Topics for today Events of the day/week The state system What is a ‘state’? Theories of IR: World War I and World War II Collective security Comparing the League of Nations and the United Nations

What is a “state”? Montevideo Convention on Rights and Duties of States (1933) State: a legal entity in international law with a permanent population with a defined territory with a government capable of effective domestic control and international representation/recognition

What is “sovereignty”? Sovereignty: No superior authority. Control over domestic affairs Control over cross-border movements Exclusive representation in international politics Sovereignty is an idealized state of affairs. The actual degree of sovereign control varies greatly among states.

Sovereignty as control Effective domestic monopoly of violence. Government controls domestic affairs. How do states loose control? Voluntarily: enter treaties with other states or create inter- and supranational institutions (“pooling of sovereignty”). Involuntarily: Military invasion, economic sanctions, diplomatic threats, smugglers, cross-border pollution.

New states Bangladesh, 1974 (formerly part of Pakistan). Eritrea, 1993 (formerly part of Ethiopia). Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, 1991/2 (formerly Soviet Union). East Timor, 2002 (formerly part of Indonesia). Montenegro, 2006 (formerly part of Serbia and Montenegro) 1700: 45 states 1945: 65 states; Today: almost 200 states.

World history and IR theories Realism A cyclical struggle for power Liberalism Progressive economic development of societies Idealism/Constructivism Unfolding of competing ideas, in the past: nationalism; today: human rights

What caused World War I? Realism: German unification leading to power struggle among European states/decline of British empire Institutionalism: Weakness of international institutions to prevent war Identity/constructivism: Nationalism; feelings of superiority over other peoples.

Realism Cause (anarchy): anarchy creating mistrust and insecurity in a multipolar system (p. 78); third image/international level Process: Germany’s blitzkrieg aimed to avoid a two-front war, but increased the threat level for everyone else. Germany attacked Russia to prevent its rise as a power. One country attacked another because of an imminent attack.

Liberal institutionalism Causes (institutions): Weak global institutions: No global inter-governmental body; trade and law not strong enough (third image, international level) Lack of democracy: weak representation of pacifistic voices (second image, domestic level) Clumsy diplomacy: Kaiser Wilhelm II Lack of sufficient interdependence.

Identity/Constructivism Causes (ideologies): Racist nationalism: Jingoism combined with advanced military technology Ideological nationalism: growing tensions between liberalism (US, France, Britain) and other ideologies Socialist nationalism: Emergence of Marxism creates incentives for conservative leaders to divert attention away from domestic struggles by going to war Lack of common understanding and norms.

What caused World War II? Realism Institutionalism Idealism/ Identity International level Balance of power is unstable; continuation of WWI; Versailles Weakness of institutions; US refusal to support the League of Nations Expanding nationalisms Domestic level Democracy vs. fascism; threat of economic collapse in Germany Bolshevism/ Racism Individual Classical realism: Human nature Humiliation of German nationalism

Failure of the League of Nations Realism Institutionalism Idealism/ Identity International level Because collective security simply can not work Because states did not fully commit to the idea of collective security; faulty design of the League Because the League did not address cultural differences Domestic level Because the League brought together incompatible regime types; unanimity rule Individual level

What is collective security? Effort to neutralize military power Focus on threat, not power Reciprocity: trade in the right to attack for collective protection by all Examples: League of Nations/United Nations

From the League to the UN Context: League's Covenant was drafted after the end of hostilities and at the same time as the negotiations about The fate of the loosing powers (Paris Conference). The U.N. Charter was negotiated during World War II and led to an independent legal document. League: unanimity; U.N.: majority voting (with exceptions) More effective institutions: Creation of an executive body (Security Council) with privileged status pertaining to security questions. Stronger norms: U.N. Charter provides more comprehensive powers for peacekeeping and peacemaking. U.N. does not allow the unilateral use of force, except in case of an ‘imminent attack;’ the League’s covenant allowed the use of force for dispute settlement (after arbitration).