States In International Politics Research Articles

Measuring Garrison States in International Politics: Towards a New ‘Garrison Index’

What is the role played by Garrison States – actors in which domestic and external decision-making is subjected mainly to security considerations – in global politics? A wide array of literature has attributed the notion of Garrison states to a myriad of state actors. However, a robust empirical account remains vague and ill-defined. This paper lays the foundations for measuring Garrison states, introducing an index mapping their development over time, focusing on the period between 1990–2020. Based on an empirically informed discussion, the paper explores the case of the most highly Garrison state in this index – Israel.

The Foreign Policy of Small State Kuwait During the Period of Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

Uluslararası politikanın en önemli aktörleri olmaya devam eden devletlerin büyük bir kısmını küçük ülkeler oluşturmaktadır. Uluslararası politikada devletin sınırlı güce sahip olması şeklinde ele alınan küçüklük, devletlerin dış politikasının belirlenmesinde önemli yer tutmaktadır. Küçük nüfus, küçük alan, diplomasi ağırlıklı politika gibi ortak kimi özelliklerle beraber her küçük devlet sahip olduğu maddi ve manevi güç kaynaklarına paralel kendini uluslararası alanda konumlandırdığı pozisyona göre dış politika takip etmektedir. Nüfus, askeri kapasite, yüzölçümü gibi objektif ile ülke liderlerinin ve uluslararası toplumun Kuveyt’i nasıl algıladığı şeklindeki sübjektif ölçümler temel alındığında Kuveyt küçük devlet kabul edilmektedir. Böylece Kuveyt’in dış politikasının en önemli belirleyicilerinden birini küçüklük oluşturmaktadır. Tarihine bakıldığında Kuveyt’in küçük ülke olmanın yarattığı zayıflık dolayısıyla sürekli var olmaya ilişkin güvenlik tehditlerini yakından hissettiği, dahası 1990’da doğrudan bir dış gücün işgaline uğradığı görülmektedir. Bu noktada öncelikli ulusal çıkarı varlığının devamı olan Kuveyt, ülke küçüklüğünün yarattığı hassasiyeti giderecek dış politika stratejileri geliştirmiştir. Dünyanın sayılı petrol ülkelerinden biri olarak sahip olduğu ekonomik güce ve askeri zayıflık, küçük nüfus, hırslı büyük komşular, istikrarsız coğrafi bölgede bulunma şeklindeki güç sınırlandırıcı unsurlara göre uluslararası politikada kendini konumlandıran Kuveyt, petrol gücü üzerinden yumuşak güç yaratma, büyük güce dayanma, komşu büyük güçlerle ilişkilerde denge, sorunlarda tarafsızlık ve arabuluculuk, daha genel olarak diplomasi temelli dış politika stratejileriyle güvenliğini sağlamaya çalışmaktadır. Yakın dönem Kuveyt dış politikasının küçük devlet üzerinden incelendiği çalışmada, küçüklük olgusunun uluslararası politikada devlet davranışlarına etkisini ortaya koymak amaçlanmaktadır. Küçüklüğün uluslararası politikada devletlerin gücünü kimi zaman sınırlandırarak dış politikada önemli bir belirleyici olabileceği, ülkelerin güvenliğini doğrudan etkileyebileceği Kuveyt örneği üzerinden ortaya çıkmaktadır.

Keskin Güç ile Çin’i Anlamak: Ejderha’nın Dişleri Mi?

China is making important initiatives in economic and political issues to become a global power. China's initiatives determine the approaches of other countries, especially those who see China as a threat. In this context, “sharp power” (锐实力) as a new concept of International Relations literature has been used to define China. In this study, the emergence of sharp power concept is discussed; China's sharp power policies are illustrated with various examples; and criticisms directed to the concept are mentioned. Also, many problems related to the concept have been shown, and a holistic approach to the concept has been put forward in the study. In this study, based on the literature, it has been shown that there is a “concept war” between the global powers and that China is left behind in this framework. In International Relations studies, the aims of states in international politics or cooperation or conflict situations with other countries are analyzed with smart power, soft power and many other concepts. With this study, it is aimed to contribute to both the International Relations discipline and the Chinese foreign policy literature with sharp power, which is a new concept in the discipline of International Relations.

Çin’in Güncel Enerji Görünümü

The study analyzes China's current energy outlook. Today, energy is one of the most important parameters that determines the position of states in international politics, but also one of the important tools in the creation of domestic and foreign policies. China's emergence as a rising military, political and economic power in recent years has been one of the most important variables in the reform of international energy geopolitics. In particular, China's growing industry, growing population and increasing human capacity have made the country's energy consumption inevitable. For energy security, China focuses on the availability of energy resources, the acceptability of resources for human health and the environment, the continuous flow of energy resources and their affordability. Therefore, new roads, new resources and new countries have entered the purge. Therefore, in the study presented, it was first analyzed how China is doing according to its energy sources and based on this, china's position in international energy geopolitics was tried to be conveyed. Keywords: Petrol, Natural gas, Coal, Renewable Energy, Energy Dependency, China.

Military History and Strategic Studies as Imperatives for National Security Development in Nigeria

Nigerian military history is an aspect of Nigerian history that reconstructs the philosophies, beliefs, life and times of military personnel in relation to time and place. On the other hand, strategic studies involve a study of the security policies and political conduct of states in their interaction within the international system. Since it is the military institution that implements these security policies, itself central to the objectives of states in international politics, it is logical to view military history and strategic studies as pivotal to the securitydevelopment of the Nigerian nation as it is for every other nation. Given this understanding, this study attempts to situate Nigerian military history and strategic studies as imperatives for national security development in Nigeria. To achieve its goal, the paper employs mostly secondary and but a few primary sources subjected to content historical analysis from which it was deduced that military history and strategic studies are important for the advancement of security development in Nigeria.
 Keywords: Military, Strategic Studies, History, Security

History and the International Order in Hegel’s Philosophy of Right

For a long time, the sections of the Philosophy of Right dedicated to the relations among states have been neglected by contemporary International Relations theories. However, especially since the end of the Cold War, this discipline has finally reconsidered Hegel’s theory, in particular by stressing two aspects: the thesis of an ”end of history” implied in it; and, more generally, the primacy of the state in international politics. This paper suggests a different interpretation. It argues that, in order to really understand Hegel’s theory of international relations, it is necessary to consider how it is related to the momentous changes that occurred in the wake of the French Revolution and to previous philosophical developments in the Age of Enlightenment. Indeed, the convergence of these two aspects in his own philosophy of history should suggest that, according to Hegel, by the early nineteenth century international politics had finally entered a new era in which states would still interact as the foremost actors, but would be bound nonetheless by an unprecedented awareness of their historical character.

How Globalization has Changed Diplomacy

Globalization, which refers to the changes in time and space is perhaps one of the most significant events in this century. It has brought with it, unique changes in communication, trade, mobility, international security, and migration. Some have argued that its impact has further weakened the place and role of the state in international politics, given many actors who have emerged in this process. This paper seeks to examine how the changes in time and space are affecting diplomatic relations among states. While it is true that several actors are today playing some roles previously reserved for the state, the field of diplomacy seems to have been protected from non-state actors as government representatives still dominate diplomatic channels. By looking at events such as the Gulf Cooperation Council’s role in the Yemen Political crisis and Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) role in Gambia’s political turmoil, a new form of regionalized diplomacy is seen. The case of the Syrian crisis also has realized a shift from bilateral to multilateral diplomacy. The writer argues that the changes in space have had little effect on diplomacy but rather the changes in time, largely associated with the rapid flow of information have transformed how diplomacy is practiced today. The paper adopts a qualitative research approach and relies on data from secondary sources like textbooks, among others.

The Securitization of Refugee Movements in Contemporary Politics


 
 
 Securitization implies moving a situation up the security agenda of a state, so as to perceive it as a potential existential threat to national security. This article attempts to analyze the post-cold war refugee situations in context of the securitization concerns they raised for states hosting them. Here both the traditional and non-traditional contours of security are highlighted, including incidents of direct armed conflict between sending and receiving dyad, external intervention, infiltration or facilitation of trans-national movements across international borders and compromise of territorial integrity in the wake of these movements. The current narrative of persecution and accusation around refugee movements has led to unnecessary bias, directed towards those fleeing conflict zones. There is a need for a delicate balance between concerns of state and human security in the wake of these movements. This can help to understand why these seemingly humanitarian disasters have lately been identified as a securitization concern for host states in international politics. The analysis also uses social constructivism to establish the host state‟s challenges; which may account for as an incremental threat to the integrity of host state‟s ethnic, demographic and social constructs. The primary question that the paper seeks to address is to why and how these movements were able to raise security concerns, though they are usually associated with destitution and marginalization, yet lately have been associated with diffusing negative externalities of violent conflict zones across international borders.
 
 

Fear Without Rationality: Emotions in Lithuanian Foreign Policy

Abstract The paper reflects on the conception of the phenomenon of fear employed in the international relations theory. A critique of understanding of fear as a rational incentive of conventional international relations theories paves the way for the notion of fear as an emotion. It is argued that the behaviour of states in international politics should be explained via their psychological and emotional aspects. The paper proposes to connect the arising of and experiencing fear with collective memory and the imagery entrenched in nations’ subconscious. It also proposes to distinguish the two levels of arising of and experiencing the emotion of fear, namely the attempt to consciously arouse fear and its nonconscious experience. On the first level, mnemonic-emotive agents consciously activate collective emotions via the nation’s collective memory. On the second, once the contents/imagery of the society’s subconscious are activated, the aroused emotions are nonconsciously experienced by the society. The paper offers a case study from the Lithuanian foreign policy: its relations with Russia. Discourse analysis of Lithuania-Russia relations, where President Dalia Grybauskaitė plays an active and important role in discourse formation, suggests that the formation of Lithuanian foreign policy, with regard to Russia, is affected by the emotion of fear.

China, An Upstream Hegemon: A Destabilizer for the Governance of the Mekong River?

AbstractTransboundary rivers have remained one of the sources of contention and cooperation among states in international politics. The Mekong is one such river along which China and five Southeast Asian countries have organized their political, economic, and social lives. Studies examining the water politics of this river have argued that the lack of a comprehensive institution to govern this regional common pool resource and the growing power asymmetry between China, an upstream riparian state, and its Southeast Asian neighbors dampen the prospect for an effective governance of the river. Particularly, the economic rise of China and its concomitant increase in demand for energy and water resources has raised concerns about the negative impacts that this would have on the downstream countries. Examination of recent developments regarding the Mekong River suggests, however, that China has adopted a more collaborative approach by engaging in joint development projects and exchanging information and technology via existing sub‐regional and regional multilateral bodies since the early 2000s. The study concludes that this growing evidence of cooperation should be taken into consideration for a more comprehensive understanding of China's policy towards the Mekong River.

De Facto States in International Politics (1945–2011): A New Data Set

Sovereign states remain the primary units of analysis in conflict research. Yet, the empirical record suggests that the international system includes a wider range of actors whose behavior is relevant for conflict outcomes. This article introduces De Facto States in International Politics (1945–2011), a new data set dedicated to understanding the behavior of de facto states—separatist statelike entities such as Abkhazia. I begin by explaining why de facto states deserve attention. Further, I provide a definition of the de facto state that separates it from cognate phenomena. Thereafter, I offer an overview of the data set and illustrate its utility by demonstrating how it contributes to the literatures on war and state making, civil war, and rebel governance.

Analyzing the Foreign Policy of Microstates

The position of small states in international relations is traditionally described in terms of vulnerability and dependence. This dominant perspective is largely incomplete and inaccurate, because it disregards the element of exchange that characterizes the international linkages between many small and large states. In this article, I aim to outline and motivate an alternative model on the basis of which such relationships can be understood, which has been referred to as the international patron–client framework. After providing an overview of the contemporary academic literature on the role of small states in international politics, two sections follow in which I motivate the applicability of the patron–client framework to the field of international relations, and in which I explain the motives of both patron and client states. Subsequently, the accuracy and usefulness of the framework is examined on the basis of interview data gathered during field research in the three small client states of St. Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles, and Palau. The findings of this analysis indicate that the patron–client linkage offers a more fruitful model to study the relations between small and large states than the existing literature does, because it recognizes the element of exchange that such relationships entail.

The Confessional State in International Politics: Tudor England, Religion, and the Eclipse of Dynasticism

Whilst religion and collective identity have become issues of central concern to international relations scholars, dynastic concerns and national interests still dominate their analyses of early modern international politics. This analysis contributes to the constructivist emphasis on collective identity to foreign policy by examining Tudor England in light of the concept of confessionalisation. Based on the recent historiography of Tudor England, this analysis demonstrates the importance of religion in defining not only the collective identity of international actors, but also their foreign policies, choice of alliances, and, more generally, their international outlook. Through such a lens, it seeks to draw analyses of the confessional state away from their focus on domestic state formation to the “external” dimension of confessionalisation and its importance for international politics.

Going for the Gold versus Distributing the Green: Foreign Policy Substitutability and Complementarity in Status Enhancement Strategies

Status and the relative ranking of states in international politics seem to be salient concerns for most foreign policymakers.2 Yet, the literature on how status rankings are attributed to states remains as scarce as research on the strategies utilized by states to maintain or enhance the status they are attributed. While there is more research conducted on both status attribution and status competition regarding major powers and rising powers,3 little systematic attention has focused on the larger population of states in international politics.4 One of the latest contributions to this literature is an analysis of successful competition in the summer Olympics as a state status-seeking strategy (Rhamey and Early 2013). The authors find that winning Olympic medals and hosting the Olympics have significant impacts on states' status rankings. We do not question these results and, in fact, applaud the effort to map out one strategy of status enhancement. However, we raise a cautionary note about the complex foreign policy choices faced by states as they may pursue additional status. Within the toolbox of policymakers, there are a variety of policies with which to pursue the same objective in international politics, be it status enhancement or other goals. Typically, this interchangeability of strategies has been referred to in the literature as foreign policy substitutability (Most and Starr 1984; Morgan and Palmer 2000; Palmer and Bhandari 2000). If in fact there are numerous policy options available for seeking enhanced status, then these policies should be examined—and evaluated—using a comparative policy perspective in order to determine whether or not they are substitutable and possibly complementary policies.

Reinventing ‘new’ Europe: Baltic perspectives on transatlantic security reconfigurations

This article examines the self-positioning of the three Baltic states in international politics in relation to the major structural pressures challenging the status quo of the transatlantic security configuration. The constitutive role of the Russia-Georgia war of 2008, the global economic recession, the debt crisis in the eurozone, and the shifting policy preferences and force projection of the United States towards Asia are explored as the key sources of the emerging Baltic security predicament. The empirical conclusions of the poststructuralist discourse analysis conducted for this study demonstrate how the Baltic states, in particular Estonia, have recently come to redefine the contents of ‘new’ Europe, thereby shifting the extant fault lines within the European Union.

Failing and Rising States in International Politics

The year 2011 will be remembered as one of unprecedented change and difficult economic circumstances. On the one hand, the ‘Arab Spring’ has become an Arab autumn and is on its way to becoming an Arab winter, with new uprisings continuing to expand to other countries, old autocratic leaders being overthrown and the first democratic elections taking place in best-in-class countries such as Tunisia and Egypt. On the other hand, Europe is taking bold decisions, making political compromises and applying painful but nonetheless necessary measures to address the economic and financial crisis. In the midst of these challenging times, it is crucial to keep an eye on the evolution of geopolitics, which is currently characterised by the emergence of new regional powers and by the inability of other states to self-govern. International relations must now be understood in the context of globalisation, interdependence and multipolarity. Nation states are no longer selfsufficient, making regional integration necessary in order to tackle common challenges. In this sense, some countries are emerging (or at least have the potential to do so) as new regional powers. Turkey is sometimes regarded as an inspirational case for some, especially post–Arab Spring countries in a new Middle East and North Africa region, and as an example of how to combine tradition with global modernity. In the meantime, the BRIC(S) countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China, with the possible addition of South Africa) are presenting themselves as alternative leading forces given their demographic, territorial and trade potential. Indonesia, too, has emerged as a rising leader in South-East Asia. In contrast, there are, unfortunately, states that are finding it difficult to perform as prosperous and well-functioning democracies. A state is traditionally defined by three characteristics: territory, population and the presence of

Power, leadership, and hegemony in international politics: the case of East Asia

AbstractThe article inquires into the conditions of effective leadership of states in international politics, and develops a framework for the study of so-called (new) regional powers such as Brazil, China, India, and South Africa in processes of regional institution-building. Various theoretical strands will be discussed as to the requirements of effective leadership in international affairs. Most importantly, the relationship between power, leadership and hegemony will be outlined. It is argued that the connection between leadership and hegemony is one of co-constitution. Leadership is necessarily based on hegemony, while hegemony can only be sustained through leadership. Furthermore, it will be shown that both leadership and hegemony are essentially political in character, whereas power has no such insinuation but has to be translated into leadership and hegemony through discursive means. Finally, the analysis asks for the preconditions of leadership in East Asia, using China's and Japan's roles in East Asian regionalism as an illustration.

The Strategic Advantages of American Power

Strategic Advantage: Challengers, Competitors, and Threats to America's Future. By Bruce Berkowitz. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2008. 304 pp., $26.95 (ISBN-13: 978-1589012226). At the start of a new presidency, many students of international politics consider again the role of the United States in international politics and the possibility of changing that role. Indeed, this is one of the central questions that define this period of international politics. The essence of the debate is captured by two issues. First, can the United States continue to be the dominant state in international politics; and, second, should it continue to be so. Bruce Berkowitz addresses these questions in this impressive study. He makes a significant contribution to the growing foreign and defense policy literatures that address the causes of American hegemony and the myriad of topics associated with its continuation or demise (Kupchan 2003; Bacevich 2005; Layne and Thayer 2007; Murphy 2007). Berkowitz may be categorized as a thoughtful and cautious proponent of American preponderance and as an insightful student of the mechanics of its propagation. Berkowitz's central arguments are that the United States must labor hard to maintain its dominant position in a dynamic and protean international environment where there are considerable risks …

The Baltic States As ‘Small States’: Negotiating The ‘East’ By Engaging The ‘West’

Whether by population, territory or economic impact, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are small states. In 1940 and 1944, smallness meant forced incorporation into the Soviet Union. From 1991, the Baltic states sat between two geopolitical spaces: one Russian and one European. After years of occupation, the Baltic states were keen to overcome their size and the dangers that are inherent in being small. Thus, in 2004 Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania returned to Europe and the ‘West’, a position they had held prior to the Second World War. Membership in the EU and NATO provides both opportunities and constraints, yet organizational membership also allows the Baltic states to pursue geopolitical gamesmanship in the post-Soviet area vis-à-vis the Russian Federation. Relying on Baldur Thorhallson's concepts of action capacity and vulnerability, we illustrate how the Baltic states have gone beyond what has been expected of small states in international politics by engaging the ‘West’ to negotiate with the ‘East’.

The Liberal Capitalist West as the New ‘Global State’*

Over the last few decades, especially since the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the collapse of communism, the world is transiting from ‘international’ politics to ‘global’ politics. The transformation comes in the wake of the very old inclusive and constitutive process of expansion of the West, westernization of the international society and that of the globe. This is a compelling phenomenon and has been mainly built on the political, legal and economic ideas (and also the culture) of the liberal capitalist West. The governing structures, organizational patterns and institutional practices of most countries in the world are also inspired by the West. This is the foundation of the nature, extent and form of power the liberal capitalist West led by the US exercises over the rest of the world. This kind of power is increasingly becoming similar in many respects to what the State exercises in the international system. Hence, the liberal capitalist West could be seen as the virtual Global State. Such a conceptualization of the extant global reality has significant implications for the traditional theories of State in international politics.