Book Review

Geopolitics: The Geography of International Relations - 3rd Edition.

Saul B. Cohen. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2015, 504 pp. $83.00
The book ‘Geopolitics: The Geography of International Relations’ offers an analysis of dramatic
changes in the global geopolitical situation due to ideological, cultural, economic, and
demographic changes unleashed since the end of the Cold War. The author, Saul B. Cohen is a
very prominent political geographer and played an important role in the revival of this
subdiscipline following the Second World War. He has been a prolific contributor to the study of
political geography, his work including books and articles like ‘Geography and Politics in a
Divided World’, ‘A Geographical Model of Political Systems Analysis' (with L.D.Rosenthal), ‘A
New Map of Global Political Equilibrium’, ‘Global Geopolitical Change in the Post-Cold War Era'
etc. The major concern throughout his body of work, also reflected in the present book, is
geopolitical equilibrium. His conception of geopolitics is not overtly nationalist, it is about
promoting and managing the dynamic equilibrium between the major powers of the world.

In the book, Chapter 1 gives an overview of his geopolitical model in which he relates
geographical settings and perspectives to larger multi-layered political processes that affect
international behaviour. Cohen’s geopolitical analysis is consciously located in contemporary
historical context since he examines the dramatic changes occurring in global geopolitics after
the end of the Cold War. Thus the geopolitical system of the world described by him reflects a
dynamic view of the global geopolitics which is continuously being reshaped by factors such as
ideological, economic, and physical forces. Geopolitical analysis for Cohen “does not predict the
timing of events, crises, and flash points that force radical changes in the geopolitical map” (pp.
1), what it does is to bring attention to conditions that are likely to cause geopolitical changes,
and to anticipate changes in the balance of the international system. Chapter 2 offers a brief
survey of the entire field, including the many definitions of geopolitics and the various stages in
its history starting from imperialism age to the modern division between nation-centered and
universalistic geopolitics. Thoughts of important scholars - from Mackinder and Mahan to
Haushofer and Spykman are summarised.

Chapter 3 is the conceptual and theoretical part of the book. In this Chapter along with Chapter
1, certain critical ideas underlying Cohen’s geopolitical worldview are discussed. The first idea is
related to recognising the shifting contours of the current world order which is changing from a
unipolar to a polycentric order built on a hierarchical combination of great and regional powers.
A nation’s place in the emerging hierarchy of power is determined by four factors - military
strength, surplus economic energy for providing aid, ideological leadership, and a cohesive
system of governance. The dynamic hierarchy, a result of differential distribution of these
capabilities, is composed of major powers - which have the capability to project influence
beyond their immediate neighbourhoods, and regional powers - whose influence is regionally
confined. The second idea is related to the dynamic character inherent in the geopolitical
system as a result of operational environment changes related to geography. Phenomena like
discovery or depletion of natural resources, the movement of people and capital, and changes
in climate, all lead to changes in geopolitical patterns and features. The third idea is the
developmental model for geopolitical change (pp. 9). The stages of development observed
elsewhere - from atomization and undifferentiation to differentiation, specialization, and
specialization-integration, they also apply to geopolitical development at multiple levels.
Geopolitical structures move through successive stages with increasing maturity and cohesion
at all levels. The fourth idea is the fundamental difference between two geographical settings -
the maritime and the continental. Cultures and institutions that evolve in these two different
settings have very different spirit and outlook. Maritime space is exposed to the sea, leading to
flourishing of trade and contact with other parts of the world. As a result these such places are
more diverse, and better off in economic specialization. Continental spaces are deep inland,
away from the sea, lacking intensive interaction with other parts of the world. Their economies
do not rely on trade as much as those of the maritime places and are more self-sufficient. Their
political systems are also less liberalized and more closed (pp. 38).

Cohen’s geopolitical system is organised in geopolitical structures that are formed as a result of
interaction between political and geographical forces. These structures are organised in three
levels: “macro level - the geostrategic realm, meso level - the geopolitical region, micro level -
national states, highly autonomous regions, quasi states, and territorial subdivisions within and
across states” (pp. 37). Geostrategic realm is the highest level in spatial hierarchy. These
realms are large enough to possess characteristics and functions that have influence globally
and serve the strategic needs of the major powers that they comprise. In Cohen’s geopolitical
system, three different geostrategic realms exist in today’s world: the Atlantic and Pacific
economically advanced maritime realm; the Eurasian continental Russian heartland; and the
mixed continental-maritime East Asia. Geopolitical region is the second level in the spatial
hierarchy. These regions may be parts of realms or independent of them. They are internally
connected by geographic, political, cultural, and military interactions. For example, the East
Asian realm has two regions - mainland China and Indochina. Cohen’s geopolitical model also
includes other geopolitical structures outside the spatial levels. Shatterbelts are strategically
oriented regions that are both deeply divided internally and caught up in the competition
between great powers of the geostrategic realms. Middle-East and Sub-Saharan Africa are both
examples of shatterbelts. ‘Compression zones’ occur at a lesser geographical scale in smaller
atomized areas that lie within or between geopolitical regions.

Following a brief chapter summarising the geopolitical structuring after the Cold War, the rest of
the book is an impressively deep empirical analysis of different geopolitical structures around
the world. For every geopolitical structure, he provides a historical background, a geopolitical
overview, the geopolitical features, and the shape of evolving geopolitical patterns. His analysis
is not limited to the global geostrategic level but has a very detailed regional dimension. For
example, his analysis of the South Asia region is a deep survey of the region's geopolitical
patterns. In Cohen’s scheme, South Asia lies outside the three geostrategic realms. It includes
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Nepal, and Bhutan, western Myanmar
and is an independent geopolitical region. It is bounded by the Middle-Eastern shatterbelt to the
west through Pakistan, and the East Asian realm to the north and east. India is the core power
within this geopolitical region. It is at an intermediate stage between a regional power and a
major power. With an increase in economic and military muscle, it will be possible for India to
project influence outside its immediate region. Although this region is beset by problems of
social and economic fragmentation, its promise lies in its population and the historical
uniqueness of its civilization. With India’s possible rise, its reach may extend throughout Indian
ocean and fringes of Southeast Asia and Africa. Over the long term, this region may transform
into a fourth geostrategic realm led by India, embracing the African and Southeast Asian
coastlands of the Indian Ocean basin.

A few methodical inconsistencies are noticeable in the book . For example, while a deep
analysis is offered for the East Asian region utilizing the continentality vs, maritimity concept (pp.
273), such an analysis is not offered for the South Asian region despite such a division being
very noticeable. South Asia’s historical core is also incorrectly identified in Rajasthan and not
the Gangetic plain, despite the former’s low population density and marginality relative to the
huge population centers in the Gangetic region. Despite such minor inconsistencies, the book
gives us a deep realist understanding of contemporary geopolitics. The concepts employed by
the book create an interlocking framework to explain the major shifts occurring in the
international system as a result of shifts in dynamic geopolitical phenomenon. The empirical part
of the book supplies impressively detailed information on the geopolitical patterns and trends in
the various geopolitical structures around the world. Incorporating the discussions on
geopolitical effects of phenomena like globalisation and climate change, the book manages to
truly cover the dynamic nature of the evolving international system. It would be an invaluable
reading for students of geopolitics, political geography, and international relations.

Priyank Kumar Chauhan

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