IIR - Liberalism

What is liberalism?

The opposite of realism 

• War and conflict aren’t the core ways to act in the international system

• Instead trade, cooperation…

What does liberalism focus on?

• Democracy

• Free trade

• Liberal values

What are the liberal international foundations?

The Hague Convention of 1899 & 1907

What came from the international conference?

A series of international treaties

Who was there?

Russia, Asia, Europe

What did they discuss?

• the spiralling of war into further cruelty (targeting soldiers AND civilians)

• how to manage the war

• ways to limit the inevitability of conflict

Who where these laws/ rights later used by?

The League of Nations

What was the New Liberal International Order?

• G20 established after 1997

What did G20 promote?

Economic openness and democratic solidarity

What are the origins of liberalism?

a historical alternative to realism

Where are the roots of liberalism?

In international law

Who are the main thinkers during the 16th - 17th century?

1. Grotius

2. Gentil

3. Benham

What were the main ideas of liberalism during the 16th century?

states should also be bounded by morality and law

Who were the main thinkers of economic ideas during the 18th-19th century?

1. Adam Smith

2. Guizot

3. Cobden 

What were the main ideas of the economic thinkers?

Cooperation was thanks to trade & mutual gains

Who were the main thinkers of the enlightenment?

1. Locke

2. Kant

3. Mill

What were the main ideas of enlightenment thinkers?

Human reason and progress are important in cooperation to avoid conflict

Liberalism a theory or ideology? Define theory & ideology

Explanatory or normative?

• Theory = to understand the world

• Ideology = norms and ways to work

—> Woodrow Wilson 14 point plan + League of Nations

What assumptions do realists and liberals share?

1. anarchy is the default setting

2. Rational, self interest

3. Equal sovereignty among states

What are liberal assumptions?

• Progress and change can happen but they are not automatic and natural - a rational learning process

• Distribution of preferences matters more than distribution of power 

What is the name of the triangle used in liberalist thining?

Kantian virtuous triangle

Where does the Kantian triangle come from?

Hanseatic League - a successful trade union

What are the 3 corners of the Kantian virtuous triangle?

1. Democracy

2. Economic Interdependence

3. International Institutions 

1. Explain liberalist democracy

Unlike realism, not all units are similar

Give some examples as to why liberalists believe not all units are similar

• different political regimes (they believe in democracy)

• “civil constitutions of every state should be republican” - Kant

• assume that democracies are less likely to engage in conflicts

• democracies are more peaceful than dictatorships

What 2 constraints make democracies more peaceful than dictatorships?

1. Norms = conflicts are resolved peacefully by negotiations & compromise

2. Institutions = leaders are held responsible for the costs & benefits of war

2. Explain why economic interdependence is important for liberalists.

Sustained communication interactions limits conflict:

1. medium of communication

2. Risks and costs

3. International organisations

Why is a medium of communication important

1. share knowledge on needs and preferences = TRUST

2. Understanding of mutual interest & gains (not relative)

Why is risks and costs important?

1. conflict endangers access to markets and trade

2. The larger the trade, the more shared interest in preserving peaceful relations

3. Why are international organisations important

1. The number of IO’s have increased and before more effective/ varied 

2. They promote peace & cooperation

List 4 ways international institutions promote peace & cooperation

1. provide forums for discussion

2. identifying norms

3. reducing uncertainty

4. cooperation to demonstrate shared gains

What was liberalism called during the interwar period?

Idealism/ classical realism - (utopianism by EH Carr)

Who was the main thinker?

Woodrow Wilson’s 14 point plan

What did Woodrow Wilson say

The need for a world government

What is meant by a world governance

• Peace is not automatic but an outcome of conscious effort

• Conditions for domestic order need to be reproduced at the international level

• A harmony of interests

• International organisations & rules (League of Nations)

• Enforced by collective security 

What are the practical issues with harmony of interests/ world governance

• self-interest and sovereignty 

• limited consensus among states

What was the post WW2 period called

Liberal institutionalism (neoliberalism)

What were the 2 developments in post WW2 period

1. The realist challenging liberals (Carr, Morgenthau, then Waltz)

2. Development of international institutions and interdependence (UN, EU, WTO)

Who was the thinker behind neoliberalism/ liberal institutionalism?

Keohane 1984

What did realists and neoliberals agree on?

They agreed with some realist ideas:

1. States are the main/ unitarity actors

2. States are rational

3. States seek self-interest

What did neoliberals not believe (not agree with realists)?

1. Anarchic system is not durable

2. Cooperation is possible

3. Institutions mitigate concerns & reduce transactional costs

4. Mutual and absolute gains '(vs. relative or realists)

What is meant by liberal triumphalism?

• a drop in conflicts

• increase in global trade

• increase in number of democracies

Who are the thinkers behind liberal triumphalism?

• Pinker

• Fukuyuma

What theory was used in the post-Cold War period

also liberal internationalism

What was experienced after the cold war

Liberal International Order = also liberal triumphalism (Pinker & Fukuyuma)

• drop in conflict

• increased global trade

• increased number of democracies

What is the Liberal International Order?

A set of global agreements and institutions (about trade, arms…) set up by organisations like the UN, EU…

= increased multilateral cooperation

Who was the thinker behind the Liberal International Order?

Ikenberry 2001

What are the 3 pillars of liberal internationalism post cold war?

1. Liberal democracy

2. Free markets

3. Human rights 

What were the tensions that arose from liberal international

• Is the Liberal International Order really liberal, orderly, or universal?

• Clashing of liberal norms (sovereignty vs promotion of democracy)

• End of cold war and ideological opposition (e.g. communism)

• Rise of new powers within a outside ILO (China, India.. = not democracies)

• False promise of international institutions (Mearsheimer)

  • State interests always took priority 

What is the Democratic Peace Theory

That democracies don’t go to war with each other

Strong Empirical regularity 

Who is the thinker behind the Democratic Peace Theory

Kant

Why do democracies not go to war with each other?

• shared norms, identities, values

Do democracies go to war?

YES - against other political systems (tyrannies, autocracies…)

What are some ‘disclaimers’ to keep in mind

• there has only been a small sample of recent democracies that don’t go to war with each other

• they are in a peaceful neighbourhood

• not all democracies are the same (politically and economically) = democratic? peace thoery

What are different explanations from Europe going from conflict to peace?

1. democratic peace thoery - the actual role of democracy

2. or democratic peace theory - other factos 

What other factors could explain Europe’s move to peace?

• economic integration

• regional institutions

• security factors: US support, NATO, balancing USSR

What did Clinton say 1994

the best strategy to ensure security to to support the advance of democracy else where - democracies dont attack each other

Give an example with Bush

Neoconservatism & Iraq war 2003 (liberal interventionism)

Where can contradictions be found

Between explanatory and policy/ normative objectives