Global Politics

Question 1

Define global governance, nation-state and security dilemma

Answer 1

• Global governance; states have the most authority in global politics + represent their own national interests. Dalton used the Billiard Ball Model to show how states impact the other but their **own self-interest takes precedences over IGOs
  **
• Nation state; **sovereign states **of which citizens are united through langauge and culture making a nation. **Challenged by rise in IGOs + globalisation **
• Security dilemma; as one** states defences build up others respond** increasing tensions between the two states. China’s expansion into terriotrial waters in South China sea has led to the US patrolling nearby ‘international’ waters

Question 2

Define realism and liberalism

Answer 2

• Realism (right-wing); Bull argues nation-states are sovereign and global politics is anarchical although there is society of states despite the disorder. Believe the authority of IGOs should be limited as the nation-states should be sovereign to advance their self-interest
• Liberalism (left-wing); State’s interests are interdependent + best advanced through working together + non-state acotes e.g. IGOs. States are committed to **individual liberty so a liberal world view can be adopted with international cooperation **

Question 3

Define anarchical society and international anarchy

Answer 3

• Anarchical society; attempts to bring government structures together to deal with common interests. E.g. Taking** military action through a UNSC Resolution **
• International Anarchy; states are self-contained units which frequently clash where there is no authority as as legitmate or powerful as the nation-state. US-led + UK-backed invasion of Iraq shows the disorder of global politics **without a clear UNSC Resolution **

Question 4

Define society of states and complex interdependence

Answer 4

• Society of states; a system in which states attempt to establish** order by forming alliances and creating international insitituions + laws**. EU is an example of a society which engenders economic cooperation to reduce political + military conflict
• Complex interdependence; states + their forutnes are inextricably linked. Cobweb Model highlights the links between many states + how the cobwebs may disintergrate if one strand (state) breaks

Question 5

Explain the powers of national governments

Answer 5

1. Government with a clear mandate + authority and parties which compete in elections + legitmately elected by the electorate
2. National laws are clearly written down + apply to all citizens
3. Victorious political party will govern with clearly defined authority
4. Clear authoritative institutions for decision-making such as Parliament
5. Courts + policies forces enforce national laws + have authority to do so

Question 6

Explain the powers of global ‘governments’

Answer 6

1. Summits + IGOs can offer states means of resolving disputes + chances to work together e.g. G7, G20, UN, EU Paris Climate Change Conference
2. No single world government with a clear mandate - states are the most powerful actors +** cannot be forced to do anything against their will **
3. IGOs have varying degrees of authoirty + legitmacy so** states can choose which ones to join**
   4.** International law **is codified by only applies to states which have **agreed these laws through treaties **

Question 7

Explain how nation states have primacy over the EU and UN

Answer 7

• EU; 2016 Brexit vote meant the UK was the first member to leave the EU giving them a weaker global presence + links to the US. Members like Hungary are deeply critical + more Euroscptic parties are being elected across the EU
• UN; every member state (193) has one vote - for the** Security Council, Economic + Social Council + budgetary decisions require a 2/3 majority** but other votes only need a majority. **Members often also abstain meaning no action can be taken e.g UK on Palestine **

Question 8

Explain how nation-states have primacy over the G7 and Paris Climate Change Conference

Answer 8

• G7; G7 has no formal rules which means control over members which ensures like-minded values + achieves more than organisations like the G20 e.g. US $50 billion loan to Ukraine agreed recently
• Paris Climate Change Conference; 157 parties have committed to greenhouse gas emissions reduction but only 57 have quantified such targets into domestic policies + only** 17 (+EU) look beyond targets for 2030**

Question 9

Define the IGOs; UN, IMF, WTO + World Bank

Answer 9

• UN; Established in 1945 after WW2 to **prevent another conflict has 193 members currently
  **
• IMF; Provides loans to countries for capital projects + comprises of **International Bank for Reconstruction + Development and International Development Association **
• WTO; Organisation that regulates international trade
• World Bank; **189 countries **working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure **financial stability, faciliate international trade, sustainable economic growth + reduce poverty **

Question 10

Define the regional bodies; EU, NAFTA + ASEAN

Answer 10

• EU; political + economic union of 27 member states, population of over 150 million
• North American Free Trade Agreement; agreement signed by Canada, Mexico + the US created a trilateral trade bloc in 1994
• Association of South-East Asian Nations; organisarion that promotes intergovermental cooperation around** economic, political, security, military, educational + sociocultural intergration among its members + Asian states**

Question 11

Define the NGOs; Oxfam + Human Rights Watch

Answer 11

• Oxfam; confederation of 20 independant charitable organisations focusing on alleviating poverty, founded in 1942 + led by Oxfam International
• Humans Rights Watch; international organisation that conducts research + advocacy on human rights

Question 12

Define unipolarity, mulitpolarity, bipolarity with the advantages and disadvantages of both

Answer 12

• Unipolarity; a distribution of power in which one state eexercises most of the **cultural, economic + military influence **
  e.g end of Cold War + rise of **US hegemony **
  Adavantages: US provided a sense world peace - **spread ideas of free trade + democracy **

Disadvantages: Highly unstable emerging states resent the one hegemonic state e.g Germany’s belligerence in the lead up to WW1

• Multipolarity; more than two-states have nearly equal amounts of **militarly, cultural + economic influence **
  e.g increase in power of BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India +China)

Advantages: Liberals argue the lack of existance of a single world power means states are **more likely to cooperate with global goverance **

Disadvantages: Neorealists argue that chance of misjuding the intentions of other states + increases the chances of war due to external balancing

Question 13

Define bipolarity and balance of power with the advantages and disadvantages of both

Answer 13

• Bipolarity; a system where world order in which the** majority of global economic, military + cultural** influence is held **between two states **
  e.g **Cold War **- US + USSR vying for power

Advantages: promote peace as neither side was capable of eliminating the other

Disadvantages: Destabling + dangerous as it almost led to the Cuban Missile Crisis due to no effective checks

• Balance of power; national security is enhanced when militant capability is distributed so that no one state is strong enough to dominate the other
  e.g Nuclear proliferation + **fear of MAD **led to uneasy balances of power

Advantages: promotes allyship between countries + countries increase their own defence systems (Realist POV)

Disadvantages: Mearsheimer argues it’s an unstable distribution of power as it’s constantly shifting

Question 14

Explain the key beliefs/theories of realism

Answer 14

• Structural realism = nation-states seek to advance their own interests at the expanse of other nation states
• Nation-states** don’t allow supranational authority greater **than themselves as global relations are archaic are as **no ‘body’ enforces international law **
• States shouldn’t have to meet humanitarian aims - destablises international relations
• Negative interpretations of human nature views **humans as selfish + egotistical **
• e.g Trans-Pacific Partnership (IGO) was unable to exist which aimed to lower tarrifs **didn’t exist due to US withdrawal **in 2017
• e.g EU raised import taxes on Britain after the **left the IGO **

Question 15

Explain the key practical policies of realism

Answer 15

• Defend **internal security **through well defended borders + laws
• States know the limit of soft power but use a **combination of soft + hard power = smart power **
• In international anarchy **threats + force are important **
• In the global system where there isn’t a no guarantee that other states or IGOs will help them
• Human nature cannot be changed

Question 16

Explain the practical policies of liberalism

Answer 16

• **Human nature isn’t fixed so states can improve
  **
• Efforts should be made to prevent + reduce conflicts which are** avoidable through IGOs e.g UN **
• Military powers can be counterproductive
• States should be **committed to individual liberty e.g human rights **
• Power should be shared equally as it leads to stability through things like **economic cooperation reducing chances of conflict **
• Possible to** impose order **on humans in a rule-based system of international law e.g 2012 EU won Nobel Peace Prize

Question 17

Explain the views of Waltz, Bull, Morgenthau and Mearsheimer - realist thinkers

Answer 17

Waltz - favours **bipolarity over multipolarity as it lead to easier negotiations **+ that states live in a self help system where they build up their own security apparatus through military power

Bull - identified anarchical society in global politics + a society of states emerged to promote common interests + states compete with the other

Morgenthau - argues people are selfish + try to dominate so moral considerations are less important than national interests + states defend their own national intests against perceived threats

Mearsheimer - explained that conflict + competition for power continues + secure hegemony +all states find ways to increase power

Question 18

Explain the relationship between IGOs and states

Answer 18

• IGOs only exist because they have been created by states who retain the ultimate power e.g Britain leaving the EU, African states leaving the ICC in protest at bias against them
• Failure of UNSC to agree to a resolution on Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire due to US vetos shows IGOs are dependant on member states
• States **retain the power to act unilaterally **e.g UK + US invaded Iraq despite the UN urging them not to - isolationsim

Question 19

Explain Russia’s position with NATO and events which have strained the relationship

Answer 19

1. Russia supported Assad’s regime in Syria with air strike in 2015
2. Russia began to** increase its military** influences in **response to the expansion of NATO **e.g annexation of Crimea in 2014
3. Russian National Security Strategy declared that **NATOs build up forces in countries bordering **it which **wasn’t consistent in international law **
4. Trump called for all NATO member states to pay the fair share of contribution - **2% of GDP + called NATO ‘obsolete’ **

Question 20

Explain the realist theory; Billard Ball Model

Answer 20

• Billard Ball Model is under pressure due to complex interdependance of interconnected states
• Push factors** seperate nation-states such as scare resources, war **
• Pull factors bring **sovereign states together such as trade agreements **
• Every billard ball is sovereign so protected from IGOs

Question 21

Explain an example of global anarchy between states

Answer 21

• In the South China Sea (contains oil + gas) - China has attempted to expand its territorial waters by increasing patrols + building islands
• US has responded through Freedom of Navigation Patrols in ‘international waters’ - in 2013 the UN tribunal ruled that **China wasn’t complying with the UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea **

Question 22

Explain the views of Keohane, Fukuyama and Ohmae - liberal thinkers

Answer 22

Keohane - challenges ideas that states reject international cooperation + that international law can achieve shared solutions. Democracy plays a key role in **preventing conflict **+ international trade binds states together as they are more interdependant

Fukuyama - liberal democracy since the end of the Cold War have become the undisputed form of human government + argues its the ‘endpoint of mankind’s ideological development’. International law is possible to hold all states to account e.g** Universal Declaration of Human Rights + reject the zero-sum game**

Ohmae - globalisation brought a shift in society + states are losing their economic power + aren’t the main participants in the global economy. NGOs + IGOs help states become aware of different viewpoints + policies

Question 23

Explain key examples of liberal beliefs on IGOs and how they restrict conflict

Answer 23

• **WTO has fostered trade through greater transparency **among trading nations + an increase in **developed countries investing in developing economies **
• Political decisions are more globalised e.g Ebola crisis 2015 + Cornovirus pandemic 2020 - Interpol faciliating international police co-operation + Paris Climate Agreemet to tackle climate change
• Turkey has been denied membership to the EU because they fail to meet the requirments - democratic states offer a more stable base to society as they offer a framework for trade, transparency etc
• Democracy restricts conflicts as leaders are responsible to their electorates + people **feel unpopular about war **+ often need permission from their legislature to engage in military action e.g 2013 when Parliament voted military action against Assad’s regime in Syria

Question 24

Explain how the global financial crisis shows the role of complex interdependance between countries

Answer 24

• 2008-09 global financial crisis collapsed the sub-prime mortgage market in the US which led to a lack of confidence in the banking system which spread across the world
• Slowed global economic growth , rose unemployment
• In the** Eurozone countries such as Ireland + Greece **were unable to borrow from international markets - needed the **European Central Bank to bail them out **
• Led to many strict austerity measures in domestic politics - led to IMF agreeing a financial stimulus to inject funds into the international banking system

Question 25

Give examples of Obama’s liberalist policies/actions

Answer 25

1. **Ended wars in Iraq + Afghanistan without a decisive victory **
2. US air strikes in Libya to prevent humanitarian crisis when Gaddafi threatened to kill rebel civillians with UNSC approval + Arab League support
3. Struck a deal with Iran lifting economic sanctions in exchange for them **stopping their nuclear weapon buildings programme **
4. During the 2010-12 Arab Uprisings they sided with the protestors which was a turn from previous US leaders who were allies of Mubarak in Egypt

Question 26

Give examples of Obama’s realist policies/actions

Answer 26

1. Obama increased the use of drone strikes over boots on the ground for al-Qaeda targets which were highly effective (between Pakestian + Afghanistan)

2.** Failed to react with military** intervention when Assad used chemical weapons in Syria - **struck a deal with Russia to disarm Assad of chemical weapons **

3. Obama failed to close the terrorist detention centre at** Guantanamo Bay** where terrorists are often tortured + held without trial
4. Obama **didn’t uphold international law when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 **