International relations
In: http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.$b589970
"Suggested readings" at end of each chapter. ; Mode of access: Internet.
In: http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.$b589970
"Suggested readings" at end of each chapter. ; Mode of access: Internet.
BASE
While the 1990s and 2000s saw International Relations scholarship moving away from the 'realism' of inter-state relations towards the 'liberal' framings of global politics, the 2010s marked a shift away from universal, modernist or 'linear' understandings of power and agency. In a world, construed as more complex, contingent and relational and replete with crises and unpredicted 'tipping points', traditional assumptions are up-ended and unintended consequences seem more relevant than 'good intentions'. Concomitantly, the methodological focus has switched away from understanding the essence of entities and towards privileging the analysis of relations, networks and contexts. Key to this has been debates focused around climate change and global warming which explicitly cast policy problems not as external threats to the 'good life' (that requires securing) but as instead questioning the starting assumptions of separations between inside/ outside, humanity/ nature, solutions/ problems and referents/ threats. This elicits a very different way of thinking, the implications of which may not always be easy for students (and their lecturers) to immediately grasp. This article seeks to provide a much needed basis for engaging with this exciting and growing field, which will fundamentally influence approaches to the politics and problems of International Relations
BASE
In: Lechner , S P 2017 , Anarchy in International Relations . in R Marlin-Bennett (ed.) , Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies . , 10.1093/acrefore/9780190846626.013.79 , Oxford Research Encyclopedia on International Studies , Oxford University Press .
The concept of anarchy is seen as the cardinal organizing category of the discipline of International Relations (IR), which differentiates it from cognate disciplines such as Political Science or Political Philosophy. This entry provides an analytical review of the scholarly literature on anarchy in IR, on two levels—conceptual and theoretical. First, it distinguishes three senses of the concept of anarchy: (1) lack of a common superior in an interaction domain; (2) chaos or disorder; and (3) horizontal relation between nominally equal entities, sovereign states. The first and the third senses of "anarchy"' are central to IR. Second, it considers three broad families of IR theory where anarchy figures as a focal assumption—(1) realism and neorealism; (2) English School theory (international society approach); and (3) Kant's republican peace. Despite normative and conceptual differences otherwise, all three bodies of theory are ultimately based on Hobbes's argument for a "state of nature." The discussion concludes with a summary of the key challenges to the discourse of international anarchy posed by the methodology of economics and economics-based theories which favor the alternative discourse of global hierarchy.
BASE
Environmental issues and questions of global change are now firmly established on the international political agenda. This book provides a wide-ranging survey of the current treatment of environmental issues in international relations. This book begins by looking at the relevance of the different theoretical approaches current in international relations to the study of the environment. It analyzses a wide range of approaches from the debate between neo-realism and liberal institutionalism to the significant connections between gender and global environmental change. The book goes on to consider a range of key international processes, discussing the monitoring and implementation of environmental agreements, the place of ideology in negotiations and the role of international organisations.
BASE
"Existing textbooks on international relations treat history in a cursory fashion and perpetuate a Euro-centric perspective. This textbook pioneers a new approach by historicizing the material traditionally taught in International Relations courses, and by explicitly focusing on non-European cases, debates and issues. The volume is divided into three parts. The first part focuses on the international systems that traditionally existed in Europe, East Asia, pre-Columbian Central and South America, Africa and Polynesia. The second part discusses the ways in which these international systems were brought into contact with each other through the agency of Mongols in Central Asia, Arabs in the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, Indic and Sinic societies in South East Asia, and the Europeans through their travels and colonial expansion. The concluding section concerns contemporary issues: the processes of decolonization, neo-colonialism and globalization – and their consequences on contemporary society. History of International Relations provides a unique textbook for undergraduate and graduate students of international relations, and anybody interested in international relations theory, history, and contemporary politics."
BASE
An examination of the ways the construction of the Internet, with cyberspace as the core, are changing the theory, policy, and practice of international relations. ; Cyberspace is widely acknowledged as a fundamental fact of daily life in today's world. Until recently, its political impact was thought to be a matter of low politics—background conditions and routine processes and decisions. Now, however, experts have begun to recognize its effect on high politics—national security, core institutions, and critical decision processes. In this book, Nazli Choucri investigates the implications of this new cyberpolitical reality for international relations theory, policy, and practice. The ubiquity, fluidity, and anonymity of cyberspace have already challenged such concepts as leverage and influence, national security and diplomacy, and borders and boundaries in the traditionally state-centric arena of international relations. Choucri grapples with fundamental questions of how we can take explicit account of cyberspace in the analysis of world politics and how we can integrate the traditional international system with its cyber venues. After establishing the theoretical and empirical terrain, Choucri examines modes of cyber conflict and cyber cooperation in international relations; the potential for the gradual convergence of cyberspace and sustainability, in both substantive and policy terms; and the emergent synergy of cyberspace and international efforts toward sustainable development. Choucri's discussion is theoretically driven and empirically grounded, drawing on recent data and analyzing the dynamics of cyberpolitics at individual, state, international, and global levels.
BASE
In: Schmidt , J D 2019 , Revisiting Development and International Relations . Aalborg Universitet. Det Samfundsvidenskabelige Fakultet. Ph.D.-Serien , Aalborg Universitetsforlag , Aalborg .
The overall objective of the dissertation is to analyze the interaction of national development in developing societies and the world political economy. It is an attempt to challenge the bidden selectivity of present day IR by going beyond the partial explanations of the bits and pieces of the whole international system and at the same time uncover claims of scientific "objectivity" and "natura) laws" in human nature. It is also challenging the mainstream discourse of IR, which denotes that development has been consigned to the realm oflow pol i tics, except when the international order, as it has been constructed, is threatened. The objective then is to "connect the dots" by providing an overall theoretical framework for the concepts and empirical material presented in five sections and chapters of this dissertation. This is done by examining competing views of what development and later on international relations means and how they may be intertwined. The idea is not necessarily to reach a unified approach but to investigate the different theories, concepts and methodologies involved in a search for a valid framework, which may give explanatory value to a merger of the two disciplines "Development studies" and "International Relations".
BASE
Defence date: 26 March 2015 ; Examining Board: Professor Christian Reus-Smit, University of Queensland (Supervisor); Professor Jennifer Welsh, EUI; Professor Thomas Biersteker, Graduate Institute, Geneva; Professor Edward Keene, University of Oxford. ; Much of both the academic and practical discourse about international politics implies conceptions of states as, in one way or another, free or unfree. We talk about state autonomy, suggesting states have the capacity to deliberate and determine their own destiny. We discuss constraints on state action and debate the legitimacy of interference in the affairs of other states. We also measure and assess state development, suggesting a potential in states for self-realisation. The concept of sovereignty, and the belief that this principle demands the rejection of the subjection of states to higher authority, frames much of our thinking about world politics. Such issues lie at the heart of much of our theorising of IR: in realism's security dilemma, for example; in liberal debates about humanitarian intervention; or in constructivist analyses of the relationship between sovereignty and state identity. It is a central contention of this thesis that conceptions of state freedom are present in the deep analytical and normative presumptions of much of the theory of international relations. The conceptions of state freedom that inform such theorising remain, however, for the large part implicit. The principal purpose of this thesis is to remedy the absence of sustained, explicit consideration of the concept of state freedom, and it does this by historically excavating ideas about what it means for states to be free. While explicit discussion of the freedom of states was prominent in the 17th and 18th century, as the state's position as the locus of political authority was gradually consolidated the terminology of state freedom diminished in salience. Ideas of state freedom did not disappear, however; they continued to be expressed in analogous areas of international discourse. Drawing on philosophical ideas about individual freedom, this thesis presents a theoretical approach to making such implicit ideas visible. It makes the case for a 'grammar' of freedom, which, it is argued, enables one to distinguish ideas about freedom from other species of ideas but does not prejudice their substance. The thesis then employs this grammar to identify ideas of state freedom in international debate surrounding three cognate concepts: non-intervention, sovereign equality and self-determination. Through analysis of the arguments made by states-people about these three concepts, the thesis articulates a number of evolving ideas about what it means for states to be free and unfree. That historical investigation uncovers both a strong normative preference among practitioners of international relations for the freedom of states and sharp disagreement about what constitutes that freedom. The thesis argues that the contestation surrounding ideas of state freedom have played an important role structuring legitimate relations of control between states. The thesis concludes by reflecting on the implications of these observations for the approaches of theorists of international relations to the key concepts of sovereignty and the state.
BASE
Abstract. The year 2017 welcomed the first of the Mülkiye Congress on International Relations. It was titled as "The 100th Anniversary of the October Revolution: The Soviet Union, the Cold War and the International System" and held on 16-17 October in Ankara. The Congress was organized by Faculty of Political Science, Department of International Relations in Ankara University and hosted many participants from various countries and disciplines.Keywords. Mülkiye congress, International relations, Hegemony, Prague spring, Soviet Union.JEL. A14, B10, E15.
BASE
History of International Relations at a Glance: 1) Westphalian Sovereignty Result of: Thirty Year's War (1618-1648) Catholic states v. Protestant states in western and central Europe Based on: Peace of Westphalia (Treaties of Osnabruck and Munster). 2) Concert of Europe (Vienna System) Result of: Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815). Based on: Congress of Vienna (1815). 3) Versailles-Washington System Result of: World War I (1914-1918). Based on: Peace Treaty of Versailles (1919) and Washington Naval Conference (1921-1922). 4) Yalta-Potsdam World Order Result of: World War II (1939-1945). Based on: Yalta Conference (February 1945) and Potsdam Conference (July-August 1945). 5) Modern System of International Relations Result of: Cold War's end and dissolution of USSR and Warsaw Pact (1991). ; This poster was supported by the European Social Fund (FSE) and by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal, under research grant No. SFRH/BD/136170/2018. Poster available at https://www.encontrociencia.pt/posters/20744_20201102172422_EncontroCiencia2020_Marco_Marsili_ePoster.pdf
BASE
The system of international relations is undergoing a period of serious transformation. The changes that have occurred have touched upon the fundamental princi ples and structure-forming elements of the world political system, thereby determining the long-term trends of its development.
BASE
A number of recent developments have prompted a revival of interest in liberal theories of international relations, among them the spread of democratic institutions, economic liberalisation and the increasing significance of international institutions in many aspects of life. This paper argues that liberal international relations theory, overimpressed by developments such as these, risks becoming an apologia for a narrow version of liberalism currently promoted by Western governments. The challenge of rethinking the meaning of liberalism in a 'globalising' world characterised by extreme economic inequality, social upheavals and the reassertion of cultural differences—and the questions whether and how liberal values can at all be realised in such a world—have been left to political theorists, whose struggles with these issues attract little interest in an international relations discipline still largely committed to the idea of a purely empirical social science. The paper suggests that a different, 'critical' conception of liberalism offers a way of relating pressing liberal normative concerns to empirical research, instead of seeking to keep the two entirely separate. It presents a critique of current liberal international relations theory and outlines an alternative approach.
BASE
The purpose of this study is to examine municipal involvement in international relations in the United States. This municipal phenomenon is occurring concurrently with both a shift away from the traditional nation-centric structure of international relations under the influence of globalism as well as a sharp decline in intergovernmental aid. The research questions were: (1) What are the indicators that define municipal involvement in international relations? and (2) What is the extent of that involvement? Extensive qualitative and research was conducted in the form of an exploratory literature survey which was set forth in narrative analysis to overcome the paucity of specific research in this area. The qualitative research developed 121 indicators of municipal international involvement. The 121 indicators were analytically grouped into economic, technological, sociocultural, political, and intergovernmental relations indicator groups. The qualitative research concluded that municipal involvement in international relations was a spreading phenomenon and that many American municipalities are substantially involved in international activities. In support of the qualitative results, 32 of the 121 indicators were validated through analysis of an independent random sample quantitative cross-sectional survey of American municipalities. The survey indicated substantial but varied involvement in international activities by municipalities. Exploratory quantitative analysis indicated that 12 of the 34 indicator variables, split between the economic, sociocultural, and political constructs, contributed significantly to municipal strength as an indicator of municipal international involvement. Exploratory quantitative analysis also indicated that the 32 indicators grouped into three composite constructs; i.e., economic, sociocultural, and political activities. Analysis of the composite constructs determined that only sociocultural activities made a significant contribution to municipal strength as an indicator of the degree of international involvement. The results of this study indicated that many municipalities in the United States are involved in international relations and assisted in the definition of variables indicating the nature and extent of that involvement. Many avenues of future research are warranted.
BASE
The article provides an overview of international and Russian literature on the genesis and development of System Research in IR studies, demonstrates the emergence of System Research in Russia and in the world, the development of the general theory of systems. It is shown that at the fi rst stage, the representatives of natural sciences tried to identify the isomorphism between the international relations system and other systems (biological, physical). In this context, the attempts to form a general theory of international confl ict could be viewed. It is noted that at the beginning of the 1970s, these attempts ended unsuccessfully in general. The second area of international relations system modeling is related to the work of structural realists, primarily K. Waltz and M. Kaplan. Despite the fact that in their papers the verbal analysis dominates over the formal international relations system model, they have madea signifi cant contribution to the political science in perception of the systems theory. The paper also describes the system modeling in the context of the Neo-Marxist theory of international relations, fi rst and foremost, in the meaning of the I. Wallerstein's world-system theory. Special attention is paid to the systemic research crisis in the IR science at the turn of 1980-1990s, also due to a sharp change in the international situation, and the transition from a predominantly deterministic world of the Cold War to the post-bipolar non-equilibrium international system. The authors clearly reveal the evolution of the international relations perception in terms of the systems theory. They also illustrate the intensifi cation of the international system modeling in the XXIst century on the basis of a new methodology - via the use of the more sophisticated complexity theory (the theory of complex systems), as well as by adapting the sociological theory of structuration by A. Giddens in political sciences. Showing the most promising areas of the complexity theory practical application in the modeling of international relations - agentbased modeling and simulation of system dynamics, - the authors enumerate the most promising spheres for the system modeling in international studies.
BASE
In the light of the scholarly standards development, research methods and their implications of theoretical literature, this study aims at answering the focal question suggested here: How far is prediction manifested in international relations? This study also throws light on the ongoing controversy of prediction in the context of international relations. Such debate will be unveiled through descriptive and analytical methods which in turn place an adequate emphasis on examining the controversial and theoretical issues raised by the concern of prediction. Relevant examples in the same context will be also given such as: the predictions suggested by the New Realism, Structuralism, and how far such theories recognize the international policies. The pragmatic implications dwells on the concept of prediction in international relations through identifying prediction's standards and its indications, the appropriate framework to make up theory, implications fields, assumptions prioritization, and the relation between the theoretical concepts to come up with a theory of valid for prediction in the future. The study concludes that the perpetual change of international system's frameworks brings about an urgent use of the methodological signs of prediction to strike a balance and maintain stability in the international environment. Such state of balance gives room for the hegemonic international terms and world peace since prediction phenomenon has been manipulated by scholarly research and methodological tactics.
BASE