Suchergebnisse

In the spring 2004 issue of WeltTrends, Gunther Hellmann sparked a debate on Germany's foreign policy. He argued that Germany's international behavior is dominated by a "realpolitik" policy, generally referred to as "normalization." For Hellmann, this transformation indicates one of the "deepest crisis of Germany's foreign policy" ever. The first three parts were published in the summer, fall & winter editions (no. 43, 44 & 45) of WeltTrends, which featured contributions of German International Relations scholars as well as experts from abroad. In this issue, foreign policy makers & a Polish expert join the debate. Adapted from the source document.

This essay addresses the question of whether the war on terrorism has changed understanding of the balance of power as the best tool of realist theory for analysis of international relations by displacing traditional forms of balancing with an era of asymmetric warfare. After examining the key realist concepts of hegemony & balancing & then discussing whether terrorist violence is an asymmetric form of balancing, the implications for balance of power theories of the war on terror & the US hegemonic grand strategy are explored. While acknowledging current US hegemony, it is argued that the US' economic strength & military power may lure it into a situation of "imperial overstretch" & a consequent decline in its relative power, thus allowing other great powers to engage in counter-hegemonic balancing. J. Stanton

For most of the Mandela presidency, South Africa's foreign policy was characterised by controversy, criticism, confusion and even paralysis. A spirited debate emerged in both the government and the academic and policy communities as to the appropriate approach to and the doctrinal bases (if any) of South Africa's foreign policy. Two ideologically-opposed camps, the idealist solidarists and the neo-realist free-marketeers, emerged and converged in this debate and vied to shepherd South Africa's foreign policy discourse and praxis. The emergence of this debate moreover underscored the inherent difficulties of reconciling idealism and development within the existing framework of the globalising neo-liberal world order. This article examines the core ideas, rhetoric and intellectual capital of each camp. It also highlights a number of tensions and dilemmas in South Africa's new foreign policy as revealed by the debate. In doing so, important insights are drawn as to who in South Africa spoke truth to power in the formulation and conduct of Mandela's foreign policy. (Politeia/DÜI)

Responds to articles by Theo Farrell & Jennifer Sterling-Folker (both, 2002) on the utility of the constructivist vs more traditional approaches in international relations studies. Contributions of the constructivist approach are reviewed, highlighting the new theoretical insights it can provide. Farrell's outline for a "progressive research program" is praised, though his attempt to make constructivism compatible with rationalist approaches neglects the challenges that constructivism can pose to traditional international relations scholarship. Sterling-Folker identifies weaknesses in the realist paradigm & outlines some improvements offered by constructivism, emphasizing the interaction of the biological, cognitive, & social; some unnecessarily reductionist aspects of her argument are illuminated. Directions for the development of a constructivist program in international relations studies are outlined. K. Hyatt Stewart

Although the discussion of race is ubiquitous in the US, particularly in academic circles, there are certain biologists & behavioral scientists who argue, unconvincingly, that race is a mere mental construct & has no objective meaning. The claims of some of these scientists are reviewed, specifically the physical anthropology of Ashley Montagu ([1962] 1982), Morton Fried (1978) & Frank Livingstone (1964) & the population genetics of Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza (1995) & Bryan Sykes (2001). Race does exist, is based on objective reality, & the view that if race is declared imaginary, racism will cease to exist is fundamentally faulty. People should be allowed to marry whom they want & hire whom they want, & government attempts to regulate this, eg, through affirmative action, should be exposed as racist. 12 References. D. Weibel

The literature on global justice contains a number of distinct approaches. This article identifies & reviews recent work in four of these commonly found in the literature. First, there is an examination of the cosmopolitan contention that distributive principles apply globally. This is followed by three responses to the cosmopolitanism -- the nationalist emphasis on special duties to co-nationals, the society of states claim that principles of global distributive justice violate the independence of states, & the realist claim that global justice is utopian & that states should advance national interest. 153 References. Adapted from the source document.