SHORT ANSWER Flashcards
1) What are the different opportunities for civil wars to emerge and the interests of those that start it?
state weakness, colonial legacies(flimsy political institutions), the international context, poverty, and geography
Their interests are: cultural grievances, greed, pressure to join (coercive recruitment), individual psychology
What are the main trends of interstate and intrastate (civil) wars in the world in the last decades?|
Interstate wars have been less common since WWII
Intrastate wars are the most common form of armed conflict today (ie Syria and Ukraine in 2014)
-brutal, more common, rise of civil wars over the decline of the interstate
-terrorism, asymmetric warfare, guerrillas,
How can we distinguish between total and limited wars?
Total War: massive loss of life & widespread destruction; many participants, including multiple powers; all available weapons utilized;civilians & military targeted. Often very costly in terms of people lost and economic rehabilitation. Uses all available national resources to force surrender of opponents.
Thirty Years War (1618-48): England, France Austria, NL, Spain, Sweden
World War 1 and 2
Limited War: may be limited by goals pursued, type of weapons used, amount of resources used
Ex: Korean War 1950-53 (Started as limited war: US and UN forces mobilized to prevent conquest of South Korea by North – China intervened)
Why do wars happen? Please explain the three different reasons we covered in class, and give an example for each.
Bargaining Model: War happens because Bargaining fails
Wars happen because of:
War from incomplete information
A situation in which parties in a strategic interaction lack of info about other parties interests & capabilities
Ex: Gulf War 1991: To many, Iraqi moves looked like efforts to intimidate, not invasion
Iraq thought it could achieve more in fighting than it can achieve through negotiations
Credib. Ex. during the cold war US & Soviet Union had large nuclear arsenal weapons
War from indivisibility
An indivisible good cannot be divided without diminishing its value
Conflict becomes “all or nothing”
Ex: Jerusalem causes conflict because its “indivisible good”
As we saw earlier in the chapter, the city of Jerusalem—which is home to important holy sites for Jews, Muslims, and Christians—is sometimes cited as an example of an indivisible good that causes conflict. However, there may be ways of dividing apparently indivisible goods, such as shared control or compensation. Some have proposed that conflict over Jerusalem could be resolved if Israelis and Palestinians shared control of key areas.
War from commitment problems
Bargaining over goods that are source of future power
Negotiating on nuclear proliferation with North Korea & Iran
Preventive war (A war fought with the intention of preventing an adversary from becoming stronger in the future) & changes in power
US war against Iraq had a preventive logic
WHAT HAPPENS IF STATES DO NOT TRUST ONE ANOTHER TO ABIDE BY SETTLEMENTS?
Strategic dilemma: if a deal—for example, agreeing not to acquire and develop nuclear weapons—is preferable to war now, or if a deal leads to changes in capabilities that can be exploited by adversaries later, a state may decide to gamble on war rather than be rendered weaker by giving up nuclear weapons.
5) What are the causes of war by level of analysis? (p.277)
The causes of war by level of analysis:
Individual: Misperceptions by leaders. Overestimating your power and underestimating your opponent’s power. War is part of human nature.
State: Democratic peace was able to reduce conflicts. According to liberals, interactions and democracy is good. Radicals believe capitalism cause conflict.
International System: Realists believe due to the lack of super power to settle disputes and anarchy causes war. And radicals believe that capitalist system causes conflict and chaos.
States fight over:
Territory
More than half of all wars in the last 300 years have been over territory.
Iraq coveted Iran’s southern oil fields r
A victory over Poland would embolden Germany
- May help enrich state: natural resources—oil, minerals, farmland (for example, Ukraine “breadbasket” of the East)
Other states’ national politics
Alleged pursuit of weapons of mass destruction or nuclear policies of Iran or South Korea
Other states’ regime types
Desire to protect pro-American South vietnamese
Russia sought reforms to give Ukraine
Why did the principle of Responsibility of Protect (`R2P) emerge? Explain. What are some challenges for the effectiveness of this principle? (p.293-297)
At the end of WWII the notion that all humans deserve protection and that states have an obligation to intervene, immersed. R2P says that state have the responsibility to intervene in cases of mass violation of human rights. Some challenges are that it is difficult to set a standard to how massive the violations have to be in order for the state to intervene, who decided when it is time to intervene? Can these interventions be used for states to push their own agenda? And why are some violations of human rights responded to while others are not.
7) How did the configuration of NATO evolve after the end of the Cold War, in terms of its membership and the activities it undertook? (p. 310-311)
Activities that it undertook were:
Peacekeeping and stabilization roles in Bosnia
In 1999 it undertook the largest military operation since its creation in 1949, operation allied forces, the air war over Serbia
w/o UN authorization they conducted a 78 day air war against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to attempt to stop attacks against ethnic Albanians in the Serbian province of Kosovo
Membership expansion:
In 1999, first wave of new members added after end of cold war
Poland, Hungary, and Czech Republic
They were contributors to enhance security in the region, not just to receive umbrella protection
Second wave of members admitted in 2004:
Estonia, LAtvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, and Bulgaria
Albania, Croatia formally joined in 2009
Making the total NATO memberships to 28, and 22 partnerships for peace memberships and 7 Mediterranean Dialogue states.
8) Why do civil wars cluster together?
one theory = contagion hypothesis–a rebellion in one country might inspire like-minded groups in neighboring states.
another possibility is that poor countries (more likely to cause civil war) cluster together, poor countries border other poor countries.
what matters is whether or not any bordering state is actually experiencing a civil war, in which case there is real danger of contagion
9) How do the classical economic theories of mercantilism, economic liberalism and Marxism/Radicalism compare on a) the relationship between politics/economics, b) main actors/unit of analysis, c) nature of economic relations and d) economic goals?
-Mercantilism:
Relationship between economics and politics: politics decisive
Main actors/units of analysis: states
The nature of economic relations: conflictual, zero-sum game
Economic goals: state power
–Economic Liberalism:
Relationship between economics and politics: economics autonomous
Main actors/units of analysis: individuals
The nature of economic relations: cooperative, positive-sum game
Economic goals: maximum individual and social well-being
–Marxism:
Relationship between economics and politics: economics decisive
Main actors/units of analysis: classes
The nature of economic relations: conflictual, zero-sum game
Economic goals: class interest
10) What does “comparative advantage” mean? Which scholar developed this theory? Why is it an important principle in trade? Explain by giving an example.
David Ricardo developed this theory of comparative advantage. Comparative Advantage is the ability of a country or a firm to produce a particular good or service more efficiently. This is an
important principle of trade because for instance in the example given in class, US and Canada (car & truck production). US can produce both using fewer workers than Canada. Under absolute advantage US would manufacture both & export to Canada. Comparative advantage though, means that each country should specialize on one. US → cars & Canada → trucks.
11) How did economic integration in Europe evolve? (Stages in economic integration) Why is the EU more than a regional trading area or single market?
The functionalist: their principal proponent, Jean Monnet, believed that the forces of nationalism, in the end, could be undermined by the logic of economic integration.
Beginning with the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community, he proposed cooperative ventures in nonpolitical issue areas.
The EU grew not only from the devastation of the wartime experience but also from the security threat that remains. Europe knew it would be better equipped to counter the Soviet threat if it integrated
Security threats, economic incentives, and a postwar vision all played a role in the drive of political elites for European integration
EU’s single market is an ambitious trade co-operation because as well as eliminating tariffs, quotas or taxes on trade, it also includes the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people
12) What were some of the political results of the Eurozone crisis in Greece?
In 2001, Greece joined the Eurozone, hoping that membership would promote liberalization of the economy and modernization of state institutions
Leaders at the time misrepresented the country’s financial condition: its budget deficit was still well above 3 percent of GDP ceiling required for membership in the EU
The country grew, but it was debt-fueled growth. Big austerity measures and leading protests in Greece. Leftist Syria party comes to power. In 2016 the Greek Parliament passes laws for austerity – protests.
GDP: the total value of goods produced, and services provided in a country for one year
13) What are some important examples of economic regionalization in the world? List three important regions of the world that have developed free trade areas/integration, and briefly explain the goals of each.
European economic integration, NAFTA, AFTA are three regional economic relations in the world.
European Economic integration wanted free movement of goods between states that would promote opportunities for investment and growth throughout the EU. Creation of the Euro also helps unify this area and the EU acts as a monetary union.
NAFTA includes the United States, Canada, and Mexico. One dominant economy and two dependant ones are within this agreement, established for MCSs to have larger market shares rather than by the political elite.
AFTA is the ASEAN Free Trade Area with the goal to attract foreign investment in the area, and to increase competitiveness in the international economy.
14) What are some important liberal principles that were enshrined in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)? What are some differences between GATT and WTO?
Global trade agreements (GATT)
Lowered barriers but goal is not complete liberalization
Non-discrimination in trade- the most favored nation (MFN) principle
Final round: Uruguay round in 1986
New issues such as services (insurance) intellectual property rights (copyrights, trademarks) agriculture
Differences between GATT and WTO.
WTO has larger membership, covering about 90 percent of world
WTO can enforce its provisions, authorize sanctions for violators, monitors compliance
Trade Policy review mechanism
Dispute settlement body created
Goal is complete liberalization of trade
China joined in 2001
Russia joined 2012
GATT WAS A MULTILATERAL AGREEMENT (SET OF RULES) AND WTO IS A PERMANENT ORGANIZATION
15) What are some activities that multinational corporations (MNCs) engage in? (p. 331-332)
Key role for multinational corporations (MNCs) is to promote the internationalization of production
Export goods and services
Make significant investments in a foreign country
Buy and sell licences in foreign markets
Engage in contracting manufacturing
Opening manufacturing facilities in foreign countries
