now. Living through what has been termed an unfolding ‘Age of Anxiety’, we find ourselves confronted by existential questions and existentialist ideas at almost every turn. It is, however, unclear how substantive or meaningful this apparently existentialist moment truly is. Does existentialism have something to say to contemporary IR, or does it flatter to deceive? We think the time is ripe to take stock of existentialism as it relates to IR and global politics. This is the purpose of this article and of the collection of essays it introduces.

Theory importation and the death of homegrown disciplinary potential: an autopsy of Turkish IR

A primary premise of the Global IR initiative is its emphasis on world history as a basis for global IR theorising. While non-Western contributions are thus critical, periphery IR disciplinary communities operate under the dominance and homogenising effect of core IR theories based on Western history and intellectual traditions. An import-­dependent culture takes over periphery disciplinary communities, neutralising their potential for original IR production and theory creation. This study explores these assumptions by focusing on the case of Turkish IR; providing an evaluation of its evolution and current status, and suggesting lessons it might have for other periphery communities and the future of Global IR overall. It offers a longitudinal qualitative investigation of Turkish IR scholars’ perceptions of their community’s evolution. They suggest that Turkish IR has become a dependent ­consumer of core IR theory and devalued its history base, leaving it bifurcated between a minority ‘core-of-the-periphery’ who operate as ‘compradors’, copying and marketing global core knowledge, and a majority ‘periphery-of-the-periphery’, who remain voiceless, disconnected and resentful. Ultimately, the local community is unable to offer original contributions to the globalisation of IR, and the global IR movement is structurally diminished through the exclusion of large portions of the scholarly community.

Democratic Practices in MERCOSUR and the OAS: What Space for Transnational Civil Society?

ABSTRACT Democratic theory asserts that the legitimacy of contemporary international and regional organisations rests on a degree of consensus expressed by various actors. The quest for diffuse support now extends beyond member states and explains the opening up of IOs/ROs to transnational civil society’s participation. Despite both notions being familiar to IR scholars, a more precise understanding is needed concerning the relationship between each concept, particularly with regard to the inclusion/exclusion nexus and in the still neglected study of organisations in the global South. Using a practice perspective, the paper offers a contribution to that understanding by proposing a micro-level analysis of the behavioural practices of both ROs and TCS using MERCOSUR and the OAS as case studies. A nalysis of the opening up of these organisations, and the concurrent engagement of civil society reveals how inclusion is still both incomplete and unequal. Political liberalisation of ROs thus remains an unfulfilled mandate.

Regulatory pluralism and the resolution of collective labour disputes in Southeast Asia

This paper proposes a new framework for the analysis of collective labour dispute resolution. It begins by explaining why dominant conceptual frameworks in IR and labour law scholarship are insufficient on their own to capture the plurality of regulatory sources that bear upon collective labour dispute resolution. The authors then draw on theoretical insights from regulatory studies on the presence and interaction of multiple regulatory orders, and socio-legal scholarship on dispute resolution, to propose a framework that enables the investigation of both the formal and informal aspects of labour dispute resolution and their interplay. This framework disaggregates data collection and analysis into five components: (i) actors; (ii) nature of dispute; (iii) arenas and processes; (iv) interactions; and (v) outcomes. The framework is particularly tailored to, and based on evidence from, Southeast Asia, but may also have wider application beyond this region.

Elusive decolonisation of IR in the Arab world

AbstractArab social science scholarship, and IR in particular, has been systematically underfunded and sidelined by governments across the region. As such, IR scholars in the Arab world have struggled to produce scholarship in hostile and authoritarian environments, let alone address efforts to decolonise. Of the few initiatives of indigenising social science that exist in the Arab world, the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (DI) and its founding institution, the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS), are the main examples. In this intervention, I will review the attempts to indigenise and decolonise IR within these institutions. I focus on how the DI is implementing three main approaches: increasing access to the discipline, rethinking how we teach IR, and facilitating theory production from the region. I demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of the three abovementioned approaches by drawing attention to performative measures on the part of regional scholars, and pretending localism on the part of scholars in the Global North, which together help to perpetuate neomarginalisation. The shortcomings discussed permeate and distort attempts to decolonise the discipline within the Arab world.

Trans-atlantic (mis)trust in perspective: asymmetry, abandonment and alliance cohesion

This article clarifies the role of trust in alliances with a focus on NATO. We bridge IR scholarship on trust and alliance theory by dealing with trust as a central factor in maintaining alliance cohesion and longevity. NATO has, throughout its history, been characterised by an asymmetric trusting relationship, with Europe being more vulnerable to defection than its American counterpart. This means that a fear of abandonment, intrinsic to the structure of reciprocal commitment in all alliances, has been felt differently on the opposite sides of the Atlantic, with implications for how specific crises have led to a fluctuation in (mis)trust. Whereas the Europeans have harboured mistrust regarding the longevity of the US commitment and extended deterrence, the Americans have doubted the Europeans’ faithfulness to US leadership and willingness to share the alliance’s burdens. Simultaneously, general trust – cultivated by shared interests, institutions, interdependence and converging identities – has bound the allies together. The article then uses these insights to analyse the Trump presidency, which marked an historic spike in mistrust between the US and the Europeans. Despite the unforeseen tumult, the presidency did not result in the definitive collapse of trust in the trans-Atlantic relationship, let alone NATO.

The Cult of the Relevant: International Relations Scholars and Policy Engagement Beyond the Ivory Tower

Over the past fifteen years, a narrative has developed that IR scholars have become a “cult of the irrelevant,” with declining influence on and engagement with policy debates. Despite these assertions, the evidence for limited policy engagement has been anecdotal. We investigate the extent of policy engagement—the ways in which IR scholars participate in policy-making processes and/or attempt to shape those processes—by surveying IR scholars directly about their engagement activities. We find policy engagement is pervasive among IR scholars. We draw on theories of credit-claiming to motivate expectations about how and when scholars are likely to engage with practitioners. Consistent with our expectations, much of this engagement comes in forms that involve small time commitments and provide opportunities for credit-claiming, such as media appearances and short-form, bylined op-eds and blog posts. However, sizable minorities report engaging in consulting activities not for attribution/publication and writing policy briefs, and a majority of respondents indicate they engaged in these activities several times a year or more. We find only small differences in engagement across gender and rank. Our results demonstrate that, for IR scholars, some form of policy engagement is the norm.

Historical Claims to the International: The Case of the Suez Canal Experts

AbstractWhat IR scholars refer to as “the international” gets constructed and performed to specific ends, depending on time and place. This results in a plurality of claims to the international, subject to historical variation. To bring such variation into view, this article shows how nineteenth-century claims to internationality were tied to particular conceptions of legitimacy. The article explores this legitimation-by-experts through a case study of the 1855–56 Suez Canal Commission. Based on original archival research, the article shows that expert advice played an important role in claiming the internationality of the Suez Canal by limiting contestation to technical aspects. The central argument is that expertise and claims to the international can get co-constituted in arrangements that are intended to produce legitimacy. These arrangements narrow the terms of contestation in self-serving ways. A technocratic claim to the international was tightly linked to the mobilization and making of the Suez Canal experts, on two fronts. One, expertise and internationality were repeatedly articulated in conjunction, so they would signify each other. Two, the article shows that expert involvement was driven by legitimation concerns more than by epistemic optimization purposes. In sum, the article proposes a new way of historicizing internationality claims and sheds light on the distinctiveness of international expertise.

Abstractions in International Relations: on the mystification of trans, queer, and subaltern life in critical knowledge production

This paper identifies a common process of mystification within academic knowledge production today: the treatment of subordinated groups as mere metaphors or rhetorical figures for academic theorizing. We witness it when academics ask what trans might teach us about transnationality, when we are invited to reflect on what might be queer about modern warfare, or when nation-states are described as subaltern. Trans, queer, and subaltern populations are routinely fetishized within scholarship on the “traditional” International Relations concerns of statecraft, migration, security, and so on. This tendency serves a mystifying function by disabling scholars from examining the social relations that shape and organize their lives and histories. This paper proceeds in three parts. First, to understand the origins and logics of this self-mystifying process, this paper returns, via Stuart Hall, to Karl Marx’s methodological writings on abstraction. It contributes to the formalization of his methodology for contemporary IR scholarship by drawing a distinction between the fetishization of abstraction and the concretization of abstraction. Second, the paper explores how abstracted subject positions have been fetishized within three fields of international studies: trans studies, queer theory, and subaltern studies. Third, after elaborating a critique of this mystifying move, the paper outlines alternative approaches that instead seek to concretize the abstractions queer, trans, and subaltern by attending to their specific historical and social determinations. These strategies of demystification, we argue, carry forward a founding commitment of critical theory that is all too often abandoned within scholarly knowledge production today.

Small States in Conflict Management: A Case Study of Qatar

Since the Second World War and the emergence of great powers, little consideration has been given to the role of smaller countries in conflict management. As opposed to what academics and IR scholars refer to as major or great powers, which receive a lot of attention from researchers. The majority of IR scholars focus on the great powers, their position in the international system, and their methods for resolving disputes. Because it is difficult to define small states and because different scholars have different definitions of what small states are, it is possible that they did not pay attention to them. Smaller countries, however, might also make a significant contribution to resolving disputes. Small countries have successfully resolved many conflicts despite their small size and limited resources, and they have developed to the point where they can now compete with those that are larger and more capable than they are. The aim of this article is to investigate how small countries handle disputes and their role in conflict management. In doing so, this paper focuses on how Qatar contributes to conflict management and explores the mechanism it takes to resolve disputes. And yields three key outcomes: First, despite having a small population and limited territory, small states can successfully settle many conflicts. Second, in many international arenas, small states can compete with large countries and superpowers. Finally, despite Qatar's active role in conflict resolution, there is a limitation to it: it focuses solely on mediation and doesn't employ any other conflict management techniques.

Lessons Learned from the Development of Turkish IR: A View from Greece

The essay addresses an outsider's perception of the characteristics and dynamics of the IR field/discipline in Turkey. How may this country serve as a role model or, at the very least, as a source of inspiration, reflection, or evaluation of the field's development in other local/national settings? In this respect, Greece is chosen as a case study. Βy addressing and assessing Turkish self-reflection and the search for disciplinary identity within Turkish IR scholarship, what can be learned, on behalf of Greek IR scholarship, regarding both Greece's and Turkey's social scientific development regarding foreign affairs/policy? A major theme discovered is the acknowledgement of the limitations of the dependency/ vulnerability-centered explanations for the development of IR.

States and new markets: the novelty problem in the IPE of finance

Finance has changed, and the study of finance needs to change with it. Previously marginal actors—hedge funds, index providers, tech firms, etc.—have become lynchpins in the global financial system. Likewise, the traditional subjects of international political economy (IPE)—states, international organizations, banks, central banks, etc.—are engaging in once-peripheral spheres. Yet, these novel trends have been largely ignored in mainstream political science and international relations venues for IPE scholarship. We demonstrate this through a discussion of two trends—the rise of shadow banking and central bank involvement in climate change—and an analysis of publications in top international relations and political science journals. While previous commentaries identify a methodological and epistemological divide in IPE, our results suggest an empirical one. We then construct a practical framework to remedy this problem by returning to the work of Susan Strange. Strange’s approach embodied a radical ontology, a focus on structures and their interaction, and an analytical eclecticism that provided keen insights into the politics of finance. We argue that these principles, often embraced in Review of International Political Economy, should be applied more broadly by IR scholars to better contribute to debates on emerging political economic issues.

Rethinking International Order in Early Modern Europe: Evidence from Courtly Ceremonial

AbstractOnce the object of consensus, every aspect of the traditional account of early modern Europe as an anarchic system of sovereign states is now debated—from the existence of sovereign states to the notion of anarchy, and even the European limits of that system. In the context of these disagreements, I develop a new account of international order in early modern Europe grounded in the perceptions of historical actors. I first argue that this can be achieved by studying the tools that practitioners relied on to describe and organize political authority in the world. I subsequently delve into a common, though seldom-studied, tool developed by a group of practitioners known as masters of ceremonies: courtly ceremonial (or ius praecedentiae). I make three substantive claims. First, the political authorities identified in manuals on courtly ceremonial were primarily crowns and republics, but in the later eighteenth century, all eventually came to be described as “states.” Second, all political authorities stood in a hierarchy determined by a specific set of criteria I identify, but new criteria—power and sovereignty—emerged over the course of the eighteenth century. Third, the scope of international order was not self-evident, and it certainly did not have clear “European” limits in the eyes of masters of ceremonies; non-European political authorities could easily be integrated into their orders of precedence. Ultimately, I suggest that IR scholars should reconsider why they study early modern Europe and how they study international orders.

Turkey and African agency: the role of Islam and commercialism in Turkey's Africa policy

AbstractThe concept of ‘agency’ and its role in capturing the dynamics between Africa and external actors feature increasingly in the African IR scholarship. Over the past decade, Turkey has become an increasingly prominent actor in Africa, strengthening political, cultural and economic ties with African states and providing humanitarian aid and development assistance. In this paper, we examine Turkey's relationship with Africa from the point of view of African agency and ask ‘How much and what kind of agency can we identify by examining the way in which Turkey approaches African states?’ The conventional understanding of the concept of African agency defines it in materialist terms and emphasises its transactional nature; it does not adequately explain incidents of enhanced outcomes for Africans in their relationship with Turkey. We argue that an under-examined aspect and a vital source of African agency lies within the discourses of Turkish policy which provide an enabling source of policy space for negotiation for Africans. We demonstrate that the notion of Muslim kinship in Turkish discourses not only distinguishes Turkey from most of the other external powers engaging with the continent but also enables African interlocutors to negotiate enhanced outcomes.

An initial framework for the study of internalized racism and health: Internalized racism as a racism‐induced identity threat response

AbstractInternalized racism (IR) is sometimes conceptualized as a form of racism, a psychological response to experiencing racism, and/or an external sociocultural process. However, while a growing body of work shows that IR is associated with adverse health among racial minorities, this work is limited in explaining this association. I present an integrated framework using the Stigma‐induced Identity Threat Model and the Minority Stress Theory Model to help better understand the mechanisms through which IR gets both “under the skin” and “into the mind” to impact health. With this integrated framework, I suggest IR is both a source of race‐ and racism‐related stress and a consequence of experiencing racism that increases risk of adverse health directly, and indirectly via psychological, biophysiological, and behavioral stress responses. Primarily, I argue IR is a racism‐induced identity threat response that triggers stress‐related psychological (e.g., hopelessness) and biophysiological (e.g., autonomic nervous system activation) responses, and increases engagement in maladaptive coping behaviors (e.g., drug use). These stress responses then operate as mechanisms through which IR is associated with adverse health. I discuss limitations of this initial framework and IR scholarship, along with directions for future research.

NATIONAL INTEREST: PERSPECTIVES AND PRACTICES

“The objectives of foreign policy must be defined in terms of the national interest and must be supported with adequate power.”– Hans J. Morgenthau
 Even though, national interest is one of the most developed concepts of IR scholarship, yet it remains under the debate in academic and policy circles. Various scholars and institutions contextualize and categorize national interests varyingly. There are five main issues under deliberation: first, the interplay of power and morality in formulation and pursuit of national interests; second, longevity, durability and permanency of national interests; third, the interaction between national and public interests, and the process of interest adjudication, which is the function of the political system; fourth, Islamic perspective on national interest; and fifth, the future of national interest in the wake of growing power of the non-state actors, which have started challenging the notion of national interest. This paper revisits the concept and context of national interest with strategic arguments on different debates on national interest. Important attributes of the power potential affecting national interests are considered and conceptualized by the author. The research is descriptive, explanatory, analytical and perspective in nature.

“Getting Smarter” with Joseph Nye

“Smart Power” is a concept developed by an American political scientist and IR scholar Joseph S. Nye Jr. Over decades international relations was dominated by the notion of hard power, concentrating mainly on military strength and economic growth. However, with the increasing number of concerning issues presented in the 21th century, hard power alone has no chance in solving problems such as climate change and global pandemics.This is where Nye introduces his notion of “Smart Power,”- which he explains as “an ability to combine soft and hard power into a successful strategy where they reinforce rather undercut each other” (2021, p.10). This paper aims to answer the question how Joseph Nye’s notion of smart power successfully explains circumstances between powers since the end of the cold war till today. His Work on “Smart Power” proves the thesis, that among the recent IR scholars and theorists, Joseph Nye is one of the best at explaining the current circumstances between powers. This paper embarks on a content analysis of peer reviewed articles, books, statements, speeches and interviews that support the findings.Keywords: Foreign Policy, Power Relations, Smart Power

Problematising war: Towards a reconstructive critique of war as a problem of deviance

AbstractThis article redirects extant critiques of the modern problem of war at this problem's underlying logic of deviance. According to this logic, war constitutes a kind of international conduct that contravenes behavioural norms and that can be corrected through diagnostic and didactic means. Thereby, war is rendered into a problem falling within the scope of human agency. However, this agency rests on and reproduces this logic's constitutive blind spots. Therefore, it seems imperative to develop ways of problematising war otherwise. The article provides two starting points for (critical) IR scholarship seeking to undertake such a project. Firstly, it combines two Foucaultian tools, the concept of problematisation and the method of genealogy, to direct critique at the logics underlying our evaluative – analytical, ethical, and political – judgements. Secondly, it uses these tools to trace the contingent emergence of the logic of deviance in a crucial example within the wider genealogy of the problem of war: the Carnegie Endowment's commission of inquiry into the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913. Based on original archival research, I highlight different elements of this inquiry's problematisation of war – its frames, assumptions, ways of knowing, and subjects of knowledge – to make them available for reconstruction.

Lost in the Past: Emotions, History and International Relations

Lost in the Past: Emotions, History and International Relations

Review of Religion in International Relations Theory

While religion’s presence in society is not disputed, its significance in international relations (ir) and the severity of its challenge to the largely ‘secular’ international relations discipline (IR) is still debatable. Also noteworthy is the way IR (theoretical) literature has defined and considered religion: caged in certain dimensions and constrained to specific roles. While Huntington started the debate on civilizational conflicts, several studies in the past few decades have contested the validity of not only ‘warring’ civilizations thesis but also how to incorporate religion in IR. There are fewer studies that discuss in-depth, various theoretical challenges that different groups of scholars have tried to tackle in IR, and the main gaps in those studies. This paper seeks to fill that gap by proposing a different review of the existing IR literature, i.e., in light of key trends in the IR’s quest to incorporate religion into existing theories or newer frameworks. In that context, the paper argues that key works in the field can be classified according to where they place religion in (existing) IR. Three important developments in the IR scholarship as thus proposed: i) studies incorporating Religion in traditional IR theory, ii) Religious IR theories/approaches and frameworks of analysis, and iii) finding secular in the post-secularizing IR. The paper examines the above trends in detail and critically analyzes each development, followed by a brief discussion on the methodological avenues for studying different religions under the same framework.