Factors of international stability after the cold war

Abstract

SUMMARYThe aim of this study is simply that; despite the rising of idealist sentiments after the Cold War, the search for international stability has been taking place in accordance with power considerations. As broadly discussed in the third section, early 90s was a time of idealism, and there were expectations of a less power oriented arrangements for the next century. "Winds of change" blew across Europe and everybody thought that the mentality or perception of the people changed. Freedom and Democracy were the most popular two words. However, what happened in the international system was a change in the balance of power. Therefore the founders of the new international system, to keep it stable, needed to take these power balances into consideration. In the second section I explained the Realist thinking, classical and modern, and the principles of Idealism. It is necessary to understand these two way of thinking to make a proper analysis. If we are talking about a set of relation among units, there is a system, and stability goes together with the systemist thinking. These are also defined in this section. At the end of this part the essence of the Cold War stability is mentioned to give a chance to make comparison. Then the developments of the late 80s and early 90s are told. The indicators of the liberal and idealist thinking is explained. International Organizations like United Nations were given priority. But the break up of the former Yugoslavia and the bloody war in Bosnia was the death of idealism and returning to political realism. In the fifth section new security challenges are defined as destabilizing factors to understand the problems of the international stability. They are mainly power oriented problems and have their roots in the collapse of the Soviet Bloc. These are mainly regional conflicts, which were seen as 'ethnic' clashes, the reunion of Europe and preventing Russia's return to Eastern and Central Europe, the spread of Nuclear Weapons and their technology and terrorism. Mass popular movements and other regional problems are related issues. In the last section responses of the major international actors to these destabilizing security questions are explained. Their perception and efforts to build a new stable security system is analyzed sometimes like a student of history to tell the facts and developments, and mostly as a student of international relations. I think the efforts of founding a stable international system lies in the stability in Europe and is centered by NATO. Secondly US military power is playing major role in preventing spread of local conflicts into regional or global conflicts, as the Gulf War, War in Bosnia and Kosovo proved. The prevention of the use of nuclear and biological weapons by authoritarian regimes is another important stabilizing issue. START Agreements and Non Proliferation Treaty alone cannot reduce the risk of a nuclear war. In my opinion it is the deterrence of second strike capability which prevents the use of these mass killing weapons.