U.S. discussions of the international order fit firmly in this category.8 In contrast, other analyses highlight the contested nature of norms and institutions, which they attribute to the combined effects of the unequal distribution of global power and the tremendous influence of the most powerful states in shaping the order.9 These analyses place greater weight on questions of justice, global inequality, and poverty, and emphasize their importance for the order's legitimacy. The LIO concept suffers from two main problems. In the fourth section, I explore weaknesses in some of the LIO concept's theoretical arguments. 1329; and John J. Mearsheimer, Structural Realism, in Tim Dunne, Milja Kurki, and Steve Smith, eds., International Relations Theory: Discipline and Diversity, 3rd ed. Despite these problems with the LIO concept, the LIO might prove valuable if its components produce more jointly than they would individuallythat is, if the whole of the LIO were greater than the sum of its parts. 181218, doi.org/10.1017/S1752971918000040. 5885, doi.org/10.1017/S0043887109000082. A different possibility is that economic openness increases U.S. security: openness advantages the U.S. economy or its allies economies, or both, which increases their military potential. 6162. This research raises the question of whether the international economic openness and high economic growth that China has experienced over the past few decades had reasonable prospects for generating a transition to democracy, and what its prospects are going forward. In other words, my critique does not rely on taking a specific position in the continuing debate over the arguments that lie at the core of liberalism.43. 38, No. "useRatesEcommerce": false 3566, doi.org/10.1080/00396338.2016.1161899. 61, No. 1 (Summer 2001), pp. NATO was created to meet two challenges: the need to balance against the Soviet Union and the need to constrain West Germany. White House, National Security Strategy of the United States of America (Washington, D.C.: White House, May 2010), p. 12, https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=24251. What are their strength and weaknesses? Why Realism Does Not Mean Pessimism, Foreign Affairs, Vol. Systematic examination shows that this framing creates far more confusion than insight. 3637. Describe the tenets of liberal internationalism, Explain the benefits and criticisms of this theory. diplomatic and military history. Balance of threat theory also posits that the larger an external threat, the larger the risk that allies will accept from within the alliance. Fails, Push and Pull on the Periphery: Inadvertent Expansion in World Politics, Social Cohesion and Community Displacement in Armed Conflict, The MIT Press colophon is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. See, for example, Jeff D. Colgan and Robert O. Keohane, The Liberal Order Is Rigged: Fix It Now or Watch It Wither, Foreign Affairs, Vol. In this article, I show that the LIO concept suffers from theoretical weaknesses that render it unable to explain much about the interaction of the United States with its adversaries or its allies. Ikenberry, The Illusion of Geopolitics, p. 81. 107, No. 561598, doi.org/10.1017/S0020818300027831. 130 lessons https://www.britannica.com/topic/liberal-internationalism, Nobelprize.org - Liberal Internationalism: Peace, War and Democracy, Academia - The politics of liberal internationalism, terrorist attacks perpetrated on September 11, 2001, against the United States. Shifting to a grand-strategic lens has the potential to avoid all these problems. There may also be other ways in which the military capabilities of the United States contribute to its prosperity that are not related directly to economic openness. 1. Given space constraints, I do not explore the implications or potential of this type of order. For example, if the U.S.-Japan alliance increases China's security by reducing its fears of Japan, China could be more willing to engage in trade. Thomas J. Christensen, China, the U.S.-Japan Alliance, and the Security Dilemma in East Asia, International Security, Vol. Should the United States continue its security commitment to East Asia? Regime theorists explain this continuity by focusing on norms of consultation and the establishment of the status quo as a focal point,69 not the weaker alliance members belief that they have a duty to comply with U.S. demands. Similarly, Russia's increasingly aggressive behavior in Ukraine and elsewhere was helping reinvigorate NATO. See, for example, Ikenberry, Liberal Leviathan, pp. 23, No. For example, the LIO perspective contributed to U.S. enthusiasm for expanding NATO eastward to spread democracy, while giving too little weight to Russia's understanding of expansion's negative implications. John Baylis and Steve Smith argue that Liberalism is primarily a theory of government, one that seeks to reconcile order (security) and justice (equality) within a particular community. But instead of depending on luck, analysts of U.S. foreign policy should shift from the LIO lens to a grand-strategic lens, which promises to better explore the path forward. For example, the Kyoto Protocol on climate change was a multilateral effort attempting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to stem man-made climate change. Hurd focuses on why states follow international norms. The theory assumes that we can move past the violence and anarchy of the international system through cooperation. In addition, there may be other benefits that accrue to the United States from providing leadership in the economic system that do not depend, at least directly, on U.S. security alliances. See Richard K. Betts, American Strategy: Grand vs. Grandiose, in Richard Fontaine and Kristen M. Lord, eds., America's Path: Grand Strategy for the Next Administration (Washington, D.C.: Center for a New American Security, May 2012), pp. 1 (Summer 1993), pp. On the feasibility of collective action without a hegemon, see Duncan Snidal, The Limits of Hegemonic Stability Theory, International Organization, Vol. Grand strategy reflects beliefs/theories that play a central role in identifying threats and provide the logical connection between a state's interests and the available means for achieving them. Let's take a closer look at some of these basic principles. The LIO comprises a variety of disparate elements, including predominant U.S. power, U.S. alliances in Europe and Asia, the open international economic system, and the United Nations. 1: Compare and contrast realist and liberal theories of international relations. Either way, the terms of the agreement reflect the differences in the states power. For example in 1990 Iraq invaded Kuwait. Jones et al., The State of the International Order, p. 7. please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. See also Joseph S. Nye Jr., Will the Liberal Order Survive? 2 (2016), pp. We were among the first university presses to offer titles electronically and we continue to adopt technologies that allow us to better support the scholarly mission and disseminate our content widely. Eliminates slavery: Liberalism ensures we have a great country free from injustices and slavery. The higher the level of economic interdependence, the greater the losses from the interruption of trade; recognition of these potential losses increases the incentives for states to avoid war. In the longer term, a sufficiently powerful state may be able to revise the order; therefore, in this time frame, the order is primarily a means. Equality As required by the law, all people should be treated equally regardless of their social status, ethnicity, gender, or religion. U.S. foreign policy will be inflexible, when the shifting balance of power may call for concessions and revised understandings of appropriate behavior. 2 (June 2006), pp. Numerous scholars have argued that the intensity of transactions (social, cultural, and economic) across national borders has increased enormously and that, consequently, the world is becoming interdependent. Another key feature of liberal internationalism is faith in the virtuousness and effectiveness of international organizations and supranational political structures to help create a cooperative, safe and peaceful international environment. 136138, doi.org/10.1080/09557571.2011.570740; Keir A. Lieber and Gerald Alexander, Waiting for Balancing: Why the World Is Not Pushing Back, International Security, Vol. First, and most basic, the LIO concept is inward looking; it focuses on interactions between states that are members of the liberal international order, not on interactions between states that belong to the LIO and those that do not. Copyright 2003 - 2023 - UKEssays is a trading name of Business Bliss Consultants FZE, a company registered in United Arab Emirates. But as with every international paradigm there are strengths and weaknesses. Liberalists believe that there will be conflict when actors cannot agree on an interest, however, they keep an optimistic outlook on the possibility of cooperation. 159219; and Copeland, Economic Interdependence and War, pp. Thus, discussion of lack of competition under anarchy and legitimate authority do not apply to the U.S.-Soviet competition. The security dilemma confronts states with the sometimes difficult choice about how best to balance these risks; defensive realism and related rationalist theories explain that cooperation is sometimes a state's best option.64. Stephen M. Walt, Origins of Alliances (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1987), pp. Framing China as a threat to the LIO reflects and combines both of these dangers, and thereby unnecessarily aggravates U.S.-China relations.97. Render date: 2023-05-02T03:43:57.309Z Whether U.S. policies that supported China's extraordinary relative growth were misguided depends partly on whether the United States will be able to meet its security requirements over the next few decades. This realization, combined with growing recognition that the Soviet Union posed a major security threat, which made strong allies more important, fueled the shift away from economic openness.93. Liberman, Trading with the Enemy: Security and Relative Economic Gains, International Security, Vol. Among the largest university presses in the world, The MIT Press publishes over 200 new books each year along with 30 journals in the arts and humanities, economics, international affairs, history, political science, science and technology along with other disciplines. See also Hurrell, On Global Order, pp. In effect, this perspective implicitly assumes that what is good for the United States is good for others as well. 213266; Ikenberry, Liberal Leviathan, pp. Briefly, part of the problem is Waltz's overstatement of this argument; once modified, basic information arguments can explain this specialization. Theorists of the LIO claim that many facets of democratic states help make feasible a liberal order that produces cooperation, unilateral restraint, and peace: democratic states have common interests; they expect that interactions will be based on consensus and reciprocity, not simply on the exercise of power; they can overcome the security dilemma; and they can make credible commitments that provide confidence that powerful states will restrain their use of force.21 As a result, democracies are better able to maintain alliances, pursue open trade, and establish and abide by rules that guide international behavior. China's economy has grown at an extraordinary rate relative to the economies of the United States and its European and Asian allies. International cooperation has also helped harmonised trade and security agreements amongst states; an example of this is the development of the European Union in Europe and led to greater bonds and peace between nations. More important, the LIO terminology clouds analysis of international policy by obscuring what is actually occurring. 2 (August 2010), p. 321, doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2010.491391. For a different perspective on the trade-offs facing a unipolar power, see also Nuno P. Monteiro, Theory of Unipolar Politics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014). In addition, they ascribe the peace and cooperation that characterized the first two decades of the postCold War era largely to the LIO. Violence should be a tool of last resort. The main principles of liberalism are individualism, liberty, and equality. Another possibility is that analysts use the LIO terminology to refer to a geopolitical status quo that they find desirable. 819855, doi.org/10.1017/S0020818300033269. With China's rise generating a dramatic shift in the global balance of power, however, the United States needs to engage in a more fundamental evaluation of its interests and the best means for achieving them. Pro-overhaul protest showed the right's strengths and the government's weakness Likud voters want gov't to focus on declining economy, Haredi parties want draft exemption law, religious . Bodies such as the European Union presented a model for future supranational political structures. Cold War grand strategy of containment called for protecting Western Europe from the Soviet Union; NATO was created for this purpose and is a key component of the LIO. A long-standing debate among analysts of U.S. grand strategy concerns whether U.S. security commitments help preserve the open international economy.84 Presenting the position of a key school in this debateselective engagementStephen Brooks and William Wohlforth argue, The United States ability to exercise leadership over the existing order is a function not just of its economic size but also partly of its forward security position and associated alliances.85 In part, this positive interaction occurs because U.S. commitments, by providing security, reduce allied states concerns about relative economic gains.86 The more secure a state believes it is, the less it should worry about relative economic gains, because its potential adversary's power is less threatening. In general, liberal internationalists regard violence as the policy of last resort, advocate diplomacy and multilateralism as the most-appropriate strategies for states to pursue, and tend to champion supranational political structures (such as the European Union) and international organizations (especially the United Nations). Instead, it is concerned essentially with cooperation within the LIO and especially between allies. Finally, the Soviet Union was largely excluded from the West's open markets and its financial system; thus, economic interdependence arguments do not apply. Conclusion. 1650. 9, No. The United States NATO allies ran these risks during the Cold War and continue to do so today. Internationalism implores people to be world citizens rather than citizens of a particular country. The latter proposed the creation of a variety of institutional structures, including regional and global federations, and transnational organizations, including international arbitration bodies. I do not see a deep theoretical divide between neo-institutional arguments and rational structural theories. Balance of Power Theory | Definition | Use | Criticism, Introduction to Journalism: History & Society, Treaty of Westphalia | Thirty Years' War Overview, Huntington's Clash of Civilizations | Summary, Cause & Opposing Views, U.S. Supreme Court Cases: Study Guide & Review, Political Science 102: American Government, UExcel Political Science: Study Guide & Test Prep, Introduction to Political Science: Help and Review, Introduction to Political Science: Tutoring Solution, Intro to Political Science Syllabus Resource & Lesson Plans, Psychology 107: Life Span Developmental Psychology, SAT Subject Test US History: Practice and Study Guide, SAT Subject Test World History: Practice and Study Guide, Geography 101: Human & Cultural Geography, Economics 101: Principles of Microeconomics, Create an account to start this course today. 205311. On bargaining in alliance formation and management, see Glenn H. Snyder, Alliance Politics (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977), especially pp. The legitimacy of the most powerful state reflects its willingness to rely on bargaining to achieve consensus.25 The LIO is built on negotiated rules that all states, including the most powerful state, accept. Critics have also argued that liberal internationalism is modern-day western imperialism masked under the veil of cooperation and collaboration. Third, a grand-strategic framework would identify the full spectrum of broad options for achieving U.S. security and prosperity, ranging from neo-isolationist policies that would terminate U.S. alliances to global hegemony that requires intense military and economic competition with China. In this section, I first explain why viewing U.S. foreign policy through the LIO lens is dangerous and then argue for employing a grand-strategic lens instead. On some of the factors that support the U.S. shift, see Daniel H. Rosen, A Post-Engagement U.S.-China Relationship (New York: Rhodium Group, January 19, 2018), https://rhg.com/research/post-engagement-us-china-relationship/. On narrow and broad definitions, see Janice Bially Mattern and Aye Zarakol, Hierarchies in World Politics, International Organization, Vol. Should the United States instead adopt competitive policies that are inconsistent with the LIO but that may be required to preserve U.S. regional dominance? al., Did America Get China Wrong? p. 189. Feature Flags: { I show, however, that this has not been the case and that established theories of alliance cooperation explain cooperation within NATO quite well. Mazarr et al., Understanding the Current International Order, pp. Has data issue: false 2. 85140. By continuing to use our website, you are agreeing to, Explanations for International Cooperation, Logics of Interaction between Components of the LIO, Time to Shift Lenses: From the LIO to Grand Strategy, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2014-04-17/illusion-geopolitics, https://dod.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2018-National-Defense-Strategy-Summary.pdf, https://dod.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/628147/remarks-on-strategic-and-operational-innovation-at-a-time-of-transition-and-tur/, https://www.cnas.org/publications/reports/extending-american-power-strategies-to-expand-u-s-engagement-in-a-competitive-world-order, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2018-06-14/myth-liberal-order, http://nationalinterest.org/feature/how-china-sees-world-order-15846, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2016-12-12/once-and-future-order, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2016-12-12/will-liberal-order-survive, doi.org/10.1111/J.1468-2478.2010.00601.x. Although proponents of selective/deep engagement accept that there is some uncertainty about whether U.S. forward-deployed security commitments are necessary to preserve the open international economic system, they conclude that the value of economic openness warrants buying insurance via these security commitments. The history of development over the last century has been one of competing theories and developmental models. See, among others, Charles L. Glaser, Why Unipolarity Doesn't Matter (Much), Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Vol. The modern nation-state was born and has developed within an international system that can be described as liberal internationalism. In short, the United States is facing growing threats to its security, not to the LIO. The other key ingredient was the U.S. offer of participation in much of the Western liberal order to the rest of the world so that potential rivals could benefit from engaging with the United States.71, There are two problems with this argument. The ways through which liberal internationalism is implemented include international law, international commerce, and international organizations. Robert Jervis, Cooperation under the Security Dilemma, World Politics, Vol. 49, No. During and after the 1970s a prominent social scientific strand of liberal internationalism emerged.
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