Week 9 Discussion Questions.docx

Lily Wilson Week #9/10 March 2-6 Interdependence, Regionalism, and the European Union + The Future of World Politics Kegley, World Politics: Trend and Transformation, ch. 6, all.(1) What is the distinction between IGOs and NGOs? IGO: institutions created and joined by states? governments, which give them authority to make collective decision to manage particular problems on the global agenda NGO: transnational organizations of private citizens maintaining consultative status with the UN; they include professional associations, foundation, multinational corporations, or simply internationally active groups in different states joined together to work toward common interests. (2) What is the best known global organization? What distinguishes it from most other IGOs? What, loosely, is its objectives? The UN It has a nearly universal membership of 193 independent member states from every region States that join it are supposed to put the global community before their own national interest concerns Maintaining international peace and security Developing friendly relations among states based on respect for the principle of equal rights and the self-determination of peoples Achieving international cooperation solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all Functioning as a center for harmonizing the actions of countries to attain these common ends (3) Define the WTO, World Bank, and IMF. WTO: a global organization created after WW2 when the US sought to create international economic institutions that would prevent another depression by facilitating the expansion of world trade. It now seeks to transcend the existing matrix of free-trade agreements between pairs of countries and replace them with an integrated and comprehensive worldwide system of liberal or free trade World Bank: created in 1944 and was established to support reconstruction efforts in Europe after WW2. It then focused on developmental assistance. IMF: designed to maintain currency-exchange stability by promoting international monetary cooperation and orderly exchange arrangements and by functioning as a lender of last resort for countries experiencing financial crises (4) What is the world?s best success story among regional IGOs? What did the organization initially center on? How many members are currently part of the organization The EU: a regional organization created by the merger of the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Atomic Energy Community, and the European Economic Community (called the European Community until 1993) that has since expanded geographically and in its authority Political integration 25 members (5) What is neofunctionalism, and how is it at work in the EU? Neofunctionalism: the revised functional theory explaining that the IGOs created by states to manage common problems provide benefits that exert new pressures by political means for further political integration, the creation of additional IGOs, and the globalization of international relations in an expanding network of independence that reduces states? incentives to wage war It purposely pushes for cooperation in politically controversial areas rather than by avoiding them (6) What are the four primary governing organizations of the EU? Council of Ministers European Commission European Parliament Court of Justice (7) On what level are most IGOs organized? What are some examples of major regional organizations? Regional APEC NATO ASEAN (8) Why do regional IGOs sometimes fail? Why do states keep trying regional ventures? The chances of political integration wane without geographical proximity, stead economic growth, similar political system supportive public opinion led by enthusiastic leaders, cultural homogeneity, internal political stability, similar experiences in historical and internal social development, compatible economic systems with supportive business interests, a shared perception of a common external threat, bureaucratic compatibilities, and previous collaborative efforts (9) What is spillover and spillback? Spillover: the propensity for successful integration across one area of collaboration between states to propel further integration in other areas Spillback: the reversal of previous steps toward integration, reducing the number of sectors in which integrating states are engaged in cooperative exchanges (10) Do IGOs threaten states? role as primary actor in the international system? Realists believe they do pose a threat Liberals also see it as a dangerous course Realists also see the states retaining their present functions Liberals see it as taking away power from the state Timothy Garton Ash, ?What Europe Can Be?, Free World, pp.190-203 (Reader).(1) Which comes first, freedom or membership in the EU? freedom (2) Is the recent growth of the EU to include Romania and Bulgaria the beginning or the end for the EU? What might the 20-year plan be? Possibly the end This is because having too many states join would make things too complicated The EU might have trouble turning down countries that wish to join the EU also if they allow only certain new ones to join The 20 year plan could prong Huntington wrong by adding one small country It could enhance the political stability of its own eastern borderlands and influence and form a post imperial Russia (3) Why is Turkish membership in the EU so controversial? Why not include Russia as an EU member? What should be done about Russia instead? If promises to Turkey are kept it could demonstrate that a Muslim country could take an honored place as perhaps the most populous state in the EU If the promises are broken it could result in a disastrous message to Muslims everywhere that they are not welcome in Europe Russia is so large that it would require the addition of 140 million people and Russian elites aren?t even sure they want to be part of the EU or just a world-straddling Eurasian power It also might want to influence Eastern Europe (4) What is the political question for the EU at the beginning of the 21st Century? How easy will it be to achieve a workable strategic coalition? Will the big three be enough to provide the strategic leadership and critical mass in a European Union of 25 going on 40? The answer seems to be no They need help from 3 or 4 other middle power states This will be very difficult to achieve (5) Can the European welfare states compete on the same level as other national/regional economies? What will need to happen? The welfare states used to be exemplary They need singular ingenuity for Europeans to continue to work shorter hours, take longer holidays, have a smaller proportion of the population in employment, and still produce as much (6) What has Europe?s relationship with immigrants historically been? Is this good or bad for the future of Europe? Europe has not been good at making large numbers of immigrants feel at home This is potentially bad for the future of Europe because other countries will curse Europe?s national politics (7) What should Europe?s foreign policy to the ?near abroad? be? Prosperity and freedom need to be taken to these places to prevent their people from wanting to immigrate into Europe Politics of induction (8) What is the most effective single instrument for the EU? What is the least effective instrument for the EU? How do Europeans feel about becoming a superpower simply by spending more on defense? Trade is the most effective Military force is the least effective They feel that they want to achieve this in a different way than unilateralism and preemptive attack They feel it cannot become a superpower because of the diversity within the states (9) Why do we need an EU? Alliances for war Peacekeeping and reconstruction The US and the EU both take half the work (10) Is the EU repeatable? Should it be emulated? It is not repeatable It should not be emulated by the US because there needs to be a superpower (11) What would be the consequences of centering European identity on transatlantic value differences? This would be impossible Christopher Layne, ?The Unipolar Illusion: Why New Great Powers Will Rise?, International Security, Spring 1993, pp. 33-51. (Click here)(1) What is the ?key grand strategic issue confronting US policymakers today?? The US plays a preeminent role in international politics The US also wants to maintain the mechanisms for deterring potential competitors from even aspiring to a larger regional of global role It will be difficult for the US to maintain the Cold War status quo because structural change has destroyed the bipolar foundation of the post-1945 international system The US needs to manage the potentially difficult transition from unipolarity to mutipolarity and advance US interests in the multipolar world that inevitably emerge (2) Upon what issues do balance of power theorists disagree? What is the author?s contribution to this debate? It can be argued on the basis of hegemonic stability theory and balance of threat theory that a benign hegemon might be able to prevent new great powers from emerging and balancing against it Also, states worry that today?s ally could become tomorrow?s rival because they pay close attention to how cooperation might affect relative capabilities in the future Waltz claims that states will flock to the weaker side and threaten them with their preferred policies (3) According to the author, why are realists wrong about the preponderance of unipolarity? The US alliances with Japan and Germany are an integral part of the strategy it seeks: to prevent multipolar rivalries and to discourage the rise of global hegemons If the US continues to extend security guarantees to Japan and Germany they will have no incentive to develop great power capabilities A hegemon tends to overpay for security which weakens it The hegemon also facilitates the diffusion of wealth and technology to potential rivals (4) What defines a hegemon, and how does the US fit this definition? A hegmon is a single power that serves as a leader in a situation with consent from the other states involved The US is the world superpower and cooperates with many other countries while leading decision making (5) Why is the US considered by some to be a ?benevolent hegemon?? It is seen as fearsome because states believe it wants to push its beliefs on them The US also has so much power that it is almost impossible to stop It is also believed that the US wants domination worldwide or regionally (6) What are the main critiques of the notion of US exceptionalism? Other states will eventually emerge and challenge the US It is unlikely that the US will remain the only superpower forever (7) What is ?leash slipping,? and what do the cases mentioned by the author tell us about balance of power politics. Trying to enhance autonomy This will bridge the gap in power balance Used by less powerful countries