Suchergebnisse

The definition of war -- War, identity and culture -- War, international law and morality -- The self-defeating nature of war -- Better tools available -- Paradigm shifts -- Systemic explanations -- National characteristics -- Practical considerations -- Rational choice modelling for war -- The feasibility of war -- The costs, benefits and risks of war -- Foreign policy alternatives to war and making the choice to go to war -- 'A' peace versus 'our' peace.

This book provides a critical overview of the occurrence of war in the international system by examining the concept from multiple perspectives and theoretical backgrounds. War is an essential concept in international affairs, if for no other reason than because prevention of war requires anin-depth understanding of it as a concept. This book seeks to examine the continued occurrence of war in international relations, despite the emergence of arguments concerning its obsolescence. It provides a new cognitive frameworkthrough which to understand war as a phenomenon, which can be applied to real-world scenarios and policy issues, making use of case studies predominantly from China and Japan. Theoretically, the book is primarily based on a structural realist framework but adopts a significant constructivist component through the emphasis on identity and reputation in the international system. The volume offers a nuanced yet holistic approach to the theory of war and seeks to engage critically with the major theoretical approaches, pointing out the major criticisms of these ideas and how the theories correlate. This book will be of much interest to students of strategic studies, foreign policy, and International Relations.

The article takes a critical look at the sovereignty claims surrounding the Senkaku / Diaoyu Islands. The dispute has long plagued Sino-Japanese relations and is considered one of the key regional security hotspots, with the People's Republic of China mounting an active challenge to Japanese administrative control. This article reviews the case for sovereignty under both the discovery and the prescription principles. However, the article concludes that one cannot find a compelling case for sovereignty under either principle in favour of either claimants. The paper argues that this is due to the traditional insignificance of the islands prior to UNCLOS establishing exclusive economic zones. Rather, the article suggests that to facilitate a resolution to the disputes, the islands should not be classified as islands under UNCLOS as they do not meet the legal threshold for such a classification, either today or historically. If anything, the weakness of claims that contributes to the intractability of the dispute today shows that traditionally neither China nor Japan has considered these territories as islands in a manner that would be in the spirit of UNCLOS. While such a reclassification would not immediately resolve the dispute, it would be a significant step to remove incentives for the further pursuit of conflicting sovereignty over the islands. (Asian Aff/GIGA)