Realism in contemporary politics

Realism in contemporary governmental sympathiesWhich populace(prenominal) dealing guess best describes the worlds events? This is on the face of it a question highly likely to be exclusively asked by an inter subject atomic number 18a traffic professor to his/her inter study relations students during a lecture. The students assume to be analyzing this question very critic eithery by taking tot eithery the found f shams into c atomic number 18ful consideration before deciding on any thing. non surprisingly, whilst some students lead probably decide to choose interdependent liberalism or classical naive realism as their preferred answers, some separates, by contrast, efficacy prefer another(prenominal)(prenominal) distinguishable theory, for example, Marxism or Mer stoptilism. Yet, none of them n of all timetheless argon either completely right or wrong. They all cede their deliver supporting certify based on passed histories and/or today worlds current events to illustrate their give circumstance arguments. However, some if non all of the evidence is non concrete or convincing enough which abide potentially draw criticisms or re stills from those who ar in an opposition side. As an inter subject relations student, I to my preference will select neorealism or structural realism of Kenneth waltz as the best foreign relations theory to explain the worlds political practices and tendency.Neorealism specifically refers to a theory which tries to explain that the enjoin remains, not human being elements, is the genuine determinant of the accede behaviors. It whispers to the ears of all the acress that they all have to act in unison with the anarchy of the system to stretch out and prosper. People displace act morally and ethically in their hunting lodge within their confined territory. But give tongue tos cannot and should not do the same thing otherwise they could tr apieceerously place themselves in danger and more execrabl y in death. This is chiefly because within a s all everyplaceeign state, there is a profound government or authority standing by to jockstrap place peoples social behaviors so that social pitch and peace can confine and thereby peace and harmony. That is wherefore we can see there atomic number 18 outstanding lots of nice people whose good deeds annul and outweigh bad deeds as they interact with one other in society. But we can similarly see that states more a good deal than not fight, kill, destroy or sack individually other for its own exclusively face-to-face gains. Some states, such(prenominal) as Morn, Charm Civilizations, were already unmade. Albeit the League of Nations, Japan embarked on invading countries in Asia, and Germany in atomic number 63 no (world) government or effectively strong inter matter geological formation disciplined them. The US, despite disagreement from other big origins and UN, did stage contend against Iraq. Recently, North Korea h as bombed the south-central. This is not to mention many other pillow slips. These high swallow and lay out ever-lasting anarchy of the system wherein (destructive) attacks and struggles argon always possible.The so-called Balance of government agency widely k straightawayn to be captainly unquestionable by Kenneth waltz around is a paradigmatically typical example of the worlds political trends. Balance of creator specifically refers to the means by which a state in the anarchical state systems is highly likely to manipulate its ability, for example by forming an alliance with another or other states, simply in order for itself to better if not best stand up to a more all- springful or superior state by which it feels threatened. Relative gains, which mean one state feels insecure when another has gained something out of the anarchical state system, and the endeavors to increase power to well ensure national interests, security, and survival can similarly potentially l ead to counterweight of power. A sheer number of events demonstrate this mere assume.Recently, the USA has been to Indonesia and India and pledged to strengthen their mutual existing ties and relationships. From the political perspectives, we can see that the US does so simply and mainly to match its power with chincognizant who appargonntly bets cunning and bullying over many worlds issues. European Union is alike another supporting example. EU member states be bound and tied together not alone economically, but overly politically by pooling some of their sovereignty chiefly in order to balance its economic and political power with the rest of the world, including the US, the Oriental, and the developing countries which are acclivitous as potential challenging competitive rivals both economically and politically. One more relevant example falls on the case of ASEAN. ASEAN has called for the intervention from the US and Russia in the South mainland chinaware Sea issues, a nd this is comprehend by the world as sort of balance of power by ASEAN with more economically and militarily powerful chinaware. A main and original objective of ASEAN on which it has remedy centrally foc utilise to-date is to strengthen its intra-regional frugality so that it can well compete with the rest of the world, in particular the developed countries. This can also be viewed as balance of power.China is also a particularly obvious example of balance of power. China who used to be much inferior to the US economically and militarily outright has virtually blend the only USs equal. China has strived so onerous for ages and for generations to build its powerhouse in order that its power can be balanced with the US so that China will never ever be easy to be threatened or coerced by the worlds only superpower. That is the very reason why China has been so wily in playing political and economic games in the international arena. China has in public and secretly support and granted soldiers and economic aids without string section attached to the authoritarian and bumble states (governments) who are often condemned and warned by the western United States to sever development aids on the ground of human rights violations or economic or political subsidisation. It is not only that, China has also manipulated its skills to depreciate its own cash and thus increase its exports at the outgo of others particularly the US. The US has heavily responded to China. That is why the main item in the agenda of this year G-20 summit held in Seoul is su aver currency issue.Neorealists can also be reasonably right to argue that the world can be characterized by security dilemma. Security dilemma specifically means that whilst a state is building its cling toive capabilities, others will live suit by building their own, and more often than not defensive capabilities can potentially be converted into the offensive, so wars or arm conflicts are more prone to be heightend then. Trying to shift balance of power and to nurse national interests can potentially result in security dilemma as well. There are many of worlds emerging issues acting as clear cut examples to illustrate the point.The US was the first-ever state to introduce thermonuclear weapon. And then, USSR stool the nuclear technology from the US and reinforced its own nuclear weapon. Facing the security dilemma, the dickens did compete with apiece not only over nuclear weapons, but also over other military technologies. After polar War in the midst of these deuce superpowers came to the demise, other excellenter states particularly the authoritarian states started building nuclear weapons as well, leading to nuclear proliferation and spread. North Korea, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, India, China are believed to possess nuclear weapons. Taiwan, Japan, Viet Nam and a few others are also believed to be ready and spontaneous to produce nuclear weapons also. Thus, we can say the US has been encountering even hugeer security dilemma. The US has been so tricky and pragmatic in maintaining its global-scale powerful position, role and influence so that it can ensure its own national interests the US has manipulated oil politics in the Middle East. Given this behavior, China has been trying to be as powerful as the US done whatever sly means it can access China supports the counteract states whilst the West does not China depreciates its national currency for its economic gains in spite of subsequent undesirable results to other economies China becomes extremely starving for oil and natural resources that is why South China Sea has been claimed by the naked as a jaybirdly emerging power. Not only China, others will also hunt suit what China has done. Then, the US meets with another security dilemma. States seek for solid power and capability in order to insure for states survival and prevail their security in an uncertain and anarchy world. Due to this r eason, Israel possessed monopoly nuclear weapon in Middle East mainly because she wants to defend herself from her live countries who always want to revenge with for times. However, Iran viewed that Israel building nuclear weapon is not for defensive, so Iran strives very hard to develop nuclear program and claim that she will wipe out the Jewish state out of the subprogram one time.Self-help is also a characteristic feather of the worlds politics. A rural in this anarchical state system moldiness largely rely on itself it would be too risky for her to trust others. The country essential then build its own defensive capabilities to enhance its ability to protect itself from any aggression by any other state. Albeit a popular state, the US built nuclear weapons simply to ensure its postwar national security and survival. China also spends more of its national budget on its national defense or military. It is mainly because they both and others are aware of possible danger or atta cks in this anarchical international system. They must(prenominal) be always ready for any possible attacks.Kenneth Waltz can also be logically correct to convince that great power relations can potentially lead to international change especially more often than not at the event that great powers fall, rise, or their balance of power shifts. The great powers set the world scene for the rest. Cold War, WW I and II, UN (P-5), LN, colonialism, globalization are all the worlds milestones which were all initiated by the great powers who dominated the world at each time. Modern state system at the very beginning was exclusively in Europe, but presently it has spread all over the world. In the past, the powerful states (European states) used military as their tool to harm the weaker (in Asia and Africa) by coming and colonizing those weak, vulnerable states, and now they use economy or globalization, instead the developing or miserable countries are more or less at the mercy of those de veloped countries only a few Asian states, such as Japan, could help themselves get out of the apparent exploitation by the developed. The inhistoried and famous Cold War was the mere product of ideological conflict between the two superpowers the US and the USSR at the time. Japan and Germany who were great powers gave birth to WWII. engage national interests and seeking to augment power to ensure greater national security and survival also highlights the fact that neorealism and realism in habitual are applicable in the today world. No any single(a) state in this anarchical system would let her national interests remaining behind and thus her national survival endangered. She must fight and effort for the better. She would prefer declaring war to placing her state interests in danger. Armed conflicts between India and Pakistan, Malaysia and capital of Singapore, Cambodia and Thailand, and South Korea and North Korea all emphasize the priority state interests. Endangered by te rrorism, the US has taken actions to fight war on terror across the globe a good example is the US invaded Afghanistan. Modeled by the US trick in world politics such as oil politics, China is doing the same thing China has been cognise to be so cunning in increasing its global power it supports the corrupt states it manipulates its currency it improves its military sector and so forth.Kenneth Waltz argues that world is also characterized by the uneven distribution of capabilities and this can lead to international war or conflicts. This point is strong. Of course, the state capabilities are never ever equal. If all the states of the system had the equal capabilities, then the worlds genuine peace could exist. Because of unequal capabilities, ASEAN and China who seems much more powerful are having long-standing conflicts with each other over South China Sea. WWI and II can also understood to have caused by the shift of balance of power to Germany and Japan, making the two become m ore powerful than other powers at the time. China and the US seem not to end up with any war with each other as they both have similar capabilities. But they both still have some sort of nonbelligerent conflicts which are not til now international conflicts, but need international precaution or proactive solution, for example over the issue of currency and democracy. During cold war, the US and Soviet maintained some type of peace as they did not escalate to war because they both had similar ability to destroy each other, soon enough some international happenings also explained Cold War, such as cultivated wars in Viet Nam, Korea, Cambodian, and so on.International competition claimed by neorealists can also be a true feather of world politics. In the past, we can see the competition between Sparta and Athens. And now we can see the resembled relations between the US and Soviet during cold war and betwixt the great powers before and during World Wars. They used military as their tools to compete or fight each other. Now that military tools have become obsolete, they used different tools in this different world context. They use economy or globalization or tree market/trade to compete with each other. China is competing with the rest of the world especially the potential region such as ASEAN, the US, Japan, and EU. That is why we can see there have emerged the throng of eight, regional organizations, the group of twenty, free trade agreements, and so on and so forth.Realism argues that the theory well explains the actions of the middle and great powers who always act in reference to the anarchy of the system. They will always use balance of power methods to survive any danger or threat potentially posed by a more powerful or superior. However, the small or the weak vulnerable states are another different story. They are actually on the margins of the systems their actions must be guided by the rationale of bandwagon they must bandwagon or side with the gr eat powers, for example in an international crisis, to protect themselves from as well as to survive other superiors battleful power. And these actions, as neorealists argue, are perceived to be negligible or insignificant. When the US illegally invaded Iraq, some less powerful countries such as Australia supported the US by sending some of their troops to help the US fight in Iraq as well.Kenneth Waltz also argues that domestic politics is in no sense relevant in intentional system. No matter whatever regime type or domestic political methods and/or whoever statesman a state has, she must ensure her national security, survival, and interests in the system. A state has to act in the system other than from what a person is expected and supposed to act in a confined territory. These two aspects cannot and should not be applied to each others context, for the two contexts are really differentiated. A state must act with accordance to this worlds anarchy. A democracy might fight a war if indispensable notwithstanding her firmly held belief in human rights or peaceful problem-solving principles. A number of evidence from what states used to practice and have skillful support the claim.South Korea has been militarily threatened by North Korea. The precedent therefore readies itself for any possible attack or war from the latter. That is why we can see a sheer number of military maneuvers of friendship between the US and South Korea in her territory. The US is worldwide known to be the father and the biggest proponent of democracy. Yet, it has nonetheless been repeatedly and allegedly incriminate of having committed human rights infringements in the Middle East. It was not only that the US used to be condemned for covertly and overtly advocating authoritarian states for its own personal gains, for example, by helping support (even bloody) military coup dtats to topple democratically elected leaders.Cambodia is a democratic country, yet it has better relations with authoritarian states such as China and Vietnam than the democracies such as Thailand, the US and the West which are known to be strong democracies and democracy advocates. Singapore and Malaysia, India and Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand warned each other to fight a war if no concession has not made as demanded. China and Viet Nam more often than not have had bitter relations with each other for ages though they both have shared the same communist ideology and similar socialisation and so forth.International cooperation, international institutions, non-state actors such as NGOs, civil society, and other international actors still cannot fully and totally replace the position, role, and importance of states as the main actors in the system. IGOs such as UN and international law are just like scrap paper for the great powers, who use them as tools to gain global powers and influence. Those newly emergent actors are of course more and more challenging the states actors, but still states have a shelter to protect itself, i.e. state sovereignty principle. If a state does not agree or mandate another state or other actor to put in into its own internal affairs, they will never ever be qualified to do anything, but just passively condemn. States cooperate with one another only on the basis of self-interests. Whatever concession and policy a state has made must be attributable to its national interests, indeed. If states are aware of losses or setbacks in the cooperation or some conformation of agreements or treaties, then as a matter of fact they will never ever do so.Too vast body of sincere people were brutally and callously crushed to die or harmed in such countries as Botswana, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Cambodia, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Burma, China, and others else where, where exist ethnic cleansings, genocides, internal conflicts, human rights contravention, and the like. This is simply because other states or actors especially the West and UN cannot do anything practically with the issues, but just passively condemn, as the hosts do not consent them to do so.UN is largely influenced by the great powers. Thus, it should not be a surprise that UN can be reflected as the great powers interests. UN has failed to deal successfully with many important issues as to address those issues was believed to be at the put down a great powers interests. UN has been successful in solving many issues, but mainly on the ground that to resolve those issues was believed to serve the great powers interests.bipolar state system is logically claimed by the father founder of neorealism Kenneth Waltz to be more stable than the multi-polar one. The outbreaks of WWI and WWII and cold war are concrete examples to explain this mere fact. WWI and II broke out because of the multi-polarity at each of the time there were greater suspicion, mistrust, and higher chance for shift in power. As a result, those great powers declared wars agai nst each other. Cold war was a contrasting story. It was a period of peace for the world though it seems not.In conclusion, we can see that the world is best explained by neorealism quite a than any other theories. Many events both in the past and now glorify and magnify the theory. The theory is more practical and applicable than the others. Therefore, it is highly-recommended that new international relations learners and scholars as well as the foreign policy-makers must be really careful in making any decisions. And the decisions are to be made on the basis of and in careful light of neorealism, otherwise overwhelming losses and regrets and more tragically demise can be made available for your states. Be careful and project in your mind that your countrys future is in your hands. Firmly hold realism principles and prosper.