UC Berkeley Poli Sci 5 Hyde Final studying cards

Sovereignty (as defined in textbook)

States have legal and political supremacy or ultimate authority within their territorial boundaries.

For example, domestic affairs in State A can be resolved in whatever way State A desires and no other state should interfere.

Sovereign states are important in the domain of International Relations as it sets clear norms across all states in the anarchic state of international politics.

Interstate war

A war in which the main participants are states. Compare civil war.

Civil war

A war in which the main participants are within the same state, such as the government and a rebel group. Compare interstate war and terrorism.

Security Dilemma

A dilemma that arises when efforts that states make to defend themselves cause other states to feel less secure; can lead to arms races and war because of the fear of being attacked.

Crisis Bargaining

A bargaining interaction in which at least one actor threatens to use force in the event that its demands are not met. Compare coercive diplomacy.

Coercive Diplomacy

The use of threats to advance specific demands in a bargaining interaction. Compare crisis bargaining.

Resolve

The willingness of an actor to endure costs in order to acquire a particular good.

Credibility

Believability. A credible threat is a threat that the target believes will be carried out. A credible commitment is a commitment or promise that the recipient believes will be honored.

Brinkmanship

A strategy in which adversaries take actions that increase the risk of accidental war, with the hope that the other will "blink" (lose its nerve) first and make concessions.

Audience costs

Negative repercussions for failing to follow through on a threat or to honor a commitment.

Preventive war

A war fought with the intention of preventing an adversary from becoming stronger in the future. Preventive wars arise because a state whose power is increasing cannot commit not to exploit that power in future bargaining interactions. Compare preemptive war.

Preemptive war

A war fought with the anticipation that an attack by the other side is imminent. Compare preventive war.

Democratic peace

The observation that there are few, if any, clear cases of war between mature democratic states.

Accountability

The ability to punish or reward leaders for the decisions they make, as when frequent, fair elections enable voters to hold elected officials responsible for their actions by granting or withholding access to political office.

Balance of power

A situation in which the military capabilities of two states or groups of states are roughly equal.

Bandwagoning

A strategy in which states join forces with the stronger side in a conflict.

entrapment

The condition of being dragged into an unwanted war because of the opportunistic actions of an ally.

Collective security organization

Broad-based institutions that promote peace and security among their members. Examples include the League of Nations and the United Nations. Compare alliances.

Peace-enforcement operation

A military operation in which force is used to make and/or enforce peace among warring parties that have not agreed to end their fighting. Compare peacekeeping operation.

peacekeeping operation

An operation in which troops and observers are deployed to monitor a cease-fire or peace agreement. Compare peace-enforcement operation.

terrorism

The use or threatened use of violence against noncombatant targets by individuals or nonstate groups for political ends. Compare civil war.

asymmetrical warfare

Armed conflict between actors with highly unequal military capabilities

separatist

An actor that seeks to create an independent state on territory carved from an existing state. Compare irredentist.

irredentist

An actor that seeks to detach a region from one country and attach it to another

proxy wars

Conflicts in which two opposing states "fight" by supporting opposite sides in a war

comparative advantage

The ability of a country or firm to produce a particular good or service more efficiently than it can produce other goods or services

absolute advantage

The ability of a country or firm to produce more of a particular good or service than other countries or firms can produce with the same amount of effort and resources. Compare comparative advantage.

protectionism

The imposition of barriers to restrict imports.

reciprocity

In international trade relations, a mutual agreement to lower tariffs and other barriers to trade. Reciprocity involves an implicit or explicit arrangement for one government to exchange trade-policy concessions with another.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

An institution created in 1995 to succeed the GATT and to govern international trade relations. The WTO encourages and polices the multilateral reduction of barriers to trade, and it oversees the resolution of trade disputes. Compare General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

regional trade agreements (RTAs)

Agreements among three or more countries in a region to reduce barriers to trade among themselves.

Foreign direct Investment (FDI)

Investment in a foreign country via the acquisition of a local facility or the establishment of a new facility. Direct investors maintain managerial control of the foreign operation. Compare portfolio investment.

World Bank

An important international institution that provides loans at below-market interest rates to developing countries, typically to enable them to carry out development projects.

austerity

The application of policies to reduce consumption, typically by cutting government spending, raising taxes, and restricting wages.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

A major international economic institution established in 1944 to manage international monetary relations. It has gradually reoriented itself to focus on the international financial system, especially debt and currency crises.

multinational corporation (MNC)

An enterprise that operates in a number of countries, with production or service facilities outside its country of origin.

exchange rate

The price at which one currency is exchanged for another.

central bank

The institution that regulates monetary conditions in a country's economy, typically by raising or lowering interest rates and the quantity of money in circulation.

fixed exchange rate

An exchange-rate policy under which a government commits itself to keeping its currency at or around a specific value relative to another currency or a commodity, such as gold. Compare floating exchange rate.

Bretton Woods monetary system

The monetary order negotiated among the World War II Allies in 1944, which lasted until the 1970s and which was based on a U.S. dollar tied to gold. Other currencies were fixed to the dollar but were permitted to adjust their exchange rates.

less developed countries (LDCs)

Countries at a relatively low level of economic development.

infrastructure

Basic structures necessary for social activity, such as transportation and telecommunications networks, and power and water supply.

primary products

Raw materials and agricultural products, typically unprocessed or only slightly processed. The primary sectors are distinguished from secondary sectors (industry) and tertiary sectors (services).

oligopoly

A situation in which a market or industry is dominated by a few firms.

terms of trade

The relationship between a country's export prices and its import prices.

import-substituting industrialization (ISI)

A set of policies, pursued by most developing countries from the 1930s through the 1980s, to reduce imports and encourage domestic manufacturing, often through trade barriers, subsidies to manufacturing, and state ownership of basic industries. Compare export-oriented industrialization.

export-oriented industrialization (EOI)

A set of policies, originally pursued in the mid-1960s by several East Asian countries, to spur manufacturing for export, often through subsidies and incentives for export production. Compare import-substituting industrialization.

Group of 77

A coalition of developing countries in the UN, formed in 1964 with 77 members, that seeks changes to the economic order to favor the developing world. It has grown to over 130 members but retains the original name.

commodity cartels

Associations of producers of commodities (raw materials and agricultural products) that restrict world supply of their products and thereby cause the price of their goods to rise.

international law

A body of rules that binds states and other agents in world politics and is considered to have the status of law.

international humanitarian law (laws of war)

A body of rules that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict, protect noncombatants, and restrict means and methods of warfare for humanitarian reasons.

customary international law

International law that usually develops slowly, over time, as states come to recognize practices as appropriate and correct.

obligation

The degree to which states are legally bound by an international rule. High-obligation rules must be performed in good faith and, if breached, require reparations to the injured party.

precision

The degree to which international legal obligations are fully specified. More precise rules narrow the scope for reasonable interpretation.

delegation

The degree to which third parties, such as courts, arbitrators, or mediators, are given authority to implement, interpret, and apply international legal rules; to resolve disputes over the rules; and to make additional rules.

norms

Standards of behavior for actors with a given identity; norms define what actions are "right" or appropriate under particular circumstances.

norms entrepreneurs

Individuals or groups that seek to advance principled standards of behavior for states and other actors.

transnational advocacy network (TAN)

A set of individuals and nongovernmental organizations acting in pursuit of a normative objective.

norms life cycle

A three-stage model of how norms diffuse within a population and achieve a taken-for-granted status.

private authority

An expression of legitimate rulemaking by nonstate actors in international affairs, including the establishment of norms governing the behavior of private global actors such as multinational corporations and international NGOs.

boomerang model

A process through which NGOs in one state are able to activate transnational linkages to bring pressure from other states on their own governments.

human rights

The rights possessed by all individuals by virtue of being human, regardless of their status as citizens of particular states or members of a group or organization.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

A declaration, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948, that is defined as a "common standard of achievement for all peoples" and forms the foundation of modern human rights law.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)

The agreement, completed in 1966 and in force from 1976, that details the basic civil and political rights of individuals and nations. The ICCPR and ICESCR together are known as the "twin covenants."

International Bill of Rights

The UDHR, ICCPR, and ICESCR collectively. Together, these three agreements form the core of the international human rights regime.

nonderogable rights

Rights that cannot be suspended for any reason, including in cases of social or public emergency.

prisoners of conscience (POCs)

Individuals imprisoned solely for the peaceful expression of their beliefs. The term was coined by the human rights organization Amnesty International.

International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)

The agreement, completed in 1966 and in force from 1976, that specifies the basic economic, social, and cultural rights of individuals and nations. The ICCPR and ICESCR together are known as the "twin covenants