Russia and Ukraine Flashcards
Realism - mearsheimer
Realism says that states are the key actors in the realist story, and they coexist in a world where there is no supreme authority that can protect them from each other. This situation forces them to pay close attention to the balance of power, because they understand that being weak can leave them vulnerable. Thus, states compete among themselves for power, which is not to say they do not cooperate when their interests are compatible.
War UN charter
War is widely considered an evil that can only be justified as a means of self-defence, as it is in the UN charter, this is the liberalism vs realism debate
Realism and international institutions
Some critics maintain that realism is dismissive of international institutions, which are the key building blocks of a rules-based international order.
This view is incorrect: realists recognise that institutions are essential for waging security competition in an interdependent world — as NATO and the Warsaw Pact did during the cold war — and for facilitating economic and political cooperation — as the WTO and the UN do today.
They emphasise, however, that the great powers write the institutions’ rules to suit their own interests, and under no circumstances can institutions coerce a great power to act in ways that threaten its security. In such cases, a great power will simply violate the rules or rewrite them in its favour.
Realism and strategic interests
Realism also suggests that the only areas of vital strategic interest to great powers — beside their own region — are those containing other great powers or an abundance of some critical resource on which the world economy depends.
Realists opposed the Vietnam war as it was fought in Southeast Asia, a place with little relevance, unlike Europe, Northeast Asia where the soviet union was located and the oil rich gulf.
Liberalism however has a primary goal to spread ideology and democracy around the globe, democratic peace theory
Unipolarity post 1991
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the bipolar world that underpinned the cold war gave way to a unipolar system centred on the US. Unipolarity then turned into multipolarity in around 2017, with China’s rise and the resurrection of Russian power.
Russia China and the US
The US is still the most powerful country in this new world, but China, with its formidable economy and growing military might, is a peer competitor. Russia is clearly the weakest of the three. Two new rivalries have emerged in this multipolar system, each operating according to a different realist logic. Like the US-Soviet antagonism after the second world war, the US-China security competition is mainly about regional hegemony, even though it could, like the US-Soviet antagonism, spread worldwide. The current US-Russia rivalry is due not to any fear that Russia could dominate Europe, but rather to the US’s aggressive behaviour.
US and China relationship
China have a goal to dominate the US, gradually push the US out of East Asia, establish itself as a regional hegemon.
Taiwan is a key area of conflict, AUKUS, QUAD with Aus, Japan and India
Neo realism and Russia
From a realist standpoint, Moscow’s reaction to NATO expansion into Ukraine is a straightforward case of balancing against a dangerous threat. Putin is committed to preventing a military alliance dominated by the most powerful state in the world, which was a mortal foe of the Soviet Union, from making Ukraine, which ‘is on the doorstep of our house’, a member.
Odell on great powers
O’Dell there is now a assumption that great powers are or ought to be inspired by something more than simple self interested short term gains, this idea rejects the realist view.
All states seek hegemony under realism as the only way to maximise their security. Under Unipolarity states will band together to restore the balance of power.
Thus, the abstract theory of Great Power leadership involves the most capable states in the system using their superior capabilities to organize that system in its own defence.
China Russia and Iran
China, Russia, Iran are all pushing back against the unipolar landscape that was the end of the cold war
Whilst the US and the Eu wants to look towards a more liberal outlook of global governance, trade liberalisation and world order, this will not succeed as powers are desperate to overturn the bipolar/unipolar hegemony in the world right now.
Russia China and IRan are self interested
The USA and NATO expanded there influence into previous USSR territories, allied itself with the Sunni powers in the middle east and security relationships in Asia with Japan, south korea Australia and Taiwan.
Russia fears the rise of China, neither have similiar world views, objectives or ideologies, Iran and Russia want the price of oil to be high whilst China wants it low, there is not huge reason for strategic alliance. What binds these powers together is the agreement that the status qou must be revised.
China does not accept the US role in Asia, Iran wants to dominate the middle east and russia wants to return to soviet days, essentially they all want to challenge the current unipolar hegenomy of the day run by NATO and the USA.
Russia and Ukraine
2022 invasion of Ukraine, Russia were seen as a great power and Russia a lesser one,
Mearsheimer labelled Russia a great power and argued that Moscow’s need to dominate Ukraine should be indulged. He also put that Ukraine would not be able to defend itself, this was not the case, its now over two years since the invasion and what western media remarked would be over in a day has humiliated russia.
2021 Russia had a smaller GDP than Canada, economy powered by resource extraction and manufacturing, collapsing birth rates and life expectancy of 66 years old.
