Theoretical issues centered around the phenomenon of conflict and war seek to explain an important part of international relations. This is reinforced through Vasquez’s acknowledgement that “Despite claims that interstate war is on the wane, it is still a very serious social problem” (2012, 301). These explanations will be explored through an analysis on the concepts of the security dilemma, deterrence, and alliances. Such issues are not solely rooted in any one IR theory. Therefore, the second half of this paper connects theoretical issues of conflict and war to realism, liberalism, and constructivism.
Theoretical Explanations of War The security dilemma helps to explain why war occurs through the premise that a state which seeks to …show more content…
Walt (1985) analyzed the variables that influence whether a state will ally to balance a threat or bandwagon with that threat. He notes that in the Cold War, “America’s knee-jerk opposition to leftist forces in the developing world” was contradictory in light of the weakness of ideology as an influence on alliance decisions (Walt, 1985, 40). The aggressive actions that were taken by the US derived from the perception of its role in the system, as well as its relation between allies. US policymakers such as Presidents Kennedy and Reagan expressed the belief that without a show of force and strength, allies could seek to align with others instead (Walt, 1985, 7). The process of interaction in context of the Cold War structure helped to reinforce the US position, and cause it to identify leftist states as an adversary. Van Evera also notes that war is possible when there is a perception of an offensive advantage because “If states think the offense is strong, they will act as if it were” (1998, 7). Once again, the idea of an offense advantage combined with states interacting as if it were so, reinforces one’s role as an …show more content…
A few overlapping concepts do arise between these issues which are important to underline though. War may be caused by a revisionist state, but this is not always the case. The premise of the security dilemma is that seeking one’s own security can decrease that of other’s. As a result, states can lose full control of the escalation that ensues. Furthermore, many of the issues studied acknowledge that an essential variable is whether offense or defense has the advantage. Also, though a lot of issues on conflict and war are connected to realist assumptions, there are factors in the analyses that derive from liberalism and constructivism as
Theoretical Explanations of War The security dilemma helps to explain why war occurs through the premise that a state which seeks to …show more content…
Walt (1985) analyzed the variables that influence whether a state will ally to balance a threat or bandwagon with that threat. He notes that in the Cold War, “America’s knee-jerk opposition to leftist forces in the developing world” was contradictory in light of the weakness of ideology as an influence on alliance decisions (Walt, 1985, 40). The aggressive actions that were taken by the US derived from the perception of its role in the system, as well as its relation between allies. US policymakers such as Presidents Kennedy and Reagan expressed the belief that without a show of force and strength, allies could seek to align with others instead (Walt, 1985, 7). The process of interaction in context of the Cold War structure helped to reinforce the US position, and cause it to identify leftist states as an adversary. Van Evera also notes that war is possible when there is a perception of an offensive advantage because “If states think the offense is strong, they will act as if it were” (1998, 7). Once again, the idea of an offense advantage combined with states interacting as if it were so, reinforces one’s role as an …show more content…
A few overlapping concepts do arise between these issues which are important to underline though. War may be caused by a revisionist state, but this is not always the case. The premise of the security dilemma is that seeking one’s own security can decrease that of other’s. As a result, states can lose full control of the escalation that ensues. Furthermore, many of the issues studied acknowledge that an essential variable is whether offense or defense has the advantage. Also, though a lot of issues on conflict and war are connected to realist assumptions, there are factors in the analyses that derive from liberalism and constructivism as