lOMoARcPSD|3850277

International Affairs Notes

International Affairs (Universitat de Vic)

StuDocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)
 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

RETHINKING  SOVEREIGNTY  

- Sub-state actor (paradiplomacy)

- NGO
- Terrorist networks
- Crime networks
- Private companies

Trans-national problems: pollution, immigration, smuggling…

Subsidiarity ! When a legal institution is above another.

Monetary policy ! Supply of money, interest rate trules

European Central Bank ! Frankfurt ! Controls the supply of money

Globalisation ! Entails the increasing volume, velocity and importance of flows of

people, ideas, illegal produces…

Types of sovereignty:

- Domestic
- Protect a territory from another states
- International legal sovereignty (recognition)

Types of moral:

- Moral relativism !
- Moral absolutism ! Everybody

State ! Political division

Nation ! Cultural, ethnic or religion division

Nation-State !

Democracy:

- Separation of powers:
o Executive ! President + Ministers ! Make proposal
o Legislative ! Parliament ! Modify, accept or decline proposals
o Judiciary ! Supreme Court

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

AMERICAN  FOREING  POLICY  AFTER  IRAK  

Dahl: “the ability of A to get B to do something he/she would not otherwise have
done”

Role power: the identity gives power

Max Weber

Credibility: how well you do your role

Levels:

Insurgency: Militarist that don’t represent

the army of a country (ex: rebels in Siria)
Military Interest of the USA: oil
AIPAC: America Israel Public Affairs
Committee
Europe: Most important economy of the
world
Economy
UE: 500 million people
USA: 300 million people
The government doesn’t have control
Transnational Could be legal and illegal
Problems are solved with cooperation

Soft power: Persuade ! Convince

Hard power: Force ! Convince To get other to want the same as you

Positive sum !

Zero sum !

Legitimacy ! Have the right to rule

Authority ! Have the respect/power to rule

Foreign policy ! How a country interacts with other countries to achieve its
objectives.

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

EXTERNAL INTERNAL
International: conflicts, trade, institutions Geography, borders, population, market
(EU, WTO, UN, etc.)
- Immigration
- Diaspora
- Social cohesion

Regional Factors: regional bloc (NAFTA, Internal actors: media, pressure, groups
MERCOSUR, UNASUR, AU, ASEAN…),
regional power, regional stability.
Bilateral Factors Political system: democracy,
dictationship, federal system

Internationals  relations’  theory

What theory does?

- Simplifies
- Explains causes, processes and results
- Looks for patterns and then creates laws

Democratic Peace Theory

Law ! It says that democracies never go to war with each other

Voters don’t like war - Politicians want to be popular for a long time

Democracies have domestic values, which they apply in their foreign policy

Two most important theories in international relations

- Realism
o Thomas Hobbs (English philosopher) Man is bad. Because man is
bad, states are bad. That is because man controls states.
o Maximise power (material power ! arms and money) with money you
can buy arms.
o International system is anarchic. (No superior authority) there’s
nothing above the states. To control this exists the power balancing
the mechanism, which stops anarchy being horrible.
o WWI Franz Ferdinand, prince of Austria. He was shot in Sarajevo.
Austria-Hungary declare war into Serbia (Good relations with Russia)
o Austro hungry ! Serbia
o Germany Russia

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

o France and Britain

o Power Balancing can be external (alliances) or it could be internal
(increases capabilities. The Cold War)
o MAD: Mutually Assured Destruction.
o Second strike capabilities
- Liberalism
o Kant says that man is bad but can be improved. States are bad but
can be improved. There are three principal ways for states to improve:
" Democracy
" Institutions: provide and enforce rules. States more
predictable. Can trust each other. Article 51of the United
Nations. States cannot attract other states unless they have
already attacked.
" Trade: Countries become interdependent. “If goods cross
borders tanks won’t” Cordell Hul.

Europe is a customs union. CET: Common external tariff. TAX FREE DUTTY FREE.
The European market is very big and a lot of countries want to enter.

Free trade area: if Spain wants to sell a product in France, its government can add a
tax.

The End of History. Fukuyama When the communism disappears the story ends.

Africa ! Neopatrimonial societies. The government gives money to the population

because they do not want anyone changing the government. If your government
gives you money, you are happy and you don’t want to change it.

Customs Union: European Union

Free trade area

CET: Common External Tarrif

It gives to the EU a lot of power

Neopatrimonial societies: the Government gives money to the society

Peace of Westphalia (1648): 30 Years War (1619-1648) -> Hapsburgs (catholic)

wanted superiority in Europe. France, Sweden and others were against Hapsburgs.
Nobody won.

Kings not subject to any higher authority (Pope)

Religion not reason to attack other state

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

Balance of power alliances

All states legitimate

The German Problem

Balance power

Russia, France and UK formed a union for stop the raising of Germany

Ottoman Empire collapsed in 1917 (Balforur Declaration)

League of Nations (Wilson): USA and Russia didn’t join it

In the 1930’s Italy, Japan and Germany expanded. Italy had Mussolini, Japan
invaded parts of China and Germany invaded the Sudettes (Txecoslovaquia)

UNTOLD  HISTORY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  

1. What were the causes of the WWII?

2. Why did the Allies win?
3. What did Russia do during the war?

THE  START  OF  THE  COLD  WAR  

*Take notes about the video ! BAS!!!

During the 2WW, the USA’s economy grew. But when it finished, it’s economy
declined.

1918 – 1922: Russian Revolution

- White Russia. The USA helped them.

- Red Russia.

Rigged elections: unreal elections ! communism was imposed in Russia.

Puges: anybody who was counter the government could be killed.

Berlin Airlift: everyday planes with food, medicines and drinks were sent to south
Berlin.

Marshall Plan (1948): the USA gave money to Europe ! It helped the USA because
Europe was its most important exporter.

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

Atomic Bomb (1949)

1949 ! Rosembergs: marriage accused of helped the Russians. They were

suspected of giving information. They were both killed.

1953 ! H. Bomb: was developed at the same time in the USA and in Russia.

1957 ! Sputnik

1954! Guatemala ! Government by Jacobo Arbenz (left). He wanted to introduce

Guatemala to the capitalism. United Fruit Company: American company that was in
Guatemala and had a lot of land. Guatemala wanted to take the land. It was
connected to the Dulles Family. Castillo Armas became president of Guatemala and
he helped the USA in everything.

Proxy War

1973 ! Chile ! Pinochet came to power. Salvador Allende became the president in
1970, the CIA send money for helping him. Allende was democratically elected. The
army killed him.

1968-1975 ! Peru ! Velasco was the President (dictatorial)

Domino theory: the idea that if one country became communist in South-America, the
rest of the countries will become too.

Nixon: “make the economy of Chile scream”

Chicago Boys: a group of students of Economics in the University of Chicago. Milton

Friedman was one of those students. Hayek wasn’t an economist but he was really
influencer.

Operation Condor: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. ! Urban Guerrillas !

Simultaneously they take people, torture them and even kill them.

Foco Theory ! Che Guevara !

Latin America is considered the US backyard. In 1823 appeared the Monroe

Doctrine. The idea of this doctrine is to stop European Countries influence Latin
America Countries. The USA offered the European countries “security guarantee”
against the communist countries.

Empire ! Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and

peoples (ethnic groups) united and ruled either by a monarch (emperor, empress) or
anoligarchy. Characteristics:

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

- Conquered lands
- Metropolis
- Monarchy
- Military power
- Power/Rivals
- Exploitation. Development of the underdevelopment.

Having an empire gives you raw materials, soldiers and strategic access.

Informal Empire ! You don’t actually control the country but you get what you want.

Remittances ! Is the money that the immigrants send to their own country.

Political subjectivity !

Hegemony ! Leadership or dominance of one state over the others

- Metropolis. Tu domines els altres països però aquests no estan connectats

entre si.
- Hub. Tu domines els altres països i aquests estan connectats entre si.

CULTURAL  RELATIVISM  

Power (by Steven Lukes):

- First face ! Coercion

- Second face ! Agenda-setting power
- Third face ! Influence perspectives

IS  THE  US  DIFFERENT  FROM  EUROPE?  

The US is a country that is formed by different federal states and Europe is a

continent. Otherwise, both governments look for their own benefits. But they
way of govern is different.

Meritocracy ! internal qualities

BURKEAN  CONSERVATISM  

Key features of Burkean conservatives:

- Respect traditions, customs and institutions. ! Most important thing for

Conservatism
- Respect the individual rights.

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

- Gradual change.

Advantages:

- Only protects the right of the people who has the power

Libertarianism ! Individual freedom from the State. Government should not be

involved in your life.

Individualism ! Decentralisation of power, equality

Boston Tea Party (1773) ! “No taxation without representation”

Periphery  

Indigenous  

Hub  

European Union

Good Bad
Trade CAP (Common Agriculture Policy)
Borders Loss of sovereignty
Travel Adhesion
Erasmus Slow-burecrative
Power Democratic
Help each other
Peace
Transnational standards
Euro
Laws

European Union

The European Commissions is the executive power and it is formed of people

chosen by the own country. The Spanish one is called Almunia.

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)

 lOMoARcPSD|3850277

The European Commission makes a proposal and sends it to the European

Parliament. The European Parliament has 766 MEP.

Members of the European Parliament (MEP):

Ministers of each country form the Council of the European Union. The President of
the Council is Herman Von Rompuy and is from Belgium. Catherine Ashton is the
representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

European Council ! 28 Heads of State

EPP (274)

S&D (195)

ALDE (85)

Greens – EFA (58)

ECR (56)

EUL-NGL (35)

EFD (33)

Non-Inscrits (30)

Downloaded by mc160400079 Makhdoom Muhammad Ali (mc160400079@vu.edu.pk)