Paradigms Of International Relations

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Power and interests have always been the basis of the relationship among societies. International orders emerge to establish how states relate to each other and change due to major clashes between great powers. Along the history, the quest for the survival and development of civilizations around the world evolved around the amount of power they have and the interests they share. With the evolution of societies, distribution of power was necessarily a zero sum situation. To explain this, the paradigms of international relations will be the main tool. The rise of an international order is a result of the accumulation of power by a few states that are looking for hegemony. This is the idea that the realist model presents, and it is useful to …show more content…
This change is the start point of the liberal paradigm, which complements realism in a more educated and economy focused world. It is important to notice that economic development (instead of expansion) is part of the aims of the society, and that states should use their workforce in the economy instead of war. Consequently, if republics were able to solve conflicts in different ways, their wealth would increase. Immanuel Kant claimed that economic interests could be the source of peace and stability. To explain this, the interdependence would create mutual reliance in a federation of nations with the same kind of government (constitutional democracies). The great difference with the previous time was that power no longer had to be a zero-sum; it could be a win-win situation resulting from the cooperation between states facilitated by institutions. Stability and peace were outcomes of international diplomacy, and the order based in commerce would mitigate the anarchy from previous times. According to liberalism, the expansion of democracy and trade would bring a stable peace, but this did not happen and two world wars occurred in the last century, creating the need for a review of the …show more content…
States are now concerned about human rights and environmental damage because citizen are interested in human rights and environmental damage. Liberal institutions like United Nations now cannot stand idle in front of problems like famines, genocides and terrorism. Instead, is necessary to use the soft powers to influence public opinion and apply appropriate measures according to where the problems are located. As an example, after the great victory in Desert Storm, public opinion in western countries favored the use of military power to solve problems in Afghanistan and Iraq again, with confidence in technology as an enabler of a fast and bloodless solution. The lack of the cultural understanding of the situation generated after the military strikes and the absence of strategies to support civilian population resulted in the social resentment that made possible the emergence of islamist terrorist groups in Middle East. The United Stated is losing power due to the long attrition wars fought in different fronts against terrorism, affecting its economy and leadership and giving the space for the rise of China and Russia that can affect the American supremacy. Exploring the emergence of world orders is important to understanding the current state of

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