The Global Interstate System and International Governance

Core Objectives and Framework of the Global Interstate System

  • Learning Objectives:

    • Explain the effects of globalization on governments.
    • Identify the institutions that govern international relations.
    • Differentiate internationalism from globalism.

  • Definition of the Global Interstate System:

    • Defined as an institutional arrangement of governance that addresses regional or globalized issues extending beyond the scope of an individual nation-state (Chase-Dunn, 1981).
    • Serves as the primary form of governance for globalization (Chase-Dunn, 1981).

  • Mechanics of the Interstate System:

    • Defined as a system of unequally powerful and competing states in which no single state is capable of imposing control on all others (Chase-Dunn, 1981:20).
    • States continuously interact through shifting alliances and wars.
    • Changes in the relative power of states upset temporary sets of alliances, leading directly to a restructuring of the global balance of power (Chase-Dunn, 1981:20).

Effects of Globalization on Governments

  • Shifting Role of Nation-States:

    • Increasing global interconnectedness across politics, trade, and communications forces the role of nation-states and governments to shift.
    • National and local policies are no longer formulated solely on local contexts; they are heavily shaped by international and global realities.

  • Positive Impacts and Global Cooperation: The Montreal Protocol:

    • Purpose: The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer aims to phase out the production of numerous chemical substances responsible for ozone depletion.
    • Signatures and Date: Signed on August 26, 1987, with 46 original country signatories (US EPA, 2017). Delegates from rich and poor nations approved the agreement on September 16, marking a milestone in international environmental cooperation.
    • Measurable Impact: NASA provided definitive evidence of the treaty's success, projecting that global ozone levels will return to 1980 baseline levels by the year 2032 (Watts, 2018).
    • Significance: Illustrates how international agreements and collective efforts can combat borderless environmental challenges specifically by domesticating international norms into national frameworks.

  • Negative Impacts on Local Governments and Local Communities:

    • Economic Drive: Local governments frequently seek to attract major global corporate investors (e.g., establishing local manufacturing plants) to generate tax revenue and create employment for local residents.
    • Land Displacement: Fulfilling corporate investment requirements often requires converting large tracts of agricultural land into designated industrial zones. Consequently, local farmers are displaced and regional agricultural production is severely disrupted.
    • Policy Concessions: Global corporations regularly demand significant concessions—such as reduced local tax rates and lower wage rates—as prerequisites for finalizing investments. Corporations argue that these concessions are offset by overall job creation and increased income for the local community and government.

Non-State Actors and Global Governance Institutions

  • Limitations of Nation-States:

    • Individual nation-states are limited in scale and scope when confronting complex regional and global issues such as climate change, cybercrime, and global financial crises.
    • Modern global governance places an increasing emphasis on the role of non-state actors (Dryzek, 2012; Castells, 2008).

  • Non-State Actors:

    • Includes Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), volunteer organizations, and special interest groups.
    • The expansion and proliferation of international organizations and non-state actors have restricted individual national sovereignty to a certain degree.

  • Major International Governing Institutions:

    • United Nations (UN):
    • Comprises 192 member states.
    • Functions as a central facilitator of global governance.
    • Features regional commissions made up of officials from diverse countries, tasked with making certain laws that promulgate rights for economic and social development.
    • World Bank (WB):
    • An international financial institution that provides loans to countries worldwide for capital projects.
    • Established during the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944.
    • International Monetary Fund (IMF):
    • Examines the stability of the international monetary system by monitoring the global economy, lending to countries, and providing policy and technical advisory functions to member states (Maverick, 2019; International Monetary Fund, 2019).
    • World Trade Organization (WTO):
    • Regulates international trade and ensures smooth flow of trade.
    • Provides a central forum for negotiating trade agreements among countries and regions of the world (International Monetary Fund, 2019).
    • World Health Organization (WHO):
    • Responsible for global research on medicines and vaccines.
    • Produces foundational global reports, including the World Health Report and Survey.
    • Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD):
    • Comprises 35 member countries.
    • Aims to stimulate economic progress and world trade by offering a platform for member states to compare policy experiences and identify good practices in domestic and international economic policies and programs.
    • United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):
    • Contributes to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through educational, scientific, and cultural reforms.
    • Specialized Regulatory Agencies:
    • International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO): Responsible for regulations of international air transport.
    • International Maritime Organization (IMO): Oversees shipping regulations and the prevention of pollution at sea.
    • International Telecommunication Union (ITU): Responsible for developing standards on Information and Communications Technology (ICT).
    • World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO): Regulates international standards for intellectual property rights.
    • Labor and Agriculture Organizations:
    • International Labor Organization (ILO): Deals with labor problems, sets international labor standards, and promotes social protection for workers.
    • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO): Leads international efforts to defeat hunger, eliminate food insecurity and malnutrition, and increase the resilience of livelihoods and food systems.

Conceptualizing Globalism versus Internationalism

  • Globalism:

    • Ideological Foundation: An ideology based on the belief that the flow of people, goods, and information should flow freely across national borders (Roudometof, 2005).
    • Primary Focus: Focuses primarily on the economic aspect of exchanges among countries and society (Sargent, 2008).

  • Internationalism:

    • Ideological Foundation: Defined as political, economic, and cultural cooperation between nations (Roudometof, 2005).
    • Primary Focus: Emphasizes diversity and celebrates multiculturalism, whereas globalism focuses more narrowly on the economic aspect of exchanges among countries and society (Sargent, 2008).