Final Exam
Chapter 6: War and Security (March 13th)
National Security
· National security: state’s ability to protect its interests, secrets, and citizens from external and internal threats
o Traditionally focused on military threats
o Today also encompasses other threats:
§ Economic
§ Environmental
§ Cyberspace
Military Security and War
· In the past 3,400 years, the world has been entirely at peace for only 268 of them
· War death estimates range from 150 million to 1 billion
· Over 108 million were killed in the twentieth century
· Following the world wars and the Korean War, war incidence and intensity has declined
o Yet, according to the Global Peace Index, the global level of peace had deteriorated by 2.5 percent since 2008
· The twenty-first century has seen a significant increase in the number of casualties from internal conflicts
What is War?
· War is an organized and deliberate political act by an established political authority that must cause 1,000 or more deaths in a 12-month period and involved at least two actors capable of harming each other
o Genocides, massacres, terrorist attacks, and pogroms are usually not counted as war
· The question of how to define was has real-life consequences
Types of War
· Interstate War: between states, which have recognizable leadership and locations and formal militaries
· Intrastate War/Civil War: between factions within the state over control of territory or institutions; may have international repercussions and can last decades
o Often last a long time with periods of fighting punctuated by periods of calm
o Both combatants and civilians are killed and maimed
o Often accompanied by significant humanitarian problems
· Conventional War: are fought by people chosen, trained, and authorized to attack or defend against their counterparts
o Off-limits to kill some groups, usually women, children, the elderly, and other noncombatant civilians
o Fought with conventional weapons, the destructiveness of which could be limited in space and time
§ World War I and II challenged this type of war as the standard way of fighting
· Weapons of mass destruction and strategic bombing led to large-scale harm of noncombatants
· Unconventional Warfare: disregards restrictions on legitimate targets of violence
o Has become increasingly prominent due to nationalism and guerilla warfare
o Often used in asymmetric conflicts – conflicts conducted between parties of unequal strength
§ Mao Zedong and the People’s Liberation Army during the Chinese Civil War (1927-37, 1945-49)
o Asymmetric conflicts sometimes feature nonviolent resistance
§ Places ordinary people at grave risk of harm in the pursuit of political objectives
§ Gandhi’s resistance to British rule
· Nonconventional warfare restricts weapon
· Terrorism
o Elements
§ Political by nature or intent
§ Committed by nonstate actors
§ Noncombatant target
§ Unconventional means used in unpredictable places and at unpredictable intervals
o Motivated by political, religious, or economic goals
o Seeks to instill fear to attain goals
· Transformation of Terrorism since the 1990s
o Attacks have become more lethal
o Choice of weapons has become more diverse
o More efficient infrastructure for terrorist networks like ISIS
§ Examples: electronic money laundering; funding via illegal activities; internet recruiting
o Wider range of groups: nationalist, radical religious, Neo-Nazi, left- and right-wing
o State sponsors, such as Iran, Sudan, Syria, and Iraq
o Western states with all the freedoms they grant to their citizens find domestic terrorism difficult to deal with
· Cyberwarfare: refers to state actions taken to penetrate another state’s cyberspace in order to cause damage or disruption
The Causes of War
· Realist Interpretations of the Causes of War
o States exist in an anarchic system, with no overarching authority to provide security or settle disputes
§ Only coercive authority can create laws, resolve disputes, or enforce law and order
§ Wars break out when nothing prevents them
o Wars often occur over contested territory or over competing claims to self-determination
o Wars can often be attributed to the “incorrect” distribution of power in the international system
§ Kenneth Organski’s power transition theory: an even distribution of power (especially the point of transition) increases the likelihood of war
· Rising power solidifying its position
· Predominant power started a preventive war
· Liberal Interpretations of the Causes of War
o Liberals tend to focus more on the characteristics of the state and institutions (both domestic and international)
§ Plato: cohesive population and economic prosperity are associated with peace
§ Kant: democracy, interdependence, and institutions foster peace
o Democratic peace theory: democracies don’t fight each other but are as prone as nondemocracies
§ Democracies share norms of compromise and cooperation and externalize these norms
§ Democratic institutions and transparency in decision making provides leaders with trust that the commitments made will be upheld
o Commercial peace theory: economic interdependence fosters peace
§ States desire continued economic benefits
§ Wars interrupt trade and block profits
o International institutions promote peace
§ International institutions help build positive connections between states
§ International institutions increase interdependence
o A lack of shared membership in institutions might increase the possibility of conflict as nonmembers might feel threatened by the connections forged between members states
· Constructivist Interpretations of the Causes of War
o Identities matter; they influence states’ belligerence or lack thereof
§ Switzerland vs. North Korea
o Threats are socially constructed
o Different types of socialization can lead to different outcomes by altering perceptions of threat
§ Example: Canada might consider North Korea as more of a threat than the United States, even though the latter has greater relative power than North Korea
Preventing War and Managing State Security
· Realist Approaches to Preventing War (Read about it)
o Power Balancing
o Deterrence
· Liberal Approaches to Preventing War
o Have a theory that imagines a world without war
o International anarchy can be mitigated by:
§ International institutions that institutionalize cooperation
§ States’ self-interest, which lies in cooperating with others
§ “Good” systems of governance (economically open democracies)
o The Collective Security Ideal
§ Wars are caused by aggressive states
§ Aggressors must be stopped
§ Aggressors are easily identified
§ Aggressors are always morally wrong
§ Aggressors know ahead of time that the international community will act against them
· Therefore they are deterred
o Arms Control and Disarmament
§ Fewer weapons means greater security
§ Regulating arms proliferation (arms control), reducing the number of arms, and limiting the types of weapons employed (disarmament) should reduce security dilemmas
· Constructivist Approaches to Preventing War (read about it)
Laws of War (March 20th)
· Jus ad Bellum-The Just War Tradition
o Just conditions for entering into war:
§ Just cause: self-defense, defense of others, massive violation of human rights
§ Declaration of intent by appropriate authority
§ Intentions of ending abuses and establishing a just peace
§ Must have exhausted all other alternatives
o Forces must be removed quickly after objectives are achieved
· Jus in Bello-The Just War Tradition
o Just conduct in war
§ Distinguish between combatants and noncombatants
§ Noncombatants protected from harm (noncombatant immunity)
§ Violence proportionate to the ends to be achieved
· Civilian loss of life, damage to property, incidental to attack must not be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage expected to be gained
· Can be tied to type of weapon
§ Undue human suffering avoided
· Prohibited to employ weapons projectiles and materials and methods of warfare of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering (Article 1 of Genevea Convention)
· 4 Principles of Targeting
o Military necessity (2nd official doctrine)
§ Prohibits things in war such as injuring or permanently inhibiting an opponent out of necessity
§ Protects what happens at the end of the war
· Cyberwarfare and “Just” War
o Cyberwarfare adds a new dimension to just way theory and raises a series of questions
§ Is a cyberattack prohibited under international law?
§ Can the attacked party retaliate? If so, how?
§ Does a cyberattack constitute an act of war?
Chapter 7: International Cooperation and International Law
International Cooperation
· Actors mutually adjust their behavior to accommodate the actual or anticipated preferences of others in the pursuit of common goals
· Preferences are not always…
o Identical
o Irreconcilable
Realism and the Cooperation Problem
· Cooperation can be difficult to achieve
o Relative gains: states can be hesitant to cooperate when one side reaps larger benefits of cooperation
o The problem of cheating, of the prisoner’s dilemma: cooperative/nice behavior can be taken advantage of
§ Knowing that the incentive to cheat exists, each side is driven away from the choice to cooperate
· Relative gains: how much more one state gains over another in an interaction
o All power is relative: a gain in power for one state relative to another means it is better able to coerce that other state
o The benefits of cooperation are unlikely to be evenly distributed among participating states
o States try to prevent relative power gains
Neoliberal Institutionalism and Cooperation
· Despite systemic anarchy; states often cooperate because cooperation may be in their self-interest
o States interact continuously and can reciprocate both cooperation and cheating
o The expectation of reciprocity makes cooperation a rational choice
o Shadow of the future: states except that they will have repeated interactions
§ For example, the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement creates expectations of consistent future interactions
· International institutions foster cooperation by encouraging reciprocity
o Institutions make cooperative e and noncooperative behavior easier to identify
o Institutions can provide states with information about the behavior of others
o Institutions enable states to align their expectations about what cooperative behavior looks like
Other Liberal Explanations of Cooperation
· Human nature and human ability to learn from history encourage cooperation
· Kantian triangle of peace:
o Democracy: transparency and internal practices mitigate other states’ fears of cheating
o Economic interdependence and its benefits lessen incentives for and likelihood of conflict
o International institutions foster cooperation as they:
§ Facilitate the negotiation of agreements by lowering opportunity and transaction costs
§ Help coordinate their member states’ behavior
§ Make states’ commitments more credible
Constructivism and Cooperation
· “anarchy is what state make of it”
o Cooperation is most likely between states with convergent identities
o States can be socialized to norms of cooperation
o Shared democratic identities and norms can foster cooperation
o A norm of cooperation can develop
International Law
· Consists of a body of rules and norms regulating interactions among states, between states and IGOs, and in more limited cases, among IGOs, states, and individuals
· Sources of international law:
o Customs-ingrained habits, usually by groups of states or a hegemon
§ Customary International Law (example law of war, safe harboring)
· Binding on all countries whether they agreed to it or not
§ General Principles of Law (not actual legal rules)
· Created through historical presence
· Example: right to trial, consult with legal advocate, being innocent until proven guilty(varying degrees)
o Treaties-binding written agreements that lay out rights and obligations
§ Usually required ratification
o Judicial Decisions and Scholarly Articles (same level)
§ No such thing as binding precedent (no common law)
· International Court of Justice
Enforcement Mechanisms and State Compliance
· States are sovereign actors, and compliance with international law is clearly not absolute
o The U.S. invasion of Iraq (2003) violated the UN Charter
· Yet, most of the time, states do not comply with international law
Vertical Enforcement
· A legal process whereby one actor works to constrain the actions of another actor over which it has authority in order to secure its compliance with the law
o Example: institutional enforcement by European Court of Justice or International Court of Justice
· Can also occur from the bottom up when national courts invoke universal jurisdiction
· Threat of punishment motivates compliance
Horizontal Enforcement
· States work to elicit compliance with international law by other states
o Power: states comply with international law because more powerful states make them
o Reciprocity/tit for tat: the desire to reap the gains of cooperation will incentivize states to comply with the laws
Self-Interest
· Compliance or lack thereof depends on whether compliance is in the interest of the states in question
· States benefit from participating in making the rules through treaties because that enables them to ensure the rules are in their interest
· Compliance or lack thereof can also depend on states’ ability (bureaucratic, managerial, or otherwise) to comply
Normative and Ethical Explanations
· Constructivists and some liberals subscribe to normative explanations of compliance with international law
o States comply because:
§ It is the right thing to do
§ International law reflects universal ethics
§ They desire to be seen as legitimate
International Criminal Law
· Concerns procedural and substantive issues pertaining to fighting crime
o Mutual legal assistance treaties: coordinate cooperation between governments in evidence gathering, sharing information, tracking suspects or witnesses, etc.
o Extradition: process of delivering an individual from the territory of one state to another state for prosecution or to serve a sentence
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (additional notes from Paul)
· Named after the city in which it was signed
· Does not serve to prosecute countries
o Only individuals
· Developed following Yugoslavia and genocide in Rwanda
· Permanent sitting court
o Has things within jurisdiction they can try
· Quasi legal relationship with UN
o US wanted veto power (did not make it in)
§ Did not sign treaty
· Back up court that is incapable of carrying out or unwilling to serve justice
o US is capable
o “For certain countries” – according to UN when trying to sell the US on signing treaty
§ Africa
· Seat of the court in the Hag
· Jurisdiction:
o Genocide
§ Intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethical, racial, or religious group
o Crimes against humanity
§ Crimes committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack
o War crimes
§ Committed as part of a plan or policy or as part of a large-scale commissions
o The crime of aggression
§ Attacking people without cause
§ Planning, preparation, initiation, or execution, by a person in a position to exercise control over or to direct the political or military action of a State, of an act of aggression, which by its character, gravity, and scale, constitutes a manifest violation of the Charter of the United Nations
Chapter 8: International Political Economy
Globalization Defined
· Thomas Friedman
o “Inexorable integration of markets, nation-states, and technologies to a degree never witnessed before in a way that is enabling individuals, corporations and nation-states to reach around the world further, faster, deeper and cheaper than ever before”
· During the last decade, we have seen a reaction against globalization and economic liberalism
o Why?
Contending Theoretical Approaches to the International Political Economy
· Economic Liberalism
o Adam Smith: humans acting rationally, in a self-interested way, leads to benefits for all
o Minimal government intervention
o Freedom of trade between states
o Worldwide wealth is maximized by trade
o Key role for multinational corporations (MNCs) is to promote the internationalization of production
· Mercantilism
o Economic wealth as an instrument of state power
o Jean-Baptiste Colbert: states needed to accumulate gold and silver to guarantee power
o A strong central government was needed for efficient tax collection and for the maximization of exports, both geared toward guaranteeing military prowess
o Protectionism: measures to protect one’s own economy from foreign competition in the name of national interest
§ Restricting imports from other countries
· Economic Nationalism
o Powerful states compete economically; their economic policies are subservient to the national interest (defined as the quest for power)
o States should practice interventionism to strength their economy
o Trade is viewed as a zero-sum game
§ Not be dependent upon others
o National objectives trump collective global interests
o Economic nationalism resurged in the twenty-first century, reflecting a modern version of core mercantilist ideas
· Economic Radicalism
o A reaction to the excesses if the colonial period and the Industrial Revolution
o Marxism: society is conflictual
§ Competition and conflict between owners of means of production and workers
§ Capitalists accumulate resources at the expense of the working class and those in the developing world
The Role of States
· States can use a variety of tools to influence domestic and international economic policy
· Macroeconomic policies
o Fiscal policies: affect state budgets by setting spending levels and tax rates
o Monetary policies: control the money supply
· Microeconomics policies: policies on regulation, subsidies, competition, and antitrust actions
States in a Globalized World
· State actions do not occur in a vacuum
· Exchange rates: the price of currency in relation to another (floating/fixed rates)
· Trade policies
o Tariffs: taxes on goods and services crossing borders
§ Import tariff - surcharge on good coming in
§ Export tariff – charge a fee when something is leaving the country
o Nontariff barriers: restrictions on international trade designed to protect health, safety, or national security
· Current accounts: measure the net border flows between countries of goods. Services, government transfers, and income on capital investment
· Capital accounts: describe the flows of capital between countries, including foreign direct investment and portfolio investment in and out
· Balance of payments: a country’s current and capital account balances
o Surplus (Germany): the value of their exports is greater than the value of imports
o Deficit (the United States): the value of imports is greater than the value of exports
The Role of Multinational Corporations
· MNCs span state borders through trade and investment and/or actual presence
· There are about 60,000 MNCs; they account for 50 percent of worldwide trade
· Key engines of global economic growth
· Transmission belt for capital, ideas, economic interdependence, and growth
· Robert Gilpin: “embodiment par excellence of the liberal ideal of an interdependent world economy”
The Role of the Bretton Woods Institutions: World Bank
· During the 1950s, the World Bank shifted its emphasis from reconstruction to development
o Lends funds, with interest, for economic development projects
o Lending is designed not to replace private capital but to facilitate the use of private capital
o Much of its fundings has been used for infrastructure projects: hydroelectric dams and basic transportation needs such as bridges and highways
The Role of the Bretton Woods Institutions: International Monetary Fund
· The International Monetary Fund (IMF): provides stability in exchange rates
o Fixed exchanged rates
o Floating exchange rates (1976)
§ After the United States ended the convertibility of dollars to gold, monetary cooperation became the responsibility of the Group of 7 (G7)
· Short-term loans to countries facing temporary crisis
· Encouraging structural adjustments and providing policy advice on macroeconomic issues and economic restructuring
The Role of the Bretton Woods Institutions: General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
· The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT): enshrined liberal principles
o Support of trade liberalization
o Nondiscrimination in trade; most-favored-nation treatment
o Preferential access in developed markets for products from the Global South
o Support for the national treatment of foreign enterprises
· In 1995, GATT became a formal institution, renaming itself the World Trade Organization (WTO)
The Role of the Bretton Woods Institution: World Trade Organization
· The World Trade Organization (WTO) incorporated the general areas of jurisdiction of GATTs jurisdiction and expanded jurisdiction in services and intellectual property
· Regular ministerial meetings gave the WTO new political prominence
· The WTO:
o Represents that conduct over 90 percent of the world’s trade
o Serves as a forum for trade negotiations
o Provides a venue for trade review, dispute settlement, and enforcement
International Monetary Fund
· During the 1920s and after World War II, the value of the U.S. dollar was linked to gold
· In 1971, the dollar was taken off the gold standard
· The princes of each currency adjust continually in response to market supply and demand
· Currency trades average more than $3 trillion a day
· No global institution addressing monetary policy
o Central role of the United States and the U.S. dollar as the reserve currency
International Trade
· Trade is the major contributor to economic growth
· Liberal economics:
o States differ in their resources of land, labor, and capital
o Worldwide wealth is maximized if states engage in international trade
o Trading represents a win-win scenario
Comparative Advantage
· Comparative Advantage:
o Each state produces and exports what it can produce relatively more efficiently
o State import goods that tother states produce relatively more efficiently
o Trade and international wealth are maximized
o What problems do you see in the theory of comparative advantage?
· The Heckscher-Ohlin theory posits that countries will export goods that use the most intensive endowments of the state
North American Trade Agreements: Canada, the United States, and Mexico
· The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA, 1994) was renegotiated in 2020 and renamed the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)
o Comprises one dominant and two nondominant economies
o Idea driven by MNCs seeking larger market shapes than Japanese or European competitors as well as trade advances in all countries
o Phased elimination of tariff and nontariff barriers
o Not intended to lead to the free movement of labor
o Resulted in the expansion of trade and had a positive impact of U.S. GDP, adding 0.35 percent to the U.S. economy
International Development
· Developed countries (Global North): high consumptions, education, health services, welfare nets
· Least developed countries (Global South): poverty, struggle for basic needs
· Possible causes of development gap: colonialism, earlier industrialization of Europe, geography, poor government policies, unaccountable governments
Chapter 10: Human Rights
Religious, Philosophical, and Historical Foundations
· Human rights have a long history throughout some of the world’s most important religious and philosophical writings, and key historical documents
· Four major debates emerged over the year
o Are these really human rights?
o If human rights are universal, are the applicable to all peoples, in all states, religious, and cultures, without exception?
§ Cultural relativism: different rights are relevant in different cultural contexts
o Should some rights be prioritized over others?
o Who has the responsibility and the right to respond to violations of human rights?
Human Rights
· Basic concepts
o Political civil human rights: rights that states cannot take away (free speech, assembly)
o Economic and social human rights: rights that states should provide (health care, jobs)
o Collective rights of specific groups (minorities, women, and children)
Political and Civil Rights
· Political and civil rights that states should provide:
o Freedom of speech and assembly, security, and protection of the press
· Enshrined in historical documents, such as
o The Magna Carta (1215)
o The French Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789)
o U.S. Bill of Rights (1791)
· No individual should be deprived of these rights
Economic and Social Rights
· Rights that states should provide for individuals:
o Decent education, work, health care, and standard of living
o Rights with a focus on “the material”
· Heavily influenced by Karl Marx’s writings and critical social theorists
Collective Rights: The Rights of the Marginalized
· Broad spectrum of rights that states should provide to minorities and the historically marginalized as well as to the collective
o Consist of rights for refugees, ethnic minorities, women, indigenous peoples, and LGBTQIA+ individuals
o Include the right to development and the right to clean environment
· Highly contested in states and the international arena
Human Rights as Emerging International Responsibilities
· Antislavery movement
o 18th century abolitionists
o 1815 Congress of Vienna
o U.S. Civil War
o Spain abolished slavery in Cuba (1880)
o Brazil ended slaver (1888)
o The International Convention on the Abolition of Slavery ratified 1926\
· Henry Dunant pushed for ways to protect combatants
· Geneva Conventions form the core of International Humanitarian Law
o 1: protection of the wounded in the armed forces
o II: protection of the wounded at sea
o III: protection of prisoners of war
o IV: protection of noncombatants during wartime
· Slow evolution of human rights until World War II; the horrors of the war provided motivation to focus on human rights
· UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
o Statement on human right aspirations
· The International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
· The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
· These three documents are known as the International Bill of Rights
States as Protectors of Human Rights
· Westphalian tradition: states are primarily responsible for protection human rights standards within their own jurisdiction
· Many liberal democratic states support political and civil rights in their foreign policy Why is this?
o Realist explanation: states that share ideals will be positioned to trade with one another
o Liberal explanation: states desire those values and beliefs to be projected abroad
State Tactics to Protect Human Rights
· Using diplomacy by trying certain beliefs – usually economic or security related - to improvements in human rights
o Offering trade concessions or increased aid
o Punishing through sanctions
· Unilateral or multilateral use of force
States as Abusers of Human Rights
· Authoritarian or autocratic states are more likely to abuse politically and civil rights
· Less developed states may be unable or unwilling to meet basic obligations of social and economic rights due to scarce resources or lack or political will
· State security often prevails over individual rights
· Political-civil rights may be repressed in times of economic strife to divert attention from the economy
· Culture and history affect a state’s human rights record
The Role of the International Community – IGOs and NGOs
· Set of human rights standards (United Nations)
· Monitor standards
· Establish complaint procedures
· Compile reports on state behavior
· Investigate alleged violations
· Promote education about human rights (United Nations, nongovernmental organizations)
· Monitor elections; provide focal point via UN High Commissioners for Human Rights
· Enforce standards through embargoes and sanctions (United Nations, states)
· IGOs may, at times, respond to egregious humanitarian emergencies (United Nations, states)
The Key Role of Human Rights NGOs
· Constructivists: spread ideas
· Publicize issues and abuses
· Pressure states (offenders and enforcers)
· Lobby organizations (IGOs) capable of taking action
· Quicky disseminate information via the Internet
o Examples: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch
Enforcement Problems
· A state’s signature on treaties is no guarantee of its willingness or ability to enforce treaty provisions
· Monitoring via self-reporting presumes a willingness to comply and be transparent
o NGOs play a key role in monitoring
· Economic embargoes may not achieve changes in human rights policy and may hurt those whom embargoes are intended to help
· Military action may cause unintended casualties
Specific Human Rights Issues: Genocide and Mass Attrocities
Punishing the Guilty
· Ad hoc tribunals for Yugoslavia and Rwanda developed procedures to deal with issues involved in these case; jurisdictions, evidence, sentencing, and imprisoning
· International Criminal Court (ICC) covers four types of crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression
o No individuals are immune from jurisdiction, including heads of states and military leaders
o Many African heads of state feel unfairly targeted by the ICC
o Some states, including the United States, feel that the ICC impinges on state sovereignty and refuse to sign the treaty
o In the short term, the impact of the ICC has not been positive
Short answer: Globalization of Rights
The Debate Over Humanitarian Intervention and R2P
· Military action to stop massive violations of human rights may be just and necessary (humanitarian intervention)
o Contradicts and erodes the Westphalian view of state sovereignty
o Why do we see selective bias?
· Responsibility to protect (R2P)