Global Politics Exam #2

What is international law

a set of principles, rules, and agreements that regulate the behavior of states and other international actors

Why do we need international law

(1) a need to bring order to an international system of anarchy (2) a need for a secure international environment (3) a need for conflict resolution (4) a need to coordinate domestic laws in a global world.

What is the purpose of the UN?

promote the peace and security (the primary actor in international law is the United Nations) Formed in 1945 + with 193 members

The UN has six principal organs

(1) general assembly: all member states, (2) security council: has the most power, (3) economic and social council, (4) trusteeship council, (5) international court of justice, and (6) secretariat: administration (security general: Antonio Guterres) + an additional 15 agencies/programs

United Nations Security Council purpose

the only body that can make binding decisions relating to international security + contains permanent (5) and non-permanent (10) member states

United Nations Security Council permanent member states

U.S., UK, Russia, China, and France

(non-permanent member states, ten non members with 2yr terms)

How does voting with the UNSC work

(1) each council has one vote, (2) procedural matters need 9 of 15 votes to pass, (3) substantive matters need 9 of 15, including no veto from any of the 5 permanent members.

Other agencies and programs include

World Health Organization, UNICEF: UN Children’s Fund, Office of UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, Commission on Science and Technology, and Human Rights Council

Relationship between the UN and International Law

The UN has played a key role in fostering international law’s development + they sponsored more than 500 multilateral treaties & conventions, dealing with issues that range from the rights of children to tracking international terrorists.

What is Supranationalism

the delegation of authority from sovereign states to international institutions or organizations

What is national security

(1) the government protects the state and its people from threats

(2) states actively devise security policy to protect strategic interests, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. they also reduce and eliminate threats.

what is international security

(1) protects the interests of states in the international system

(2) international security pacts (mutual security pacts involving more than one state)

conflict

any antagonism between states, international organizations or nongovernment organizations

war

most violent type of conflict

great war

large scale war, usually of global scope.

nuclear proliferation

spread of nuclear weapons, technology, and/or materials

nuclear deterrence

maintenance of nuclear weapons with the intention not to use them, but to deter others from nuclear attack

domino theory

the international system resembles a row of dominos standing on end; if a single domino falls, so will the rest

security regime

a powerful country provides protection to other states in exchange for their cooperation

geopolitics

the theory and practice of using geography and territorial gains to achieve political power or seek security

China’s Professionalized Fighting Force

(1) Deng, Jiang, and Xi have succeeded in developing a professionalized force (2) modernizing military people, equipment, and weapons (3) produced a younger, better educated, and trained PLA with greater technical capabilities and improved weaponry

China’s Military Capabilities Today

(1) world’s largest military 2.5million (2) weapons: missile tech/nuclear weapons (3) skilled crafts include cyber-hacking, intelligence operations, and stealing U.S. secrets

Who has the most nuclear submarines (blue water capable military)

United States with 66

China’s Foreign Policy Goals

(1) preservation of china’s territorial integrity (2) recovery of lost territories considered to be apart of China (3) recognition of the CCP as the sole legitimate government of China

Need for Alternative Theories - Realism and Liberalism

Necessary

• both argue the primacy of the state in the international system

• they differ on actors involved and role of cooperation (interaction)

Sufficient

• both fail to explain how states define their interests

• both fail to explain why actors choose one pathway of interaction instead of another

Alternative International Relations Theories

• constructivism

• inequality-based theories (Marxism & feminism)

• political psychology

What is a good theory ?

• large explanatory power

• parsimony

• satisfying

• clearly framed

• falsifiable

• important

• prescriptive richness

what is constructivism?

meaning is socially constructed

• concepts have different meanings in different states

• meaning is situated in belief structure

• states develop their interests and notions of security in many different ways

Ex: Security in Japan and on the Korean peninsula

Regime type: Authoritarian vs. Democratic

• Realists do not differentiate

• liberals differentiate by regime type

• constructivists differentiate by state

Constructivism assumptions

• meanings are the product of our individual experiences, social norms, and historical experiences

• we are the product of our belief structure, value system, and history

• our beliefs, perceptions, and lessons define our worldviews

• our worldviews are shared by decision makers and other powerful actors

Constructivist Research

• interested in things like belief structures and changes in belief structures

• questions tend to span longer timeframe and dig deeper into the concepts and causes

inequality-based theories

inequality meaning

• unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on particular attributes

importance

• focus on inequality as dominant feature of international system

• inequality (ex: economic, social, and political) as the prime source of contradictions and international tensions

dominant types

class

• social and economic

• Marxism

Gender

• feminism

conflict

• solution to conflict = end inequality

Marxism

Origins

• Karl Marx regarded human history as driven by the struggle between classes—the haves and have nots

State

• the state is tool of dominant class used to oppress and exploit lower classes

Outcomes of Marxism

• rich oppress or exploit the poor

• rich state oppress or exploit the poor state

feminism

application to international relations

• gender injustice, political domination by men and the oppression of women, and shape international relations

feminism cont.

assumptions

• women do not have equal rights and opportunities; global changes are needed to achieve social justice

• most important positions of power have gone to men

• defense and security policies are rooted historically in a masculine culture that accepts war and violence

political psychology

defined

• study of the interactions between political and psychological factors in individual and group behavior

• focuses not just on institutions and states but also on individuals and groups as decision-makers

• bounds to rationality; limit options