Weak States in the International System
... Handel argues that a small state can be identified by its power capacity. Simply put, if a state has less power capacity than the great powers, it automatically falls into the category of small states (Handel, 2016). This definition is the least difficult. ...
... This definition is the least difficult. Today, the key to determining great powers is whether they are permanent members of the UN Security Council (Fiemotongha et al., 2021) and possess nuclear weapons (Handel, 2016). ...
The small states' foreign policy has long been a neglected topic in academic circles because the very definition of "small state" was discussed after World War II. However, in the accelerated dynamics of the global security, foreign policy of small states is gradually gaining importance. This study aims to clarify Serbia's foreign policy orientation in the context of the security developments related to the Russian aggression in Ukraine, which has forced many states to reassess their security policy. Using a case study approach, the authors seek to highlight if Serbia's foreign policy is built on the general premises of the small states' foreign policy, and how its specific features enable Serbia's balancing act. For this purpose, three characteristics of the small states' foreign policy have been selected: military neutrality, efforts to join international organisations, and the commitment to fully respect international law. Based on expert interviews and the analysis carried out, the authors conclude that Serbia contradicts two theoretical assumptions about the foreign policy of these states, a fact that paradoxically helps Belgrade maintain close relations with both Brussels and Moscow. However, due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, an easier path to the EU opens for Belgrade, and this type of foreign policy could therefore come to an end.
... Considering that most rivalries consist of high-and low-intensity phases that alternate until the dispute is settled, which can take decades, if not centuries, buffers are forced to exist in recurring crisis mode. Sorokin (1937), Chay (1986), Handel (1990), Dupuy ( 1993), Elman (1995), De Spiegeleire (1997) ...
... Kingdom Source: Sorokin (1937), Chay (1986), Handel (1990), Dupuy ( 1993), Elman (1995), De Spiegeleire (1997), Ngaosīvat and Ngaosyvathn (1998), Kohn (1999), Cohen (2003), Sergeev (2003), Charney (2004) 3. System-centric: regional/international interstate dynamics, regional/international order. Thus, the contiguity variable consists of three categories: "none" for instances where buffers share no common frontiers with belligerents, "one" for cases where a buffer borders only of one the antagonists, and "more than one" for situations where a buffer is adjacent to two or more adversaries. ...
This paper examines the relationship between the militarization of COVID-19 state responses and autocratization in eight Asia-Pacific and Latin American countries. Utilizing a conceptual framework focusing on COVID-19-related military missions and operations, we present two key findings. First, our research demonstrates significant variation in the specific profile of military engagement in governments’ COVID-19 responses; however, overall, all governments deployed their military, particularly in health service provision, logistics, and the production of COVID-19 goods. Meanwhile, soldiers were generally less involved in health bureaucracy and public security. Second, based on two rounds of an expert survey, we find that military deployments had a negative impact on democratic standards only in places where soldiers routinely conducted public security operations autonomously, without effective civilian oversight. Our study concludes that the pandemic did not
induce autocratization or a collapse of civil–military relations. However, it did accentuate pre-existing conditions and issues in the democratic governance of the security sector. This “acceleration effect” was observable in democracies and autocracies experiencing autocratization prior to the pandemic.
... However, this not happened due to 3 Kaplan, Robert." Libya, Obama and the triumph of realism", The Financial Times, 28 the conflict over the oil ports of (Zwetina) and (Ras Alanowf), in the east part of Libya 10 . ...
... Moreover, it is worthy to note that since before the civil war Italy was hinting to a possible split in two of the country (as it had had happened in the past) and the NATO commandment suspected that the militias would refuse to disarm themselves. So the countries that granted aid to the rebel 10 Rosen, Laura. "In "Sarkozy"s war" in Libya, a notso-hidden hand", The Envoy, published 4 April 2011. ...
... This literature equals "small" with the absolute and relative lack of capabilities and understands this ca pability deficit "as a handicap to state action, and even state survival" (Browning 2006, 669). Small states are weak and vulnerable prisoners of small margins of time and error following from their capability deficit and therefore unable to defend themselves against the great powers (Jervis 1978, 172-173;Handel 1990). They have limited diplomatic pow er and lack the necessary diplomatic competencies to avoid war as well as the necessary military capabilities to win a war. ...
Grand Strategy is a state’s “theory of victory,” explaining how the state will utilize its diverse means to advance and achieve national ends. A clearly articulated, well-defined, and relatively stable grand strategy is supposed to allow the ship of state to steer a steady course through the roiling seas of global politics. However, the obstacles to formulating and implementing grand strategy are, by all accounts, imposing. The Oxford Handbook of Grand Strategy addresses the conceptual and historical foundations, production, evolution, and future of grand strategy from a wide range of standpoints. It seven constituent sections present and critically examine the history of grand strategy, including beyond the West; six distinct theoretical approaches to the subject; the sources of grand strategy, ranging from geography and technology to domestic politics to individual psychology and culture; the instruments of grand strategy’s implementation, from military to economic to covert action; political actors’, including non-state actors’, grand strategic choices; the debatable merits of grand strategy, relative to alternatives; and the future of grand strategy, in light of challenges ranging from political polarization to technological change to aging populations. The result is a field-defining, interdisciplinary, and comparative text that will be a key resource for years to come.
... Indeed, it is very difficult to accurately quantify states on the bases of their capabilities however there are five broader parameters on be bases of which we can divide states knowing their capabilities. They are "super /global powers, great powers, middle powers, small powers and mini-states" (Handel, 1990). The global powers are those who do not have only great military and nuclear capability but they must be recognized by the other states as dominant actor. ...
Neoclassical realism (NCR) has diversified the determinants of foreign policy analysis. It has blended the proposition of Innenpolitik, classical realism and the structural realism. The three (independent, intervening and dependent) variables which denote international anarchical structure, domestic factors of the state and the response to the external stimuli respectively has given a holistic view to the foreign policy analysis. While doing so, various scholars of international relations have questioned its paradigmatic relevance but still they trace their roots in the realist paradigm because they incorporate the realist proposition
... Dış politika yapım sürecinde bürokratik etki daha azdır. Bu ülkelerinin dış politikasının belirleyici aslında uluslararası sistemin yapısı ile büyük güç rekabeti ve büyük güçlerin dış politikalarıdır (Handel, 1990). Kırgızistan'ın dış politikasını belirleyen bir diğer unsur, Soğuk Savaş'ın sona ermesiyle kurulan birçok yeni küçük / zayıf devletten biri olmasıdır. ...
Giriş
Orta Asya Cumhuriyetleri Soğuk Savaş
sonunda 1990’lı yıllarda bağımsız oldukların-
da bu bölgeye yönelik Rusya ve Çin yanın-
da Amerika Birleşik Devletleri ilk kez dış ve
güvenlik politikaları oluşturmaya başlamıştır.
11 Eylül Terör Saldırıları öncesinde ABD dış
ve güvenlik politikası daha çok jeo-ekono-
mik ve enerji politikaları üzerinden yürütül-
müştür. Washington yönetimi beş Orta Asya
Cumhuriyeti’nin bağımsızlığı ve egemenli-
ğine vurgu yaparken öte yandan demokrasi,
hukukun üstünlüğü, insan hakları ve serbest
pazar ekonomisinin yerleşmesine dönük po-
litikalar izlemiştir. 11 Eylül sonrası Küresel
Terörle Mücadele politikası gereği, Washin-
gton’un güvenlik öncelikleri yüzünden özel-
likle Afganistan’daki askeri müdahalesi sonu-
cu Kırgızistan gibi ülkelere dönük politikası
yüz seksen derece değişmiştir. İyi yönetişim
konuları yerine ABD lojistik askeri üsleri ve
terörizmle mücadele amacıyla Kuzey Dağıtım
Ağı’nı 2009’da hayata geçirmesinin ardından
Özbekistan ve Kırgızistan’da Amerikan as-
keri üsleri kurulması yanında beş Orta Asya
Cumhuriyeti değişik derecelerde Amerika ile
... Some theorists distinguish between microstates and small states, insisting on their classification (Gaidz, 2007). Others, on the other hand, compare small states with weak, fragile states, completely dependent on external dynamics, sometimes with innovative, agile states (Handel 1981, Guilbaud 2016). There are also theorists that believe that small states are those whose survival is no longer truly threatened (Kalibataite, 2016). ...
Thematic proceeding: International Organizations - Serbia and the Contemporary World, which we offer to the public, was prepared with a lot of diligence and refined research zeal, in a methodologically and scientifically acceptable manner, with the aim of shedding light on numerous questions about international organizations, as one of the most dynamic social phenomena that are marked the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century. The collection contains very concise intellectual debates and reflections based on epistemological procedures and planning predictions of eminent scientists, diplomats and researchers from Serbia and the world.
Taking into account that the issue of cooperation with international organizations is an important factor in the positioning of states in international relations, the strengthening of this cooperation seems very important today, since the modern world is full of challenges and risks that require institutional linking of states in solving all serious international problems. Re-examination of the legal and political status of the most important international organizations, their structural and functional organization, their competencies, powers and responsibilities, as well as the modus operandi, in this sense is an important prerequisite for a realistic assessment of the place and role of states in contemporary international relations.
From historical experience, it can be argued that in international relations, the general principle of association has always been valid, not only for individuals, but also for states. States connect on the basis of the same motives as individuals - achieving common benefit, eliminating common danger and regulating mutual relations. Just as there is considerable variety in the association of individuals, there is undoubted variety in the association of states. Linking means limiting the power to the extent that enables the coordination of mutual activities. The laws of integration and merging of states into one higher political unit are the creation of opportunities, historical necessities and political needs. Hence, there is no international relationship that cannot be the subject of cooperation and integration into an international organization. After all, this is evidenced by the huge number of international governmental and non-governmental organizations in the world from the beginning of the 21st century. International organizations have become important subjects of international relations and the basic form of their institutionalization. Although international organization had its spiritual supporters back in the Middle Ages (starting with Pierre Dubois, the Czech King Poděbrady, Emeric Crucé, William Penn, Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Jeremy Bentham, Immauel Kant and others), the process of evolution of international organizations became visible on the international level only with the holding of large international congresses and peace conferences (such as the congress that took place after the thirty-year religious war in Münster and Osnabrück, which led to the conclusion of the Peace of Westphalia, then the Congress of Vienna from 1814-1815 , the Berlin Congress of 1878 and the Hague Peace Conferences of 1899 and 1907). On the other hand, the historical course of connecting states did not depend exclusively on political circumstances, but also on the specifics of the development of international economic relations, which, due to the intertwining of interstate and private interests, indirectly or directly influenced the complexity of international forms of cooperation and the emergence of specialized organizations with limited and practical goals (such as river commissions on the Rhine, Danube, Elbe, etc.), or on the creation of the so-called administrative unions that functionally united and placed under the control of a central international body various areas of interstate cooperation (for example, provision of telegraphic and postal services, standardization of measures and weights, protection of industrial property and copyright, health, agriculture, etc.). International organizations that had the features of modern international organizations (e.g. the League of Nations as a true universal international organization or the International Labor Organization) were created after the First World War. Modern international organizations, on the other hand, were formed only after the end of the Second World War, with the establishment of the universal organization of the United Nations. This organization encouraged the establishment of new and the revival and strengthening of existing international organizations. Many such organizations today are connected in the so-called United Nations system.
From the above, it follows that the objective process of development of international relations after the Second World War is moving towards global social integration, which does not prevent the existence of wider or narrower forms of cooperation and connection of states at the intercontinental, regional and sub-regional level. This association moves through various forms of institutional cooperation with the aim of solving common problems and achieving common interests. Considering the great diversity of international organizations, as well as the diversity of their activities in the modern period of the development of international relations (from politics, science and culture, to economy, trade and transport, as well as other important social areas), one could also speak of “the century of international organization”. Their importance goes beyond the narrow framework that associations and communities of states had in the past. The expansion of international organizations shows in the most visible way the tendency of continuous development of institutionalized international cooperation. Given that they are created on the basis of international treaties, international organizations are regulated by a relatively young branch of international public law - the law of international organizations. This branch of international law regulates the internal organizational and legal structure of international organizations, their legal capacity in international relations, their legal relations with states and other international organizations, as well as with other subjects of international law (jurisdiction, ability to conclude contracts, right of delegation, privileges and immunities, international responsibility, financing, etc.), acquisition and loss of membership, the process of decision-making and executing decisions, changes in the structure and disappearance of international organizations (succession).
Starting from the fact that the rules on the basis of which a single concept of international organizations would be built do not exist, giving a comparative overview of the main characteristics of some of the existing international organizations is briefly presented in the introductory part of the thematic compendium that deals with general issues. In this part, the problem of the legal subjectivity of international organizations, their role in the creation of international law up to the application of diplomatic law to the officials of international organizations, through specific questions related to the place and role of non-governmental organizations in contemporary international relations and international law, has been studiously investigated.
In order to make the most authoritative conclusions regarding some of the most current issues of international organizations that could contribute to the optimal positioning of states in contemporary international relations (first of all, I mean Serbia), the thematic collection of papers is methodologically systematized in such a way as to include the most diverse analyzes of global and regional international organizations and bodies.
Given that global international organizations serve the realization of common human interests and values, such as the preservation of international peace and security and the promotion of international cooperation between states (primarily through the system of the universal organization of the United Nations and its specialized agencies, and related international organizations and contracting bodies), a special chapter of the proceedings it is dedicated to the place and role of these organizations in the current international order. In this regard, care was taken not only about the volume of the material, but also about the practical needs of the readers, which is why the editors of the collection carried out a certain rationalization of several important thematic areas in order to provide easier access to the most important information about global international organizations, their position and role, as well as and the need for their further reform and transformation in view of the dynamics of the development of international relations. At the same time, it was taken into account that in the existing constellation of international relations, international law is conditioned by a complex system of interactions between various subjects and actors of international relations, i.e. that in contemporary international relations, in addition to classical (inter-states or intergovernmental) organizations, various organizations and associations of civil society play an increasingly important role whose founders and members are not states (which is why they are often called - international non-governmental organizations). Therefore, certain works dedicated to non-governmental organizations and bodies (primarily those that exercise specific public powers in achieving broader humanitarian goals, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross) found a deserved place in this part of the proceeding.
In the continuation of the thematic collection, issues related to the status and functioning of important regional international organizations and their place in the system of contemporary international relations are also discussed. Thus, inter alia, regional organizations such as the European Union, the Council of Europe, the Eurasian Economic Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the African Union, the League of Arab States, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Organization of American States, etc. For didactic reasons, regional international organizations are analyzed within special chapters under the names: European, Eurasian, Afro-Asian and American international organizations. In the aforementioned chapters, a synthesis of thematically close theoretical studies of the authors covering various issues and problems of regional integration, as well as the creation and application of international law, was made. Individual analyzes of Serbia's status in certain international organizations, as well as analytical studies on the process of European integration, i.e. assessments of their further improvement in the Western Balkans, give special weight to this part of the proceeding.
In the last part of the thematic proceeding, the very current issues of the positioning of international organizations in contemporary international relations are dealt with. This is done through an evolutionary approach in research and with reference to political, legal, economic and security points of view about changes in the existing institutional system of international relations. The change in the security paradigm in the modern world has led to the need for the emergence of new organizational forms of strategic partnerships in the world. In this regard, this part of the proceeding analyzes the security architecture in Europe through a synthesis of discussions on the role and place of the EU, NATO and OSCE. At the same time, through individual analyses, projections of Serbia's positioning towards these international organizations (as well as some others, including international police organizations), are presented. In this context, the questions of the emergence and recognition of new states in the United Nations system, the role of small states with regard to the problem of NATO expansion, and the foreign policy and legal position of Serbia in the UN regarding the problem of regulating the status of Kosovo and Metohija and the continued presence of NATO in this area are analyzed. Very important studies in this part of the collection are also devoted to the issues of the emergence of multipolarity in the modern world, which is projected through the relations of great powers and international organizations (e.g. through the relationship between NATO and China), but also through the strengthening of the position of some regional security pacts (such as AUKS), and transnational forms of international security and economic organization (such as CSTO and BRICS).
Taking into account all of the above, it should be pointed out that international organizations in contemporary circumstances, along with states, represent the most important subjects of the creation of a new international order whose goals are generally related to the democratization of contemporary international relations and the globalization of the world economy. Their continuous expansion indicates their increased importance for the further development of international relations. Today, international organizations represent irreplaceable forums for the exchange of different views and experiences of importance for the preservation of international peace and security, more balanced social development, political cooperation and overall economic progress.
Finally, but not least, I would like to thank all the authors of this thematic proceeding for the diligence they invested in writing articles and analyzes dedicated to the topic: International Organizations - Serbia and the Contemporary World. Also, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my colleague and Co-Editor of this collection, Toni Mileski, a Full Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of St. Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, as well as to the Faculty itself, which is the co-publisher of this edition with the IIPE. I thank with deep respect the esteemed members of the international Editorial Board. Finally, I express my special gratitude to Professor Branislav Đorđević, Director of the IIPE, for the trust shown in the preparation of this internationally important scientific publication.
Duško Dimitrijević
Editor in Chief
... Some theorists distinguish between microstates and small states, insisting on their classification (Gaidz, 2007). Others, on the other hand, compare small states with weak, fragile states, completely dependent on external dynamics, sometimes with innovative, agile states (Handel 1981, Guilbaud 2016). There are also theorists that believe that small states are those whose survival is no longer truly threatened (Kalibataite, 2016). ...
... Some theorists distinguish between microstates and small states, insisting on their classification (Gaidz, 2007). Others, on the other hand, compare small states with weak, fragile states, completely dependent on external dynamics, sometimes with innovative, agile states (Handel 1981, Guilbaud 2016. There are also theorists that believe that small states are those whose survival is no longer truly threatened (Kalibataite, 2016). ...
... Some theorists distinguish between microstates and small states, insisting on their classification (Gaidz, 2007). Others, on the other hand, compare small states with weak, fragile states, completely dependent on external dynamics, sometimes with innovative, agile states (Handel 1981, Guilbaud 2016). There are also theorists that believe that small states are those whose survival is no longer truly threatened (Kalibataite, 2016). ...
... There is no consensus on which type of polarity is the most beneficial for small states, but a majority of scholars values the advantages of a bipolar system with intense competition between the two great powers (Baldacchino, 2009;Barston, 1973;Handel, 1981;Keohane, 1971;Maass, 2014;Rothstein, 1966;Sutton & Payne, 1993;Vandebosch, 1964;Vital, 1967). The main argument is that, if the tension between the two great powers is high, small states find windows of opportunities to pursue their interests and "punch above their weight". ...
After three decades of US unipolarity, the international system may be on the brink of transformation. Although the combined capabilities of the United States remain stronger than those of any other state in the international system and the United States remains unrivalled in defence spending and research and development, the American superpower no longer has the same ability to set agendas and impose preferences as in the immediate post-Cold War era. This chapter provides an overview of existing knowledge of links between different types of polarity and the challenges and opportunities of small states. We use this overview of existing knowledge as starting point for a comparative discussion of small state strategy under continued (weakened) unipolarity, bipolarity, multipolarity and non-polarity. We argue that in a world dominated by US- and China-led bounded orders, small states must choose their battles wisely, prioritize their resources and build networks with like-minded small states.
... Küçük devletlerin büyük güçlere karşı riski dengeleme stratejisi incelendiğinde, öncelikle küçük devletler 1 uluslararası arenada zayıf devletler olarak kabul edilmektedir (Handel, 1990). Küçük devletlerin gücünü korurken diğer devletlerin davranışlarını etkileyebilme kapasitesine sahip olmadığı varsayılmaktadır. ...
Since the end of the Cold War, The US and Thailand have seemed headed for a more strained and distant relationship. For this reason, China has become more interested in deepening cooperation. Following the 2006 and 2014 military coups, the US government has decided to cut military aid to Thailand and publicly criticized the military regimes. China has not deviated markedly from its traditional foreign policy approach towards Thailand. Under the leadership of military regimes, the country adopts hedging strategies in order to maintain domestic stability, to promote inclusive economic growth, to maneuver through the changing geopolitical environment around its peripheries, and to keep more support for pro-China and pro-U.S orientation. This article addresses the US- China rivalry from the hedging strategy of Thailand , as opposed to the concept of more traditional balancing and bandwagoning. It examines why and how, despite the tensions of the US- China rivalry, Thailand has pursued a hedging strategy towards China.
... Otra de las obras más completas sobre el tema corresponde a Handel (1990), quien pretendió abordar una descripción de las debilidades y la vulnerabilidad de los más débiles, así como de las capacidades que pueden desarrollar para compensar sus deficiencias. Desde esta perspectiva, el autor resalta en primer lugar el rol de la geografía, considerada muchas veces una de las principales limitaciones para la supervivencia de estos actores dado la dificultad de encontrar una variedad grande y bien equilibrada de recursos en territorios pequeños, lo que tiene impacto sobre su economía y su dependencia del exterior. ...
En el presente artículo se indaga teóricamente sobre el poder de los Estados más débiles en lo que respecta a las relaciones jerárquicas del sistema internacional. Esta cuestión se aborda primeramente a partir de una revisión de la literatura existente sobre los conceptos de autonomía y valor estratégico. Se advierte que, mientras que el primero ha sido ampliamente discutido en diversos círculos académicos, principalmente en América Latina; el segundo carece de reflexiones profundas a pesar de la íntima vinculación entre ambos y de su mención pasajera por parte de diversos autores. En función de esta vacancia temática, en el último apartado del artículo se reflexiona teóricamente sobre este concepto, su operacionalización mediante la identificación de sus distintos componentes, sus características y su relevancia. El mismo se aborda desde el marco teórico general del Realismo Periférico de Carlos Escudé. Se argumenta que el valor estratégico percibido de los países periféricos por parte de las grandes potencias resulta una variable condicional esencial para comprender estas relaciones asimétricas, siendo fundamental su incorporación en posteriores análisis empíricos que avancen sobre las mismas.
... In this regard, the size of a nation is relative to other great powers which are categorized as powerful on the basis of resources, defence, military and nuclear weapons. Small states rely on other states or international organizations to sustain their sovereignty and give way under pressure, given their inability to protect themselves against the aggressor (Goodby, 2014;Heng & Aljunied, 2015;Vital, 1967;Handel, 1990). A small country's geography, particularly an island nation, allows it the opportunity to exercise a degree of influence that exceeds its size when confronted with great power, and opportunity to pursue its interest successfully (Long, 2017). ...
China and India's competition and power struggle in the Indian Ocean is the new geopolitical reality. The arrival of an extra-regional power and India's concern of a Chinese presence has given Sri Lanka leverage in realizing its domestic and foreign policy goals, and relative bargaining power in convincing New Delhi to realize its interests. Meanwhile China card has posed challenges. Colombo’s strategy vis-à-vis this dynamic is influenced by domestic and international compulsions. By adopting bandwagon, balancing and strategic hedging strategies of small states, this paper evaluates how Sri Lanka navigated the power struggle during 2005–2019. This period marks a major shift in the international attention towards the Indian Ocean and therefore to the island nation. The paper concludes that as power struggle has intensified India and China's engagement in Sri Lanka, it has also allowed Sri Lanka to realize its own goals and objectives.
... Masters (2012: 33) reminds us that although governments have the final decision on foreign policy, it would be remiss to ignore potential roles played by nongovernmental sources (including business, academics, the media and research organisations) in governments' decision making. Handel (1990) argues that domestic determinants are less important to small states in their foreign policymaking because the international, structural or systemic influences will simply overwhelm their limited capabilities, constrain choice, and as a result will most often dictate foreign policy decisions of small states. Hey (2002, 213) adds that 'many small states enjoy limited foreign policy bureaucracies'. ...
In international relations small states are either discarded as irrelevant, unimportant, or weak; held in high regard as potential movers and shakers in especially smart or niche diplomacy areas; powerful in blocs; or as a non-classification, that is undeserving of a unique type separate from the world body of states. Regardless of varying perceptions, small states exist and more so, they exist with foreign policies. This study examines what drives the foreign policies of the southern African small states of Botswana, the Comoros, Lesotho, Mauritius, Namibia, the Seychelles and Swaziland. It finds that state size is important in shaping the foreign policies of these southern African small states, but that it is not mutually exclusive from other typical domestic and international determinants that play a role in conditioning most states’ foreign policies. Moreover, defence of national interest features as a common and undeniable primary foreign policy objective of these states.
... This literature equals "small" with the absolute and relative lack of capabilities and understands this ca pability deficit "as a handicap to state action, and even state survival" (Browning 2006, 669). Small states are weak and vulnerable prisoners of small margins of time and error following from their capability deficit and therefore unable to defend themselves against the great powers (Jervis 1978, 172-173;Handel 1990). They have limited diplomatic pow er and lack the necessary diplomatic competencies to avoid war as well as the necessary military capabilities to win a war. ...
No abstract is available for this article.
The vulnerability of small states is shaped by the international security environment and is an important factor in determining their security policy and strategy. Depending on the historical contexts and limitations in terms of perceptions and capabilities, small states craft their security policies and strategies. The Baltic States face security challenges that primarily emanate from Russia’s dominance in the region and its assertions in pursuit of its ‘Near Abroad’ policy. To deal with the emerging insecurities, the Baltic states have employed different tools and strategies that range from seeking ‘strategic shelters’ to strengthening their own national defence capabilities. Increasing the resilience of their societies have also been a part of the endeavour. Though the Atlantic Alliance remains the main Baltic defence security strategy, other policy strategies such as regional cooperation and bilateral defence cooperation are equally important. This paper will focus on what being ‘small’ means in the context of international security and will highlight some of the security strategies adopted by the Baltic states to secure themselves in the dramatically changing global security environment, post-Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Following the events in Ukraine in 2014, North Atlantic Treaty Organization decided to strengthen its presence in three Baltic States (3B) by establishing an enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) in Estonia, led by the United Kingdom; Latvia, led by Canada; and Lithuania, led by Germany. This study examines the nexus between host nations (HNs) and the eFP framework nations (FNs) while referencing small state theories. The case study considered theoretical and analytical approaches, including classical realism, neorealism, constructivism, liberal theory, neoliberal theory, shelter theory, alliance theory, alliance shelter theory, theory of the free-riding concept of bandwagoning, strategic hedging, and the concept of neutrality to indicate small states’ behaviour and attitude towards bigger states. The more intensive nexus between FNs and HNs was evident in the 3B; however, it varied when analysing activities in military and economic fields. Empirical evidence related to the FN–HN states’ pair led to different theoretical considerations. The study’s outcome suggests that an individual bespoke approach towards the 3B’s is required. The alliance and alliance shelter theories should be regarded as the most appropriate, albeit not explicitly corresponding with first-hand findings.
The Routledge Handbook of Chinese and Eurasian International Relations explores China’s relations with the Eurasian continent’s regions and countries in a multipolar era, providing an equal and balanced platform for scholars and practitioners from East, West, North, and South. This diversity enriches the contribution, giving it a dynamic ability to examine sources in different languages and cover a vast geography.
Divided into ten parts, this handbook analyses the major powers in a Multipolar World Order; China’s political and economic interests in post-Soviet Eurasia, Middle East, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Arctic; and China's relations with the US, Russia, Eurasian Economic Union, NATO and other players. International technology and environmental experts consider the impact of the Belt and Road Initiative, along with other international economic and transport corridors, and examine China’s multilateral relations and Digital Silk Road and e-governance roles. The Routledge Handbook of Chinese and Eurasian International Relations also contains official documents detailing the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and several European and Asian states, making it an authoritative source on diplomatic affairs.
This groundbreaking book will be of interest to policymakers, businessmen, scholars, and students of international relations, area studies, cybersecurity and digitalization, economics and the politics of international trade, security studies, foreign policy, global governance, international organizations, and environmental studies.
The purpose of this article is to analyze the strategies of small states against a neighboring nuclear big power and to contribute to the literature by explaining the reasons for the difference in small-state strategies. The case of Finland, a small country that did not join NATO during the Cold War, is a sui generis case. "Finlandization" refers to the foreign policy of Finland as a small state to survive against the communist Soviet Union, which was a powerful geopolitical neighbor during the Cold War. NATO remains a key component of the security architecture even after the Cold War, and the majority of its members can be classified as small states. Finland, which was not a NATO member during the Cold War, abandoned Finlandization after the Russia-Ukraine War. Although the policy of neutrality in geopolitics is a valid strategy in peace and even in the Cold War, different parameters come to the fore in war. In this article, these issues are examined with the comparative case study method. In conclusion, Finland succeeded in joining NATO by abandoning the Finlandization model, but Ukraine could not enter NATO while losing land and heavy casualties.
ÖZ
Bu makalenin amacı, küçük devletlerin komşu nükleer büyük bir güce karşı stratejilerini analiz etmek ve küçük devlet stratejilerindeki farklılığın nedenlerini açıklayarak literatüre katkı sağlamaktır. Soğuk Savaş sırasında NATO'ya katılmayan küçük bir devlet olan Finlandiya vakası nevi şahsına münhasır bir durumdur. "Finlandiyalaşma" terimi, Soğuk Savaş sırasında jeopolitik olarak güçlü bir komşu olan komünist Sovyetler Birliği'ne karşı hayatta kalmak için küçük bir devlet olarak Finlandiya'nın uyguladığı dış politika olarak anılmaktadır. NATO, Soğuk Savaş'tan sonra bile güvenlik mimarisinin kilit bir bileşeni olmaya devam etmektedir ve üyelerinin çoğunluğu küçük devletler olarak sınıflandırılabilir. Soğuk Savaş boyunca NATO üyesi olmayan Finlandiya'nın Rusya-Ukrayna Savaşı'ndan sonra Finlandiyalaşmayı terk ettiği sonucuna varılmıştır. Jeopolitikte tarafsızlık politikası barışta ve hatta Soğuk Savaş'ta geçerli bir strateji olmasına rağmen savaşta farklı parametreler öne çıkmaktadır. Bu makalede bu hususlar Ukrayna ve Finlandiya özelinde karşılaştırmalı vaka analizi metodu ile incelenmiştir. Sonuç olarak; Finlandiya, Finlandiyalaşmayı terk ederek NATO'ya katılmayı başarırken, Ukrayna toprak ve ağır can kayıplar vermesine rağmen NATO'ya giremedi.
This article analyzes foreign policy behaviors of Syria under Bashar al-Assad in times of three crises: the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, Syria’s withdrawal from Lebanon in 2005 and the outbreak of Arab Spring in 2011. These three crises, which Bashar al-Assad has faced since he rose to power in 2000, have stemmed from international, regional, domestic environments respectively. The article posits that the Baath regime’s security and survival concerns rather than external factors have primarily shaped Syrian foreign policy conducts in times of crises. In the article, it is pointed out that Syria as a weak state has been able to survive these crises that seriously threatened the very existence of the Baath regime thanks to its foreign policy strategies. In this context, the article underlines that President Assad’s alignment policy helped Syria as a weak state survive despite domestic and external threats.
Conventional wisdom suggests that small states’ foreign policies are constrained in several ways. These may be confined to size, material resources, geopolitical positioning and limited participation in inter-state affairs. Yet, despite their diminutiveness, small Caribbean states appeared to have acted with surprising dynamism in seeking to promote and uphold relations with China in an unlikely period, the bipolar era. Drawing from official records of their interactions and other documentary sources, these states showed themselves to be quite willing to transcend their various limitations and become rather active participants on issues aligning with their interests in the international sphere. This paper examines how policy-making between the Caribbean region and China unfolded and why it evolved the way it did. It argues that acting through the more ideational context of the Cold War era, policymakers within the Caribbean region implemented strategies and policies premised on shared ideals of Third World solidarity to further relations with China. In embarking on this analysis, two main contributions are envisaged. First, the paper addresses the knowledge gap on small Caribbean states’ foreign policy decision-making vis-à-vis China in the Cold War era. Second, interrogating the dynamic provides a unique opportunity to challenge the received wisdom on small states’ foreign policy behavior in line with an emphasis on small states agency amidst internal and international constraints.
Yeniden bağımsız oldukları 1991’den günümüze değin Baltık ülkelerinin hem dış hem de güvenlik politikalarının esas belirleyicisi Rusya’dan ortak bir şekilde algıladıkları yoğun tehdit olmuştur. Bu nedenle ilgili ülkeler Rus gücünü değil belki ama Rus tehdidini dengeleyebilmek adına Batı’ya yönelmişlerdir. Başta NATO ve AB olmak üzere, tüm bölgesel ve küresel örgütlere üye olmaya çalışan Baltık ülkeleri böylelikle aynı zamanda kapasitelerinin çok üstünde bir dış politika serbestisine de kavuşmuşlardır. Sovyet sonrası dönemde Rus tehdidinin bu denli yoğun bir şekilde hissedilmesinin temel nedeni, Baltık ülkelerin tarihsel kaygılarından ziyade Rusya’nın izlemeye başladığı agresif politikalardır. Yeniden bir büyük güç olmayı arzulayan Rusya, özellikle 1993 sonrası dönemde ‘yakın çevre’ olarak da adlandırılan son derece iddialı ve agresif bir politik anlayışa yönelmişti. Bu yönelimin Baltık ülkeleri açısından en tedirgin edici yönü ise yeni Rus askeri doktrinlerinde yer alan nükleer silahların kullanımına ve Rus diasporasının haklarının korunmasına ilişkin güçlü vurgulardır. 2004’de gerçekleşen NATO ve AB üyeliklerine rağmen, Baltık ülkelerinin bu tehdidi bütünüyle bertaraf edebildiklerini söylemek güçtür.
Relations between the United States and Vietnam have evolved rapidly since their bilateral ties were restored in 1995. One of the factors drawing two former foes closer together is assumed to be their shared concerns over China’s rise, particularly China’s growing aggressiveness in the South China Sea, where the US and Vietnam both have fundamental interests. This article investigates the US’s policy toward Vietnam in terms of security dimension and assesses the extent to which the China factor can influence the pace and scope of cooperation between the two countries. In this article, the US’s strengthening its security and defence cooperation with Vietnam these years is labelled as strategic adjustment. This article argues that the US’s strategic adjustment toward Vietnam is largely driven by the China factor. The US’s positive or negative views of China dictate whether Washington chooses to either stay neutral or lend support to Hanoi amid Vietnam-China tensions.
The study of the foreign policies of small states started from basic assumptions developed by the realist school revolving around the inability of these international units to protect
In the decade of 1960s, when Araniko Highway was being constructed linking Nepal’s capital with Chinese borders, Chairman Mao had said to his Nepali guests, “once these roads are opened, India may be a bit more respectful towards you.” Although much has varied in Sino-Indian interactions from the decade of 1960s to the early years of the 2020s, China’s intention in minimizing Indian influence in Nepal remains the same.
China's rise has fuelled much speculation about its potential involvement in regional crises across the world, and especially in the Middle East. In this debate, the agency of local actors is often ignored, and China is described as actively pursuing a long‐term strategy to expand its influence at the expense of the United States. Taking the Syrian civil war as a case study, this study challenges, if not wholly overturns, this mainstream analysis. Through the comparative juxtaposition of Syrian official discourse and Chinese actions, it finds that the Syrian state articulates a strategic narrative which significantly overstates its relationship with China for domestic and foreign policy reasons. This narrative, which depicts China as a supporter of an anti‐American regional coalition that also includes Iran and its allies, has been picked up by Western observers, thereby creating a distorted image of China's level of engagement in Syria and the region more broadly. Accordingly, this paper also prompts important considerations about the dynamics of China's presence with the Middle East and how scholars should study it.
Kurulduğundan beri küçük devlet politikaları izleyen Birleşik Arap Emirlikleri’nin (BAE) özellikle Arap Baharı süreciyle beraber dış politika davranışlarında önemli bir değişim yaşanmıştır. Daha önce dış politikada genelde Amerika Birleşik Devletleri (ABD) ve Suudi Arabistan’ı takip eden BAE, bölgede yaşanan çalkantı sonrası pro-aktif bir politika benimsemiştir. Çıkarları gerektirdiğinde ABD’den farklı tutum takınan, tehdit algıları farklılaştığından beri Riyad’a meydan okumaktan geri durmayan BAE, bölgesel bir aktör gibi hareket etmektedir. Makale küçük devlet kategorisine giren BAE’nin Arap Baharının bölgede yarattığı boşluğu doldurmada aktif bir tutum sergilemesinin nasıl mümkün olduğunu inceleyecektir. Bölgesel güvenlik kompleksi ile Arap Baharı öncesi ve sonrası BAE'nin içinde bulunduğu konjonktür değerlendirilip çok kutupluluğun küçük devlet politikalarına sunduğu hedging seçeneği ve BAE’nin hedging stratejisini bölgesel aktivizminde nasıl kullandığı değerlendirilecektir.
This paper makes a novel contribution by examining the puzzle of one Southeast Asian nation, Myanmar, and its dramatic shift of ‘fortune’ in its international status and the domestic consequences of that shift during the decade of 2010–2020. It highlights how the country’s changing international relations affected its domestic political decision-making process. It puts forth the argument that the amount of international attention the country received since 2011 as the target of competitive courtship between China, United States, and the West in general, and the consequent feeling of being valued as a geostrategic asset, created strong conditions for overconfidence on part of Myanmar’s government and military. This favorable international environment also coincided with perceived progress in democratization domestically. Similar to its past patterns of behavior toward ethnic minorities, the Myanmar military and the government overestimated their likelihood of success in dealing with the Rohingya minority while underestimating the likelihood of punishment by the international community.
Nepal is one of the few countries in the world which was never colonized during the hey-day of colonial era. She is bounded on the north by China and on the three other sides by India. Compared to these Colossi, Nepal is significantly weaker in terms of demography, economics, military strength and physical size. Nepal is, thus, a typical small state. There are several strategies that small states can employ to compensate for their weaknesses, ensure security, and secure a measure of influence over other actors. Small state literature exposes that such states can choose from strategies such as entering into alliance with a great power, hedging, neutrality, balancing, and band– wakening. Currently, this paper explores a trajectory of survival strategies that Nepal adopted during the Shah era on the basis of the analysis of crucial events that occurred during this period from perspectives of small state theories. The paper is based on the study of relevant books, documents and articles on small states amidst international affairs in global spheres. The joint rise of India and China is transforming the strategic landscape of Nepal’s neighborhood and will have a profound and long-term impact on Nepal. Nepal in the past has demonstrated a stubborn ability to survive by adapting to changing geopolitical situations. Although the present-day world is far more complex, lessons from the past are worth reconsidering because there are instances of similarities to the present. Furthermore, some aspects of strategy are constant.
How do IR scholars 'write' the Arab Gulf? In attempting to address this question, the focus is twofold: first, the 'small state' as a construct and second, its application to the study of Gulf small states. The article tries to grapple with issues inherent in such an enterprise by providing a critical assessment of recent scholarship on the topic, with special reference to Qatar and the UAE. The problematic comes to the fore in a context of these two countries' increasing regional and international visibility, as well as what seems to be renewed scholarly interest in small states, more generally. Specifically, this analysis primarily seeks to relativize the small state within the Arab Gulf sub-region, drawing attention to ontological and epistemologi-cal issues. In so doing, the article offers some heuristics for the writing of small states in the Arab Gulf. One suggestion put forward in the article is more scrutiny of the regional context; what is called here the 'hydrocarbon semi-periphery'; and misgivings (conceptual and empirical) concerning, respectively, the treatment of 'soft power,' mediation, and intervention. One parting idea to derive from this line of inquiry is its cautionary note against inflating the utility or the explanatory power of a catch-all 'small state' construct when it comes to non-Western settings.
This chapter discusses the global discourse on intervention in foreign intrastate armed conflicts by China and other non-Western rising powers. It assesses the prevailing discourse on the topic and the emerging gaps. The main argument advanced in the chapter is that the major gap in existing scholarship is the lack of systematic theoretical and empirical study of intervention in foreign conflicts by rising powers, particularly China. The chapter advances the argument that in external intervention studies, practice has preceded theory. The focus of IR theorists has remained on “states-that-matter” such that the theories do not explain the behaviour of small or rising states. It therefore makes an argument for the use of neoclassical realism as a theoretical framework able to explain the foreign policy behaviour of rising powers.
This article uses small states scholarship to map North Korea’s evolution from a post-colonial small state to a system-influencing state due to its nuclear weapons programme. The framework allows for contributions to: (1) The DPRK literature which in some parts has suggested the future collapse of the state, (2) The small states literature that suggests they can only survive if they integrate larger political and/or economic units, (3) The mainstream IR literature and its dominant realist streak that considers great powers and their will as the main drivers in contemporary world politics.
Full text: http://rdcu.be/pfwP
Much time and enormous amount of academic effort has gone into defining small states and their position in world politics. This endeavor, sadly, has produced very little agreement. It is therefore time to reposition the discussion. I do so by arguing that the analysis of small states should move from a concentration on ‘smallness’ to looking in more detail at the relationships in which these states are engaged. IR scholars should therefore stop defining and re-defining the concept of ‘small state,’ quite literally setting it aside as an analytical category. This article advocates a whole-hearted embrace of a relational approach, replacing the analytical category of ‘small state’ with a new perspective and terminology.
This chapter places the doctrine of humanitarian intervention within the realm of international law keeping two objectives in mind. The first is to question whether or not there exists a right to intervene and how state practice has evolved prior to 2001. The second is to provide a basis to assess the permissive and restrictive influences of legal elements on the conduct of humanitarian intervention, which is among the measures of the responsibility to react. In the subsequent chapters of the book, such analysis will also help understand the factors hindering the evolution of the collective responsibility to protect into a legal norm. In light of this, the chapter analyses the legal background in the construction of through the evolution of international law and the practice of humanitarian intervention in the post-Charter period. As Teitel (2011, p. 4) maintains:
This paper investigates the process of coalition formation for issue-specific coalitions. I use the Alliance of Small Island States and the Coalition for Rainforest Nations as case studies to inductively create a framework on coalition formation. This framework is tested against two coalitions, both advocating for mountain issues in the UN climate negotiations. These two coalitions differ in the type of coalition sought, the strategies deployed thus far, and the type of support they have received, including the role of non-state actors. The framework helps identify significant gaps in the efforts of the two coalitions, including capturing the most salient link between climate change and mountains, translating technical input into negotiating positions, and identifying the most appropriate form of the coalition and forum to pursue these interests. In doing so, this paper provides insights into the limits of linking issues to the climate change agenda (“climate bandwagoning”), issue proliferation and its implications for coalition management for actors like the Group of 77 and China, and the nature of multi-scalar interactions in regime complexes.
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