The state: nation-state and national sovereignty

What is sovereignty?

Absolute authority

What is the nation state?

A sovereign territorially defined entity where cultural and political boundaries coincide

What are non-state actors?

Entities that operate across borders that are not affiliated with any government

What is globalisation?

The increasing interconnectedness and interdependence of states, economies and societies

What is economic globalisation?

The increasing intergration of national economies into a single interdependent global market

What is political globalisation?

The increasing integration and interdependence of governments and political systems around the world.

What is cultural globalisation?

The exchange of ideas, values and beliefs across different cultures and societies

What is homogenisation/monoculture?

The process of reducing diversity and making things standardised, monoculture is the result of this in which a dominant entity replaces a diverse one.

What is interconnectedness?

The complex web of social, economic and political relationships that bind communities and states together

What is world government?

The concept of a single, unified political authority with global jurisdiction

What is global governance?

The process of states and non-state actors cooperating to manage global issues

Why was the nation-state not inevitable?

Global politics hasn’t always been understood in terms of nation state, historically, various other political formations have shaped how societies organised and governed themselves.

What other political formations have existed apart from the nation-state?

• City-states

• Empires

• Asian conceptions of statehood

• Tribal societies

What did city-states consist of?

In Ancient Greece, politics was centered around individual cities like Athens and Sparta, which were small, self-governing communities that controlled surrounding territories but operated indepedently.

What did empires consist of?

Large empires, such as the Roman Empire or the Ottoman Empire, expanded across vast territories, ruling diverse people under a central authority without nationhood or fixed borders.

What did Asian Conceptions of Statehood consist of?

Political authority was historically defined by the people under a ruler’s control, not the land itself. Loyalty and hierarchy, rather than fixed borders, were the basis of political organisation e.g. Mandala system in Thailand

What did Tribal Societies consist of?

Many pre-modern and indeigenous societies, such as the Iroquois Confederacy in North America, organised themselves into tribal systems, where governance was collective, and authority was based on kinship and consensus rather than territorial control.

What was the Treaty of Westphalia?

It ended the Thirty Years’ war, a devastating conflict in Europe driven by religious and political rivalries between competing kingdoms.

What year did the Treat of Westphalia occur?

1648

How did The Thirty Years’ War demonstrate the need for a new system?

The chaos of the war (30% of the German population dying) under the ‘Christendom’ model where there was a single religious authority (The Pope and Roman Emperor) showed that a system of independent states with equal rights was needed.

What began the rise of the nation-state?

The Treaty of Westphalia

What did the Treaty of Westphalia consist of?

Setting out that Europe was divided into sovereign nation-states with clear borders, each having control over its territory and people; the mutual recognition of states.

What principle did the Treaty of Westphalia emphasise?

States shouldn’t interfere in the domestic affairs of other states

How did euopean colonialism spread the idea of the nation-state?

As European empires expanded, they exported the nation-state concept through colonialism. Colonised regions were often carved into artificial states with fixed border, irrespective of existing cultural/political structures

e.g. Africa was divided up between Euopean Empires in the 1884-85 Berlin Conference

What are the four central characteristics of the nation-state?

• Defined territory

• Permanent population

• Sovereign government

• Ability to engage with other states

What does a ‘defined territory’ refer to?

Clearly recognised borders within which it exercises control, its territory is central to the state’s identity and sovereignty, distinguishing it from other states.

What does a ‘permanent population’ refer to?

A stable population who live withins its borders, they share certain legal, cultural or historical bonds which contribute to the sense of national unity.

What does a ‘sovereign government’ refer to?

A centralised government that has authority over its internal affairs, making laws and enforcing them independently. The state is not subject to the authority of any other state or power.

What does the ‘ability to engage with other states’ refer to?

The recognised authority to engage in diplomacy, sign treaties and participate in international organisations.

Why is the ability to engage with other states?

It underscores the importance of international recognition in defining statehood. A nation-state’s sovereignty and legitimacy are not just self declared; they rely on recognition from the international community.

What is an example of a nation state being recognised solidifying its sovereignty?

South Sudan in 2011, despite ongoing internal conflict

What is an example of a nation state not being recognised within the international community?

Taiwan, despite having its own government, economy and defined territory is not widely recognised due to pressure from China, as a result its not a member of the UN.

What is citizenship?

Refers to a person’s legal status within a state, granting them rights and responsibilities.

What is nationality?

More about cultural or ethnic identity, often tied to shared history, language or heritage.

What are the tensions between nationality/identity and nation states?

Nation-states often contain multiple identities and nationalities within their borders, can lead to secessionist movements (political effort by a group to formally withdraw from an existing state), internal divisions and war.

What are the two dimensions to national sovereignty?

• Internal sovereignty

• External sovereignty

What does internal sovereignty refer to?

The state’s ability to manage its own affairs, including making and enforcing laws, maintaining orders, and managing its economy.

What does external sovereignty refer to?

The state’s recognition from other states and international bodies, allowing the state to engage in foreign policy etc

What are the main challenges to national sovereignty?

• Political globalisation

• Economic globalisation

• Rise of terrorist and separatist organisations

• Neocolonialism

How does political globalisation challenge national sovereignty?

Limits the state’s ability to exercise full sovereignty. Membership in IGOs often requires states to adhere to international agreements, which limits their full autonomy.

Regionalism can further erode national sovereignty as states cede contro to regional bodies in areas such as economic policy etc

What is an example of political globalisation challenging national sovereignty?

EU member states have ceded aspects of their sovereignty to the Euopean Union in areas like trade policy and law making via the Euopean Parliament and ECJ in exchange for economic benefits and collective security.

e.g. The EU launched investigations into Hungary’s ‘Sovereignty Proection Act’ arguing it goes again EU human rights law

How does economic globalisation challenge national sovereignty?

Limited nation-states independent control over their own economies, which are deeply interlinked with other countries. MNCs, with vast resources can pressure governments to adopt favorable policies that may conflict with national policies.

What is an example of economic globalisation challenging national sovereignty?

Apple has pressured countries like Ireland to maintain low coporate tax rates, which align with the company’s interests but have sparked conflict with the EU prioritising tax fairness.

How does the rise in terrorist and separatist organisations challenged national sovereignty?

Challenging a state’s control over its own territory and undermining its authority, can also lead to international interventions to tackle the terrorist organisations that compromise state sovereignty.

Separatist movements seek independence or greater autonomy, destabilising the nation-state’s territorial intergrity.

What is an example of the rise in terrorist and separatist organisations challenging national sovereignty?

ISIS gained control in parts of Syria and Iraq between 2014 and 2019, prompting international military interventions, such as the US led coalition airstrikes

The Catalonian indepdence movement in Spain escalated in 2017 with an illegal referndum and a declaration of independence.

How has neocolonialism challenged national sovereignty?

States, particularly in the developing world, may find their sovereignty compromised by more powerful nations or NGOs, which wield influence through development aid.

Humanitarian intervention, often justified on the grounds of protecting human rights, can violate a nation’s external sovereignty when foreign states intervene in domestic affairs.

What does neocolonialism refer to?

The indirect control or influence that powerful states exert over weaker states, often through economic pressures, political interference.

What is an example of neocolonialism challening national sovereignty?

China’s Belt and Road initiative has been criticised, where countries like Sri Lanka have become heavily indebted to China for infrastructure projects, leading to economic pressure and the transfer of control over strategic assets e.g. Hambanota Port

In 2017, UN and African Union intervened in South Sudan with peacekeeping forces to adress the ongoing civil war and humanitarian crisis.

How can the Russian invasion of Ukraine be related to national sovereignty?

Russia’s military incursion aimed to exert control over Ukraine’s territory, citing security concerns and historical ties, and challenging Ukraine’s right to self governance and territorial integrity. Ukraine still fighting to maintain its independence and control over its borders, while Russia seeks to redraw borders.

How does the Russian invasion of Ukraine underscore the significant role that global powers play in the recognition of sovereignty?

Since the invasion, Ukraine has mounted a significant defence with the support of the international community, receiving military aid from NATO countries and economic sanctions being imposed on Russia. All these international organisations and states recognise Ukraine’s right to territorial sovereignty.

How can Brexit be related to national sovereignty?

Many advocates for Brexit argued that the UK’s membership in the EU compromised its sovereignty, particularly in areas like immigration, law making and trade policy. Brexit was seen as a reassertion of the UK’s national sovereignty, with some arguing it restored the UK’s ability to make decisions without external interference from EU institutions.

What is the Realist interpretation of the nation-state and sovereignty?

• View the nation state as the central and most powerful actor in an anarchic international system, where no overarching authority exists above states

• Sovereignty is absolute, meaning that states must protect their autonomy and security above all else, arguing that states exist in constant competition

• Skeptical of international bodies that constrain a state’s sovereignty, seeing them as tools used by powerful states to maintain dominance

What is the Liberal interpretation of the nation state and sovereignty?

• View the international system as capable of cooperation and governed by interdependence

• Sovereignty is important but not absolute, can be voluntarily shared or pooled to achieve mutual gains

• Rather than states being in constant competition, they see international relations as a place where states can pursue peace and prosperity through diplomacy etc

How do Liberals and Realists agree on the nation state and sovereignty?

• The importance of the nation-state as a crucial actor in global polictics and on the significance of sovereignty in maintaining state autonomy and governance

• Both acknowledge the existence of an international system where states interact and sometimes cooperate

How do Liberal and Realists disagree on the nation-state and sovereignty?

• Realists emphasis the primacy of state sovereignty abd the need for states to guard it, while liberals believe sovreignty can be shared to address global challenges more effectively

• Realists are skeptical of IGOs seeing them as potential threats to sovereignty, whereas liberals view them as tools