Lecture 5 - Liberalism Flashcards
founding ideas liberalism - Bentham
Utilitarian Maxim: ‘The greatest happiness of the greatest number‘.
called for an international jurisprudence based on the equality of sovereigns
Task for judge or legislator: to establish the greatest happiness among the family of nations
founding ideas liberalism - Kant
perpetual (continuous) peace required for:
The transformation of individual consciousness,
Republican constitutionalism,
A federal contract among states to abolish war
liberal internationalism 1 - idealist moment
Toward the end of the 19th century, the idea of a
natural harmony of interests in international political and economic relations came under challenge
- economic interdependencies between germany and great britain did not prevent war
- contradictions within European civilization: progress and exemplarism vs. colonialism and militarization
= realization that peace is not a natural condition but must be actively constructed
liberal internationalism 2 - pax americana
Establishment of post-war World War II US-led international order
Political Pillar and an Economic Pillar
liberal internationalism 3.0?
Movement from sovereignty-based order to global institutions?
Unilateralism instead of multilateralism?
Protectionism instead of economic interdependencies?
League of Nations
Collective Security: ‚each state in the system accepts that the security of one is the concern of all, and agrees to join in a collective response to aggression‘
Self-determination of nations
political pillar pax americana
united nations (1945-present)
sovereign equality
Collective security, yet veto system which grants permanent members of UN Security Council power of veto.
economical pillar pax americana
Bretton Woods system until the 1970s
Now:
IMF = international monetary fund
WB = world bank
WTO = world trade organization
Embedded liberalism: multilateralism, reciprocity, though also dispute settlement system in case of WTO
Challenges to US-led liberal international
order
Continued willingness of US to lead? there is contestation at home and abroad
Contestation of liberal ideals
Emerging challengers: China, India, Russia
Liberal Theory in IR: Actors
States are actors, but contrary to realism not assumed to be unified actors.
they are divided into many levels and are also effected by many factors like government, bureaucracies, societal actors (interest groups, media).
interests and goals are not presumed to be fixed, but open.
Actors are assumed to be acting rational and based on a cost-benefit logic as well as being norm-oriented
international structures liberalism
anarchy (absence of government)
international institutions, like international organizations / international regimes / intervening variable mediating.
internal makeup of a state (regime, societal actors) influence the interest and behaviour of states
sub-systemic structures liberalism
economic structures = modern or traditional. influences competitiveness and how protectionist
political structures = democratic / authoritarian / autocratic
state’s strength = centralized (strong) or fragmented (weak)
interest group system = corporatist, pluralist, oligopolistic
structural effects - international structures
anarchy = constraining effects. gives the problem of defection and states‘ cheating.
international institutions = mediating effects. Help to cope with environment in which defection presents significant benefits.
facilitate cooperations:
- Reduce transaction costs of negotiating bargains.
- Provide information and help montior behavior of others.
=> Enhance likelihood of compliance
structural effects - domestic structures
Externalization of domestic structures and behavioral patterns.
=> Domestic mediation of interests determine foreign policy interests and behavior.
=> States prefer a types of international order which mirrors their own domestic order.
=> States prefer foreign policy instruments and behavior which are similar to those at the domestic level
processes in liberalism
Determined by the compatibility of sub-systemic, societal structures, institutions, and the distribution of power
=> Divergence or convergence of foreign policy preferences
=> Consensual or diverging norms
