Regionalism Flashcards
what have most states seen in necessary to do in an increasingly globalised world?
in an increasingly globalised world, most states have seen it necessary to cooperate with their neighbours in formal regional organisations
what do regional organisations share?
regional organisations can take different forms and do different things, but share the same understanding, drawn from liberal theory, that common problems require common solutions and that many forms of cooperation can be mutually beneficial
what do states realise?
states realise that decisions taken by their neighbours can have an impact on them
the most obvious example of this is making decisions about the environment
for example, a country polluting a river upstream from a neighbouring country has a significant impact on the river flowing through that country
what has the concern about river pollution led to?
the concern about river pollution led to the formation of the world’s first regional intergovernmental organisation, the Danube Commission in 1856
the states that share the river Danube acknowledge that it is in all their interests to make sure the river stays navigable
no one country can protect the Danube and no one country can solve all the issues regarding the Danube on its own, so states must cooperate
what is regionalism?
the creation and implementation of institutions that express a particular identity and shape collective action within a geographical region
the development of institutionalised cooperation among states from a geographical region, which expresses a particular identity and shapes collective action
exists in a variety of different forms
when states form organisations based around territory — e.g. the EU for Europe and the African Union for Africa
what is the need for regionalism?
in an increasingly interconnected and interdependent world, there are numerous common problems facing states, including economic and trade matters, issues regarding health, science, communication technology, crime and security
with all these common problems, there is an increasing move for states to form and join multilateral regional organisations rather than trying to deal with problems by themselves or relying on bilateral (country-to-country) relationships
examples of regionalism and regional organisations
(all of these regional organisations, to a greater or lesser extent, work together on economic matters, environmental issues, health, science and security)
the European Union (EU) – a political-economic union of 28 member states located in Europe
the African Union (AU)
the Arab League
the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)
what are some challenges regionalism faces?
despite the move towards closer co-operation, regionalism still faces challenges
states do not like giving up sovereignty (absolute and unlimited power and authority) to regional organisations and nations tend to have a strong desire to govern themselves
this desire is driven by nationalism and can lead to a backlash against regional co-operation
As ever with state corporation there is a question over whether states are being asked to give up their sovereignty
Nationalists often oppose regionalism on the grounds that it is destroying their national identity and undermining their national sovereignty
examples of challenges to regionalism and backlashes against regionalism
in 2016, the British public voted to leave the EU and one of the biggest factors behind this decision was a strong desire to regain sovereignty from the EU
in the same year, nationalistic parties gained support across Europe and Donald Trump was elected president of the USA, promising to ‘make America great again’ through his ‘America first’ doctrine and review trade deals such as NAFTA
what does regionalism mean for various regions?
Institutionalised cooperation means that regions become significant political or economic entities operating in global politics
what has happened since the end of WW2?
Since the end of World War II the process of globalisation has led to a world in which states are increasingly interconnected And regional organisations have become a more significant part of global politics
In order to maintain their power and influence as well as work towards common goals states have started to cooperate with their closest regional allies
States which are close to one another often have historical similarities common problems and trading interests which make coming together in regional organisations a viable way to consolidate their power and pursue their goals
Regionalism is the name given to the creation of institutions in which states which are geographically close to one another can work towards common goals and resolve common problems
the European Union
The European Union is the main example of a regional organisation in Europe consisting of 28 European states all working together politically and economically to better achieve their collective goals
what does regionalism allow states to do?
Regionalism gives away for states to deal with problems which they could not tackle on their own
In the globalised world states have decided that coming together to pursue that common interest is more affective than engaging in competition with their closest rivals
reasons for new regionalism:
Since the late 1980s there has been a second wave of regionalism known as new regionalism
This has seen the creation of NAFTA and the introduction of the ASEAN free trade area
reasons for new regionalism:
New regionalism has been mostly economic and has been created by a range of different factors
The acceleration of globalisation appear to be reducing the sovereignty of the state of economic issues due to the growth of TNCs international trade and the globalised financial system this is regarded as the most significant driver behind new regionalism
