Nationalism and International Relations Revision Class

Today we will Review key concepts Discuss exam writing techniques Practice Answer Session

What is nationalism? A doctrine invented in Europe at the beginning of the nineteenth century It asserts that humanity may be divided into nations and on this basis claims to provide: – (1) a criterion for determining the unit of population proper to enjoy a government exclusively its own – (2) for the legitimate exercise of power in the state and – (3) for the right organization of the society of states

The Problem of Nationalism Yet, while the ideology of nationalism has inspired many hitherto subject peoples, it offers little practical guidance in determining which collectivities may reasonably claim a right to sovereignty and which may not. Why? Because the nation remains a fundamentally contested concept As a result, this is an imperfect solution of the ancient problem: where does sovereignty lie?

The Nation as a Contest Concept The nation can be defined in a variety of ways with very different political consequences Civic vs Ethnic Modernist vs Primordialist

Civic Nations Defined by pre-existing jurisdiction and shared political institutions (plebiscite / uti posseditis juris) Fits experience of English, French and American revolutionaries Juridical (People’s) Self-Determination The state makes the nation Policies of assimilation towards minorities

Ethnic Nations Defined by purportedly natural sociological characteristics and seeks to remake political map accordingly(secession / irredentism) Fits experience of Central, Eastern and Southern European revolutionaries National Self-Determination Nation makes (or breaks) the state Polices of elimination towards minorities

Nationalism and other Ideologies Nationalism has also had an ambiguous and sometimes even adversarial relationship with rival ideologies Liberalism vs Nationalism contests on the relationship between the individual and group Communism vs Nationalism contests the relationship between universalism and pluralism Fascism versus Nationalism contests the relationship between Race and Nation

National Self-Determination Woodrow Wilson 1919 Basis for decolonization in Europe and creation of a more just and lasting territorial settlement Never intended to apply outside Europe Application there contradictory – both plebiscites, ethnography and real politik Committee on New States became known as “committee on New States and National Minorities” League of Nations System of Minority Guarantees

People’s Right to Self- Determination United Nations Charter People’s defined juridicaly Basis for decolonization in Africa and Asia and later also recognition of new states following end of Cold War (break-up of Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia)

Who may claim self-determination today? (1) mandated territories, trust territories, and other territories considered to be self-governing according to chapter XI of the UN Charter (Palau 1994) (2) distinct jurisdictions subject to carence de souverainete (e.g., Bangladesh? Kosovo?) (3) territories in which self-determination is agreed through democratic negotiation or plebiscite (Slovakia and Czech Republic, Serbia and Montenegro) (4) highest level constituent units of a federal state in the process of dissolution or break-up according to the principle of uti posseditis iuris (e.g., Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Serbia-Montenegro) (5) and formerly independent entities reasserting their independence with at least the tacit consent of the established state in which incorporation was either illegal or of questionable legality (e.g., Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia)

The Future of Nationalism Despite these legal niceties, many sociological groups continue to aspire to independent statehood Many others clamour for recognition of their distinctiveness within existing states (national minorities and indigenous peoples) Result: nationalism remains a potential source of instability and conflict within and between states Consequently, international society continues to struggle with issues arising from nationalism

Q & A Do you have any specific questions or points of clarification related to the syllabus?