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| From Thomas Hobbes's (Leviathan).an ongoing civil war developed between all members of society, where life is "nasty, brutish and short" through which the only was of escaping is establishing a sovereign and unchallengeable power - thus the creation of a state. While nations no longer exist in a state of nature because they are sovereign, international relations, without world government, is conducted within an international 'state of nature' - one which is dangerous and uncertain - states can wage wars etc. |
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Looking inward domestically – upholder of law, order, justice, common good and peace
Looking outward internationally – breaker of order, holder of power, pursuer of self-interest and instigator of war |
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"Realist-Idealist Great Debate"- Between realists and liberals in the inter-war years (1919-1939) regarding the place of morality in international politics.
: dispute between idealists and realists which took place in the 1930s and 1940s[4] and which was fundamentally about how to deal with Nazi Germany.[5] Realist scholars emphasized the anarchical nature of international politics and the need for state survival/inescapable power politics. Idealists emphasized the possibility of peaceful cooperation through international institutions such as the League of Nations. By the 1950s, realism had gained ascendency. Retroactively given the name by IR scholars post WWII & didn't really happen. The LON's failure to stop the Italian invasion of Ethiopia was seen as athe victory of realism. |
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E.H. Carr: Idealism – Particular interests masquerade as universal values
Realism – exposes the interests and power behind liberal
3) Realism becomes nihilist and cannot act as a guide to politics
4) Realism has to be partially idealistic itself
5) Therefore IR theory takes on a contentious and contradictory mix of realism and idealism. Liberlism (OUGHT) - realism (IS). |
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BOTH - SELF INTERESTED INDIVIUDALS
Liberal
-Reason
-Progress
-Harmony of interests
Realist
-Will to power
-Tragedy
-Balance of power |
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| Morgenthau's six principles of realism |
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1. Realism is governed by ‘objective laws’ which have their roots in human nature.
2. The concept of national interest, defined in terms of power, is the most important foreign policy goal.
3. Key concept of ‘interest defined as power’ is an objective category and universally valid, even if forms of interests may change over time.
4. Universal morality cannot be used to guide the actions of states.
5. Political realism refuses to identify the moral aspirations of a particular nation with the moral laws that govern the universe.
6. The political sphere is distinct from economics and law, and international and domestic politics operate according to different principles. |
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| During the 1960s between behaviouralists and traditionalists over whether it is possible to develop objective 'laws' of international relations, between "scientific IR" scholars who sought to refine scientific methods of inquiry in international relations theory and those who insisted on a more historicist/interpretative approach to international relations theory. |
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| Inter-paradigm debate 1970s and 80s - between realists and liberals on the one hand, and Marxists on the other, who interpreted international relations in economic terms. |
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| Late 1980s- between positivists and post-positivists over the relationship between theory and reality. reflected the growing influence within IR of a range of new critical perspectives such as social constructivism, critical theory, feminism and postcolonialism. |
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| The belief that social theories should be constructed only on the basis of observable behaviour, providing quantifiable data for research - rather than positivism which suggests theories can be applied to the real world. |
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Westphalian sovereignty is the concept of nation-state sovereignty based on two things: territoriality and the absence of a role for external agents in domestic structures.
Peace of Westphalia (1648) commonly said to mark the beginning of modern international politics. A series of treaties signed by major European countries at the end of the thirty years war that helped to transform a medieval Europe of overlapping authorities , loyaltiies and identities into a modern-state system based on two key principles:
- States enjoy sovereign jurisdiction, they have independent control over what happens within their territory (all other institutions and groups, spiritual and temporal, are therefore subordinate to the state).
- Relations between and among states are structured by the acceptance of the sovereign independence of all states (states are legally equal). |
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| approach to political analysis that takes the state to be the key actor in the domestic realm and on the world stage - increasingly challenged with the appearance transnational corporations TNCs and NGOs as well as other non-state bodies. |
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| Non-governmental organisations NGOs |
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private non-commercial group or organisation which seek to achieve its end through non-violent means. Early example is the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade (William Wilberforce 1787), Red Cross 1863. Officially recognised in 1948 by the UN.
Operational NGOs: primary purpose is the design and implementation of development-related projects; either relief-orientated or development orientated. Community based, national or international.
- Advocacy: NGOs exist to promote or defend a particular cause. |
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| While not ignoring the roles of states and national governments, international politics is shaped by a much broader range of interests and groups such as NGOs and TNCs. |
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| Transnational Corporations |
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| Company that controls economic activity in two or more countries. Parent company is usually incorporated into one state (the home) with subsidiaries in others (the hosts), although subsidiaries may be seperate incorporated affiliates. Classic early example is the East India Company est. 1600. General Motors, IBM. Operate as economies in their own right, benefiting from global flexibility, advantages in product innovation, and the ability to pursue global marketing strategies. 51 of the world's largest economies are corporations - General Motors being equivalent in size to Denmark. Exxon Mobil as South Africa. |
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Neo-marxist analysis of the nature and workings of the global economy, most prominently theorised by Immanuel Wallerstein. The central idea being that the expansion of capitalism, from the c16th onwards, has created a global economic system comprising 3 interlocking parts:
- CORE areas that are characterised by relatively high wages, advanced technology and a diversified production mix, including mass market industries and sophisticated agriculture.
- PERIPHERAL areas that are characterised by low wafes, more rudimentary technology and a simple production mix geared towards staple goods (grain, wood, sugar etc.)
SEMI-PERIPHERAL areas that are economically mixed, including core and peripheral features.
Core-periphery model emphasises how strong states can enforce unequal exchange on weak ones, the transfer of economic surpluses from peripheral to core areas helping to maintain dependency and underdevelopment. Low-wage and low-profit producers are used to service and support high-wage and high-producers in the core. Semi-peripherals act as a buffer to ensure that cores are not confronted by a unified opposition. Relations are further underpinned by political differences such as democratic governments v authoritarian. Core areas: developed north, peripherals: south. |
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| The tendency within a capitalist economy for industries, economic sectors and countries to develop at very different rates due to the pressures generated by the quest for profit, competition and economic exploitation. |
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| Neo-Marxist theory that highlights structural imbalances within international capitalism that impose dependency and underdevelopment on poorer states and regions. In the post 1945 period, traditional imperialism had given way to neo-colonialism, sometimes viewed as 'economic imperialism' or 'dollar imperialism'. |
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| Line drawn by Willy Brandt (Germany Chancellor) in 1980 to review international development issues.Highlights a great chasm in standard of living along the North-South divide. The countries North of the divide are extremely wealthy due to their successful trade in manufactured goods, whereas the countries South of the divide suffer poverty due to their trade in intermediate goods, where the export incomes are low.there should therefore be a large transfer of resources from developed to developing countries.The North is home to four of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and all members of the G8. "The North" mostly covers the West and the First World, with much of the Second World. The expression "north–south divide" is still in common use, but the terms "North" and "South" are already somewhat outdated. As nations become economically developed, they may become part of the "North", regardless of geographical location, while any other nations which do not qualify for "developed" status are in effect deemed to be part of the "South." |
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literally means a belief in a 'cosmopolis' - world state.
- Moral cosmopolitanism is the belief that the world constitues a single moral community with obligations to each other regardless of natinality, religion, ethnicity etc. Based on the belief that every individual is of equal moral worth, most commonly linked to the doctrine of human rights.
- Political cosmopolitanism (legal/institutional) is the belief that there should be global political institutions, and possibly a world government. Most modern political cosmopolitanists favour a system in which authority is divided between global, national and local levels. |
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| The theory that social and indeed all forms of enquiry should conform to the methods of natural sciences. It is possible to develop objective knowledge through the capacity to distinguish facts from values; it is possible to compare theories with the real world, the world 'out there' - problem solving theories. |
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| Millenium Development Goals |
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eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015.
1. eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality rates
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development |
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| Intellectual tradition based on the belief that truth is always contested and plural; sometimes summed up as 'an incredulity towards metanarratives'. Used interchangeably with poststructuralism. |
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| Discussed by Michael Foucault. Poststructuralism: systems of thoughts composed of ideas, attitudes, courses of action, beliefs and practices that systematically construct the subjects and the worlds of which they speak." Foucault traces the role of discourses in wider social processes of legitimating and power, emphasizing the construction of current truths, how they are maintained and what power relations they carry with them.” Foucault later theorized that discourse is a medium through which power relations produce speaking subjects.[8] Foucault (1977, 1980) argued that power and knowledge are inter-related and therefore every human relationship is a struggle and negotiation of power. E.g. War on terror=islam is dangerous. |
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| Question the belief that there is an objective reality 'out there' seperate from the beliefs, ideas and asumptions of the observer. As we observe the world, we aer also in the process of imposing meaning upon it, only ever seeing the world as WE think it exists. Greater attention is paid to biases, hidden assumptions that are embodied in theory. E.g. poststructuralism, constructivism and critical theory. |
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| Developed by James Lovelock late 20th century, advances the idea that Earth is best understood as a living entity that acts to maintain its own existence. Gaia (after the Greek Goddess of earth). The Gaia hypothesis is that the Earth's biosphere, atmosphere, oceans and soil exhibit precisely the same kind of self-regulating behaviour that characterises other forms of life. While the sun's temperature has warmed up by 25% since life bagan, the actual temperature on Earth has remain virtually unchanged. Human beings must respect the health of the planet. |
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| Organisation of countries, founded in Belgrade in 1961, that avoided formal political and economic affiliation with either of the Cold War power blocs and committed themselves to values such as peaceful coexistence and mutual non-interference. Developed out of the Bandung Conference of 1955 when 19 mostly newly independent African and Asian countries inc. Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia and India gathered. |
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| Draws attention to the parts of the world that did not, during the Cold War, fall into the capitlist 1st world bloc, or the communist 2nd world bloc. The less developed countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America were 'third' in the sense that they were economically dependent and suffered from widespread poverty. The term also implied that they were non-aligned, and often serving as the battleground on which the geopolitical struggle between the firsta nd second worlds was conducted. THe term has gradually been abandoned since the 1970s due to its derogatory implications, receding significance of a shared colonial past and Asian economic development. |
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| Edward Said's book. redefined the term "Orientalism" to mean a constellation of false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the Middle East that ensures the political and cultural hegemony og Europe in particular and of the West - a critique of Eurocentrim. This body of scholarship is marked by a "subtle and persistent Eurocentric prejudice against Arabo-Islamic peoples and their culture."[1] He argued that a long tradition of romanticized images of Asia and the Middle East in Western culture had served as an implicit justification for European and American colonial and imperial ambitions. Just as fiercely, he denounced the practice of Arab elites who internalized the US and British orientalists' ideas of Arabic culture.Western knowledge about the East is not generated from facts or reality, but from preconceived archetypes that envision all "Eastern" societies as fundamentally similar to one another, and fundamentally dissimilar to "Western" societies. |
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actions taken by one actor to improve national security are interpreted as aggressive by other actors, thereby provoking military counter-moves. Two component dilemmas:
- Dilemma of interpretation: As weapons are inherently ambiguous (they can be defensive or aggressive), there is uncertainty over the intentions and capabilities of building up military power.
- Dilemma of response: Misperception here may either lead to an unintended arms race or a national disaster. E.g. Uk-German naval arms race preceeding WWI, US-Soviet nuclear arms race during the cold war. |
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| NEOREALISM The position of states in relation to one another, reflected in the distribution of benefits and capabilities between and amongst them. Anarchy makes states fear for their survival and as power is the ultimate guarantor of survival, they constantly check their position in the international power hierarchy. Countries will only cooperate if it brings about relative gains. Power is a zero-sum game, and country A will not enter into trade with country B if country Bs profits will be greater. |
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| Neo-liberalism: benefits that accrue to states from a policy or action regardless of their impact on other states. States are more concerned with absolute gains rather than relative gains becuase maybe they are confident about their survival and can be more relaxed about their position in the international hierarchy, or they judge other states' intentions as peaceful. If states are prepared to operate for absolute gains, rather than relative, the possibility of international cooperation is wide. |
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State deemed to rank the most powerful in a hierarchical state-system. Four criteria (subject to dispute):
1. The first rank of military prowess, having the capacity to maintain their own security and potentially to influence other powers.
2. Economically powerful although as Japan shows, this is a necessary but not sufficient condition for great power.
3. Global, and not merely regional spheres of interests.
4. Adopt a 'forward' foreign policy and have actual, not merely potential, impact on international affairs (during its isolationist phase, the US was therefore not a great power). |
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| The existence within a system of one or more significant actors or 'poles' which affect the behaviour of other actors and shape the contour of the system itself, determining its structural dynamics. Unipolarity, Bipolarity, Tripolarity, and Multipolarity, for four or more centers of power. The type of system is completely dependent on the distribution of power and influence of states in a region or internationally. |
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| A form of structural realism that portrays states as 'power maximisers', as there is no limit to their desire to control the international environment. If the balance of power breaks down (as it often does in multipolarity), real likelihood of war breaking out. Defensive realists on the other hand, argue that states tend to prioritise security over power and that states are reluctant to go to war. |
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| Theory/practice of politics based on cooperation between nations. Rooted in universalist assumptions that put it at odds with political nationalism, the latter emphasising the degree to which political identity is shaped by nationality. However, internationalism is compatible with nationalism in the sense that it calls for cooperation or solidarity among pre=existing nations, rather than the removal of national identities altogether (thus different from cosmopolitanism). Liberal internationalism is reflected in support for free trade and economic interdependence as well as a commitment to construct or strengthen international organisations. |
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| A system of trade between states not restricted by tariffs or other forms of protectionism. Commercial liberalism supports that free trade increases economic interdependence (making the material costs of war unthinkable) as well as encouragiing the trade of undersdtanding of culture and tradition, uniting people in a common commercial culture. Aggression and expansion are deterred by the 'spirit of commerce' (David Ricardo). |
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| The development of interdependence by neoliberal scholars such as Keohane and Nye which reflects the extent to which peoples and governments in the modern world are affected by what happens elsewhere, and particularly by the actions of their counterparts in other countries. Applies not only to the economic realm, through the advance of globalistion, but also in relation to climate change, development and poverty reduction, and human rights etc.View suggests that realism's obsession with 'high politics' (security & survival) is misplaced, and greater attention should be given to 'low politics' (welfare, environment, political justice). |
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The notion that there is an intrinsic link between peace and democracy, especially with one another.
-that democratic leaders must answer to the voters for war, and therefore have an incentive to seek alternatives; that such statesmen have practice settling matters by discussion, not by arms, and do the same in foreign policy; that democracies view non-democracies as threatening, and go to war with them over issues which would have been settled peacefully between democracies; and that democracies tend to be wealthier than other countries, and the wealthy tend to avoid war, having more to lose.Originally proposed by Immanuel Kant in Perpetual peace, and later developed after the Cold War in the writings of Francis Fukuyama. Supported by the fact that no democratic states have ever been at war with each other, and the advance of 'zones of peace' - collections of mature democracies in places such as europe, North america and australasia as opposed to 'zones of turmoil' . |
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| The principle that law should 'rule' in the sense that it establishes a framework within which all conduct and behaviour takes place. Woodrow Wilson, Liberal institutionalism. |
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Liberalism: The theory/practice of states pledging to defend one anther in order to deter aggression or to punish a transgressor if international order has been breached. Its key idea is that agression can best be resisted by united action taken by a number of states, being the only alternative to the insecurity and uncertainty of power politics. Successful collective security depends on 3 things:
- States must be roughly equal, or there must be no preponderant power.
2- all states must be willing to bear the cost & responsibility of defending one another.
3- there must be an international body that has the moral authority and political capacity to take effective action. E.g. League of Nations 1919-1920. (Failure in the Manchurian Incident). |
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| A state unable to perform its key role of ensuring domestic order by monopolosing the use of force within its territory. Failed states are no longer able to operate as viable political units, in that they lack a credible system of law and order, often being gripped by civil war or warlordism. They are also no longer able to operate as viable economic units, incapable of providing for their citizens and with no functioning infrastructure. Relatively few states collapse altogether, but many come close. Examples in recent years include Cambodia, Haiti, Rwanda, Liberia & Somalia. |
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| The social construction of sexual difference. 'Gender' is distinct from 'sex' in that sex highlights biological, ineradicable, differences while gender denotes a set of culturally defined distinctions between men and women, operating either through stereotyping or as a manifestation of structural power relations. This constructivist account of gender has been challenged by essentialist feminists who reject the sex/gender distinction, by poststructuralist feministswho highlight the ambiguity of gender and by postcolonial feminists who insist that gender identities are multiple, not singular. |
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Civil society refers to a realm of autonomous groups and associations that operate independently of government. Global civil society thus highlights a realm in which transnational non-governmental groups & associations interact. These groups are typically voluntary and non-profitmaking, setting them apart from TNCs.
- Activist version : transnational social movements are the key agents giving it an 'outsider' orietation and a strong focus on humanitarian goals and cosmopolitan ideals.
-POlicy version: NGOs are they key agents of GCS giving it an 'insider' orientation and meaning it overlaps significantly with global governance. |
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| Civil society refers to the arena of uncoerced collective action around shared interests, purposes and values. In theory, its institutional forms are distinct from those of the state, and market, though in practice, the boundaries between state, civil society, and market are often complex, blurred and negotiated. Civil society commonly embraces a diversity of spaces, actors and institutional forms, varying in their degree of formality, autonomy and power. Civil societies are often populated by organizations such as registered charities, development of non-governmental organizations, community groups, women's organizations, faith-based organizations, professional associations, trade unions, self-help groups, social movements, business associations, coalitions and advocacy groups.[1]E.g. churches, trade unions, political parties, charities. |
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| Broad, dynamic and complex process of interactive decision-making at the global level that involves formal and informal mechanisms as well as governmental and non-governmental bodies. States and governments remain the primary institution for articulating public interests and those of a gloval community as a whole but global governnace also involves intergovernmental and sometimes, supranational bodies. Global policy is mader by a system of horizontal and vertical interactions in which officials in different branches of governments work with counterparts in other countries as well as with activists, scientists, bankers, and others outside government. Global governance or world governance is the political interaction of transnational actors aimed at solving problems that affect more than one state or region when there is no power of enforcing compliance. In response to the acceleration of interdependence on a worldwide scale, both between human societies and between humankind and the biosphere, world governance designates regulations intended for the global scale E.g. Un Global Compact. Under the Global Compact, companies are brought together with UN agencies, labour groups and civil society o encourage businesses worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation. |
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Idea of all humankind united under one common political authority. Underlying vision of some cosmopolitan arguments. All conceptions are based on the centralization of authority in a supranational body which could possess legislative and executive power. Two different models:
- Unitary model: a 'cosmopolis' or world state would enjoy a monopoly of the legitimate use of force and establish a strictly hierarchical world order.
- Federal: a central authority would be vested with autonomous authority over the rule of law and maintenance of order, while the constituent units (previously states) retain control over local & domestic matters. |
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| The existence of an authority that is higher than that of the nation-state and capable of imposing its will on it. Thus transfers sovereignty and decision-making authority from constituent states to an international or regional organisation, which can occur through the establishment of an international federation (sovereignty shared between central and peripheral bodies). The advance of supranationalism is seen as part of the general integrative trend within global politics. Critics of supranationalism, esp realists, claim that it represents a threat not only to sovereignty but to national identity and democracy, perhaps even containing the seeds of world government. Sometimes used to describe the EU. The EU is the only entity which provides for international popular elections, going beyond the level of political integration normally afforded by international treaty. |
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Bretton Woods System (1945-1971): The US dollar would be the de facto global currency with its value pegged to one ounce of gold.
- USA, Uk and 42 other states met at the UN monetary and Financial Conference at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire to formulate the institutional architecture of the post-war international financial and monetary system. The Bretton Woods system is the name given to the three new bodies established:
- The International Monetary Fund IMF
- International Bank for reconstuction and development, better known as the world bank.
The general agreement on tariffs and trade (GATT), replaced by the WTO in 1995.
Clear example of multilateralism (3+ countries acting as a single entiety for enduring cooperation) that became increasingly prominent post 1945. The conference was initiated and hosted by the US, the US sought a stable international economic system to re-establish its own economy, and the economies in war-raged Europe and in time Germany and Japan. At the centre of the Bretton Woods system was a new monetary order, overseen by the IMF, which sought to maintain stable exhange rates (by fixing all currencies to the US dollar which was linked to gold), the availability of loans from the Wb and the advancement of free trade by the WTO. these bodies established a form of proto-global economic governance, based on a framework of rules and norms that would guide the future economic relationships between states. |
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| Hegemony is in its simplest sense the leadership or domination of one element of a system over other. In global or international politics, a hegemon or hyperpower is the leading state within a collection of states. Hegemonic status is based on the possession of structural power esp. control of economic and military forces, enabling the hegemon to shape the preferences and actions of other states, by promoting willing consent rather tan the use of force. E.g. the US and its allies war on terror. |
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defined as ‘the sustained use or threat of use of violence by a small group for political purposes such as inspiring fear and/or drawing widespread attention to a political grievance.’ Targets are commonly civilian and/or symbolic, and attacks are designed to spread fear.
Premeditation, meaning that the decision to undertake an act of violence or terror in the name of instilling fear in others;
Motivation, usually a specific political or ideological cause, which could be political, religious or economic;
The choosing of a specific target, normally non-combatants, such as civilians, political figures or bureaucrats;
Secretiveness, where the perpetrators of terrorism normally belong to clandestine organisations /cells. |
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| Neorealist stability theory |
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Definition
From a neorealist perspective bipolar systems tend towards stability and strengthen the likelihood of peace because
-Bipolar members are encourgaed to maintain the bipolar system as they maintain themselves in doing so.
- fewer great powers means the possibilities of great war are reduced.
the existence of only 2 GPs reduces the chances of miscalculation and makes it easier to operate an effective system of deterrence.
- power relationships are more stable as each bloc relies on inner (economic and military) resources as external (alliances with other states or blocs) means of expanding power arent available.
Multipolar systems are unstable because
-more great poweres = increased chance of conflict.
- creates a bias in favour of fluidity and perhaps instability as shifting alliances because there are more great powers trying to extend their influence.
- power is more decentralised, existing powers may be restless and ambitious while weak states may form alliances to challenge and displace existing powers. |
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| Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) (1968) |
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Definition
Recognises five nuclear weapons states; all other members must pledge not to develop them. States must promise not to transfer nuclear technology to non-nuclear weapons states.
Peaceful uses of nuclear energy are allowed.
India, Israel and Pakistan refused to sign, citing specific security threats; North Korea withdrew in 2003. |
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| Treaty of Rarotonga (1985) |
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Definition
Longstanding environmental damage from previous nuclear tests. All South Pacific states and territories (including NZ), have signed except for Micronesia, Marshall Islands and Palau due to security arrangements with the US.
US signed but refused to ratify under Bush;
however Obama government promised to do so in May 2011. New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act (1987) – No nuclear weapons or ships allowed in NZ territory. |
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| Multinational corporations |
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Definition
MNCs: Companies which engage in foreign direct investment (FDI), meaning they own, control and/or manage assets (economic resources) in more than one country.
The number of MNCs grew greatly after WWII but there were examples well before that (East India Company in the 17th and 18th centuries).
As of 2009 there were about 82,000 MNCs in operation, representing US$15 trillion in international investment.
Trade in manufactured goods by MNCs rose after the 1940s, and by the 1980s many developing countries were also exporting manufactured goods in addition to raw materials.
Multinational corporations have a major role in international political economy. Many of the largest MNCs are no longer tied to their home states and have become truly ‘global’ brands.
Sometimes MNCs can directly affect international politics (collapse of Lehman Brothers financial services firm was the catalyst for the post-2008 recession; BP’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010)
MNCs can also have a strong influence on developing states which are still dependent on raw material trade (oil, gas, minerals, metals, agriculture…)
Wal-Mart (US, US$422 bn)
Royal Dutch Shell (Netherlands, US$370 bn)
Exxon Mobil (US, US$268 bn)
BP (UK, US$297 bn)
Sinopec (China, US$159 bn)
Total Gross Domestic Product of New Zealand in 2010:
US$140 billion |
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| Total economic self-suffiency. Autarky exists whenever an entity can survive or continue its activities without external assistance. Autarky is not necessarily economic. For example, a military autarky would be a state that could defend itself without help from another country. Autarky can be said to be the policy of a state or other entity when it seeks to be self-sufficient as a whole, but also can be limited to a narrow field such as possession of a key raw material.n the 20th century, autarky as a policy goal was sought by Nazi Germany in the 1930s, which maximized trade within its economic bloc and minimizing trade outside of it, particularly with the then world powers such as Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and France, with which it expected to go to war and consequently could not rely upon.A self-sufficient economy can experience diseconomies of scale in the public and private business sectors. It is evident that several nations in the world do not have direct access to certain raw materials such as oil, coal, gas, wheat or fabrics such as wool due to geographical boundaries including climate, location, land size or population numbers. |
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| The defensive view can lead to a security dilemma where increasing one's own security can bring along greater instability as the opponent(s) builds up its own arms, making security a zero-sum game where only relative gains can be made. |
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an attempt to derive economic rent ( payment for goods and services beyond the amount needed to bring the required factors of production into a production process and sustain supply) by manipulating the social or political environment in which economic activities occur, rather than by adding value. An example of rent-seeking is the limitation of access to skilled occupations imposed by medieval guilds.
the expenditure of resources attempting to enrich oneself by increasing one's share of a fixed amount of wealth rather than trying to create wealth. Since resources are expended but no new wealth is created, the net effect of rent-seeking is to reduce the sum of social wealth. |
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| a model of a primitive state whose rulers extort taxes for their own ends. This “predatory” state can result in lower levels of both output and popular welfare than either organized banditry or anarchy. The predatory state may provide public goods, such as protection, and hence may superficially resemble a contractual state. But the ability to provide such goods can actually reduce popular welfare after allowing for tax changes. Moreover, the kinds of public goods that predatory states provide are those that increase revenue, not necessarily welfare |
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| social/economic consequences which are not visible in the market value of a particular good. Externalities can be good (spinoff benefits/goods, innovation, good publicity or public relations) or bad (pollution, depletion of resources, poor public relations) but in either case, these are difficult to accurately measure / predict and so therefore don’t fit into the zero-sum model. |
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Countries will export goods based on their specific endowments (land, labour, capital, etc.) Based on David Ricardo's theory of comparative advantage. Relative endowments of the factors of production (land, labor, and capital) determine a country's comparative advantage. Countries have comparative advantages in those goods for which the required factors of production are relatively abundant locally. This is because the profitability of goods is determined by input costs. Goods that require inputs that are locally abundant will be cheaper to produce than those goods that require inputs that are locally scarce.
For example, a country where capital and land are abundant but labor is scarce will have comparative advantage in goods that require lots of capital and land, but little labor — grains. If capital and land are abundant, their prices will be low. As they are the main factors used in the production of grain, the price of grain will also be low—and thus attractive for both local consumption and export. Labor intensive goods on the other hand will be very expensive to produce since labor is scarce and its price is high. Therefore, the country is better off importing those goods. |
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| Passed in 1930 by the US - added high tariffs on imported goods and set off a chain reaction of new import taxes in Britain and other parts of Europe. Both Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan saw the creation of empires as the best way to prosper. It is an example pre-depression protectionism which contributed towards the 1929-39 Great Depression which began with the stock market crash in October 1929. Global volumes of trade fell sharply as major economies sought to protect their markets. |
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Trade is commonly undertaken in goods, services, but also in labour through immigration. Despite the rise in immigration as part of globalisation, it is still vigorously debated in many advanced economies. Distinctions are normally made between highly skilled, skilled and unskilled labour.
Investment is another form of trade, meaning trade in capital. An actor, such as an MNC, can buy facilities in another which act as a subsidiary, or a bank can loan money for foreign firms. This process can be complicated by the rise and fall of currency values. |
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| officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was the large-scale American program to aid Europe where the United States gave monetary support to help rebuild European economies after the end of World War II in order to combat the spread of Soviet communism. The reconstruction plan, developed at a meeting of the participating European states, was established on June 5, 1947. It offered the same aid to the Soviet Union and its allies, but they did not accept it.[3][4] During the four years that the plan was operational, US $13 billion in economic and technical assistance was given to help the recovery of the European countries that had joined in the Organization for European Economic Co-operation. The ERP addressed each of the obstacles to postwar recovery. The plan looked to the future, and did not focus on the destruction caused by the war. Much more important were efforts to modernize European industrial and business practices using high-efficiency American models, reduce artificial trade barriers, and instill a sense of hope and self-reliance. By 1952 as the funding ended, the economy of every participant state had surpassed pre-war levels; |
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| The Doha Development Round or Doha Development Agenda (DDA) is the current trade-negotiation round of the World Trade Organization (WTO) which commenced in November 2001. Its objective is to lower trade barriers around the world, which will help facilitate the increase of global trade. As of 2008, talks have stalled over a divide on major issues, such as agriculture, industrial tariffs and non-tariff barriers, services, and trade remedies.[1] The most significant differences are between developed nations led by the European Union (EU), the United States (USA), and Japan and the major developing countries led and represented mainly by Brazil, China, India, South Korea, and South Africa. There is also considerable contention against and between the EU and the USA over their maintenance of agricultural subsidies—seen to operate effectively as trade barriers.[2] |
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Free trade agreements are ways for countries to move further beyond WTO guidelines and remove more barriers to trade including tariffs. A free trade area is created between two or more states seeking to reduce or eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers between them. These are permitted under WTO rules.
The largest free trade areas include:
European Union (27 member states)
North American Free Trade Agreement (US, Canada, Mexico)
ASEAN Free Trade Area
Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates)
Trans-Pacific Partnership (Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore, with Australia, US, Malaysia, Peru and Vietnam as possible new members)
Mercosur (South America)
Southern African Development Community
(in negotiation) Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (Australia, NZ, Pacific Islands Forum) |
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(Ernst B. Haas) Limited economic cooperation leads to ‘spillover’ benefits and further cooperation.e.g. EU. nitially, states integrate in limited functional or economic areas. Thereafter, partially integrated states experience increasing momentum for further rounds of integration in related areas. This "invisible hand" of integration phenomenon was termed "spill-over." by the neofunctionalist school. Although integration can be resisted, it becomes harder to stop integration's reach as it progresses. Functional spillover is the interconnection of various economic sectors or issue-areas, and the integration in one policy-area spilling over into others. Political spillover is the creation of supranational governance models, as far-reaching as the European Union, or as voluntary as the United Nations.
Rather than the self-interest that realists see as a motivating factor, functionalists focus on common interests shared by states. Integration develops its own internal dynamic: as states integrate in limited functional or technical areas, they increasingly find that momentum for further rounds of integration in related areas. This "invisible hand" of integration phenomenon is termed "spill-over." Although integration can be resisted, it becomes harder to stop integration's reach as it progresses. This usage, and the usage in functionalism in international relations, is the less commonly used meaning of the term functionalism. |
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The EU completed (mostly) all four stages of development for an economic union:
Free trade agreement
Customs union (common tariff policy)
Common market (people and capital can move freely across borders)
Economic union (common currency, mutual economic policies)
However a common foreign and defence policy remains elusive. EU split over wars in ex-Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya… |
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| Foreign economic policies |
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| E.g.Greater East Asian Co-prosperity Sphere |
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Energy security exists when a state has or has access to energy resource to sustain all military, economic and social activity. Energy must be delivered to the state in a regular and stable manner, preferably for the foreseeable future.
Energy insecurity is the opposite. No state in the current economic system is completely energy independent. Some states like Canada, Russia, Norway and the United Kingdom can for the most part obtain their energy through domestic sources (oil and gas).
The US and China have to import more than half of their energy on global markets, and for Western Europe and Japan the figure is closer to 100% fossil fuel imports.
Energy security is a term for an association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven distribution of energy supplies among countries has led to significant vulnerabilities. Threats to energy security include the political instability of several energy producing countries, the manipulation of energy supplies, the competition over energy sources, attacks on supply infrastructure, as well as accidents, natural disasters, rising terrorism, and dominant countries reliance to the foreign oil supply.[1] The limited supplies, uneven distribution, and rising costs of fossil fuels, such as oil and gas, create a need to change to more sustainable energy sources in the foreseeable future. |
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| The first oil shock took place in 1973 when the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries jointly raised oil prices and begin a temporary embargo on the US and other allies in response to their support of Israel during the Yom Kippur War. With the U.S. actions seen as initiating the oil embargo and the long term possibility of high oil prices, disrupted supply and recession, a strong rift was created within NATO. Additionally, some European nations and Japan sought to disassociate themselves from the U.S. Middle East policy. Arab oil producers had also linked the end of the embargo with successful U.S. efforts to create peace in the Middle East, which complicated the situation. Industrialized economies relied on crude oil, and OPEC was their predominant supplier. Because of the dramatic inflation experienced during this period, a popular economic theory has been that these price increases were to blame, as being suppressive of economic activity. A minority dissenting opinion questions the causal relationship described by this theory.[2] The targeted countries responded with a wide variety of new, and mostly permanent, initiatives to contain their further dependency. The 1973 "oil price shock", along with the 1973–1974 stock market crash, have been regarded as the first event since the Great Depression to have a persistent economic effect.[3]Prior to the embargo, the geo-political competition between the Soviet Union and the United States, in combination with low oil prices that hindered the necessity and feasibility for the West to seek alternative energy sources, presented the Arab States with financial security, moderate economic growth, and disproportionate international bargaining power.[48] Following the embargo, higher oil prices instigated new avenues for energy exploration or expansion including Alaska, the North Sea, the Caspian Sea, and Caucasus. Growing fears about eventual Western energy independence, various security threats, and the absence of a Western rival in the geo-political competition over the Middle-East led the Arab states in a more dependent relationship with the West. This is most explicit in Saudi Arabia's consistent policy of price and production moderation in an effort to reduce the chances of Western alienation and the opportunity costs for alternative energy production.[55] The exchange for Western moderation in Arab-Israeli affairs ultimately led to a reshaping of the Middle-Eastern geo-political landscape that was significantly less advantageous than prior to 1973. |
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| In the wake of the IRanian revolution when Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran (put in place by the US CIA) was overpowered by Ayatollah Khomeini.rotests severely disrupted the Iranian oil sector, with production being greatly curtailed and exports suspended. When oil exports were later resumed under the new regime, they were inconsistent and at a lower volume, which pushed prices up. Saudi Arabia and other OPEC nations, under the presidency of Dr. Mana Alotaiba increased production to offset the decline, and the overall loss in production was about 4 percent.[2] However, a widespread panic resulted, added to by the decision of U.S. President Jimmy Carter to order the cessation of Iranian imports,[3] driving the price far higher than would be expected under normal circumstances.However, a boost in Middle East oil production led to an oil glut in the 1980s and very low prices. |
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the economic doctrine that says government's control of foreign trade is of paramount importance for ensuring the prosperity and security of a state. In particular, it demands a positive balance of trade. In thought and practice it dominated Western Europe from the 16th to the late-18th century.[1] Mercantilism was a cause of frequent European wars in that time. It also was a motive for colonial expansion.
Mercantilist policies have included:
High tariffs, especially on manufactured goods;
Monopolizing markets with staple ports;
Exclusive trade with colonies;
Forbidding trade to be carried in foreign ships;
Export subsidies;
Banning all export of gold and silver;
Promoting manufacturing with research or direct subsidies;
Limiting wages;
Maximizing the use of domestic resources;
Restricting domestic consumption with non-tariff barriers to trade. |
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The term Washington Consensus was coined in 1989 by the economist John Williamson to describe a set of ten relatively specific economic policy prescriptions that he considered constituted the "standard" reform package promoted for crisis-wracked developing countries by Washington, D.C.-based institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, and the US Treasury Department.[1] The prescriptions encompassed policies in such areas as macroeconomic stabilization, economic opening with respect to both trade and investment, and the expansion of market forces within the domestic economy.
1.Fiscal policy discipline, with avoidance of large fiscal deficits relative to GDP;
2.Redirection of public spending from subsidies ("especially indiscriminate subsidies") toward broad-based provision of key pro-growth, pro-poor services like primary education, primary health care and infrastructure investment;
3.Tax reform, broadening the tax base and adopting moderate marginal tax rates;
4.Interest rates that are market determined and positive (but moderate) in real terms;
5.Competitive exchange rates;
6.Trade liberalization: liberalization of imports, with particular emphasis on elimination of quantitative restrictions (licensing, etc.); any trade protection to be provided by low and relatively uniform tariffs;
7.Liberalization of inward foreign direct investment;
8.Privatization of state enterprises;
9.Deregulation: abolition of regulations that impede market entry or restrict competition, except for those justified on safety, environmental and consumer protection grounds, and prudential oversight of financial institutions;
10.Legal security for property rights. |
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Neomercantilism is a term used to describe a policy regime which encourages exports, discourages imports, controls capital movement and centralizes currency decisions in the hands of a central government. The objective of neo-mercantilist policies is to increase the level of foreign reserves held by the government, allowing more effective monetary policy and fiscal policy.
This is generally believed to come at the cost of lower standards of living than an open economy would bring at the same time, but offers the advantages to the government in question of having greater autonomy and control. China, Japan and Singapore are described as neo-mercantilist. It is called "neo-" because of the change in emphasis from classical mercantilism on military development, to economic development, and its acceptance of a greater level of market determination of prices internally than was true of classical mercantilism. |
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Globalisation refers to the widening and deepening of international social and economic relations brought about by new communications and transportation technologies.
It is the primary trend in global economics.
Types of globalisation:
Economic (most common): the greater ease of moving goods, capital and services across borders…
Technological: the rise of mass communication (radio, television, mobiles, wireless, internet, WWW, cloud computing…)
Social / Cultural: the coming together / fusion of different ideas, cultures, languages, customs, sports… |
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