Chapter 8 Flashcards
State
a politically organized territory with: 1) a permanent population, 2) a defined territory, 3) a government, 4) to be a state, an it must be recognized as such by other states
Independent political entity occupying a defined permanently populated territory and having full sovereign control in their internal and external affairs
sovereignty- independence from control of its internal affairs by other countries
The United Nations
The most important global organization is the United Nations, created at the end of World War II by the victorious Allies
On occasion, the U N has intervened in conflicts between or within member states, authorizing military and peacekeeping actions
What are the goals of the UN?
The U N seeks to promote international cooperation to address global economic problems, promote human rights, and provide humanitarian relief
What are the largest states?
The largest state is Russia and at the other extreme are about two dozen microstates
How many members are in the UN?
When it was organized in 1945, the UN had only 51 members
As these areas gained independence, UN membership grew
With the admission of South Sudan i
n 2011, the number of UN members reached 193
Korea
The Korean peninsula is divided between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North) and the Republic of Korea (South)
After World War II, the victors divided Korea, which had been a colony of Japan for 35 years, into two occupation zones
- The united states and soviet union divided it into 2 occupation zones
- Soviet union set up a pro communist government in north Korea and a pro USA government in south Korea
Describe the challenges regarding north korea
North Korea invaded the South in 1950
3 year war that ended in a cease-fire
Both governments are committed to reuniting the country
However, both maintain that they are the one that should exercise sovereignty over the entire Korean peninsula
North Korea is one of the world’s poorest and most isolated countries
North Korea has built and tested nuclear weapons and long-range missiles
the country lacks the ability to provide its citizens with food, electricity, and other basic needs
Describe the challenges regarding China and taiwan
Most other countries consider China and Taiwan as separate and sovereign states
According to China’s government, Taiwan is not sovereign but a part of China
The government of Taiwan agrees
Chinese government asserts sovereignty over Taiwan and considers it a province of China but don’t control the political affairs
Taiwan doesn’t have legal soverignty
Taiwan has never declared independence from China
Taiwan government represents itself as the government of republic of China
In the late 1940s, the Nationalists and Communists entered a civil war, the Nationalists lost in 1949 and fled to Taiwan
The US government recognized Taiwan as the legitimate government in the 50s and 60s
In 1971 the UN transferred the seat to China (from Taiwan)
the United States followed by recognizing China as the official government
The Law of the Sea
signed by 167 countries, has standardized the territorial limits for most countries at 12 nautical miles
The Law of the Sea states also have exclusive rights to the fish and other marine life within 200 nautical miles
Disputes can be taken to a tribunal for the Law of the Sea or to the International Court of Justice
States that border an ocean can claim vast areas of ocean for defense and control of fishing areas
Sovereign rights for islands are important because then the country has control over resources
nation
is a group of people who are united by a common cultural characteristic (such as language or ethnicity)
nation-state
is a politically organized area in which nation and state occupy the same space
Examples today: Japan, Norway, Iceland, North Korea, Egypt
homogenous group of people who are governed by their state, all people who live their belong to the same nation)
Idea of nation states dates back to French revolution
What is the problem with a nation state?
Key problem associated with the idea of the nation-state is that it assumes the presence of reasonably well-defined, stable nations living in discrete territories
self determination
the concept that nations have the right to govern themselves
multinational state
is a state that contains more than one nation
In some states, nations all contribute cultural features to the formation of a single nationality
Cultural groups can coexist peacefully, remaining culturally distinct while recognizing and respecting the distinctive traditions of other groups
Canada is an example of a multinational state (but most States are multinational)
What are some challenges dismantling Multinational States?
Some multinational states face complex challenges in maintaining unity and preventing discontented cultural groups from trying to break away and form their own nation-state
In Europe, the breakup of the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia in the late twentieth century demonstrated both success and failure in creating new nation-states
The Soviet Union’s breakup in 1991 resulted in the creation of 15 new countries
Colonialism
European states came to control much of the world through colonialism, which is an effort by one country to establish settlements in a territory and to impose its political, economic, and cultural principles on that territory
Why did Europeans create colonies?
to promote Christianity; to extract resources and create captive markets for their own products; and to gain prestige
Describe the history of colonialism
The colonial era began in the 1400s, when European explorers sailed westward for Asia but encountered and settled in the Western Hemisphere instead
Eventually the European states lost these colonies and focused their attention on Africa
the sun never set on their empire”- the British empire was so vast that it was always sunny somewhere
After British, France has second largest colony
What were European Colonial Objectives
A port along the West African coast (initially the Portuguese)
A water route to South Asia and Southeast Asia
1500’s- looking for resources; Slaves
Slaves not new, but slave raiding was
30 million slaves forced from their homes
1850- Industrial Revolution occurs in Europe
Increased demand for mineral resources
Need to expand agricultural production
Berlin Conference
13 States divided up Africa without consideration of cultures
(just drew straight lines and had no concern for different ethnic groups)
French dominant in west Africa
British in east and South Africa
Belgium acquired the Congo’s
Sudan was last to be colonized
Ethiopia was the only country to escape colonization
British had one goal- exploitation
The countries in Africa kept their colonial boundaries
What were the results of superimposed boundaries?
– African peoples were divided
– Unified regions were ripped apart
– Hostile societies were thrown together
– Hinterlands were disrupted
– Migration routes were closed off
When independence returned to Africa after 1950, the realm had already acquired a legacy of political fragmentation.
boundary
A state is separated from its neighbors by a boundary, an invisible line that marks the extent of a state’s territory
Geometric boundaries
based on grid systems
Boundary between the US and Canada
2,100 km boundary along the 49th parallel between Manitoba and British Columbia
-Doesn’t quite go through 49th because then Victoria would be a part of the US
Established in 1846 as a treaty between the US and The UK (still controlled Canada then)
An additional 1,100 km between Alaska and Yukon Territory
Physical (physiographic) boundaries
follow a feature in the physical geographic landscape
Deserts, mountains, and water
eg. Rio Grande - boundary between the US and Mexico
The Danube and Rhine Rivers serve as boundaries between several countries in Europe
