Realists emphasizes that nation-states are motivated by national interests.

This is based on
anarchical environment which define states as actors that rely upon their own resources to
secure their interests. The theory of Thucydides on political realism states that in an
international system where there is no overarching authority, the only way to maintain order is
through the form of balance of power. Hobbes supported this claim in his theory on State of
Nature, he does not see war as necessary means in a world of anarchy, and if every state
adheres to this order, there will be no need for war, as rational sovereigns will not act in
unnecessary aggressive manner. Machiavelli in The Prince encouraged the exercise of
alliances with states of same interest and a range of offensive and defensive strategies to
defend state. Schweller asserts that in realism, people think about the world as conforming to
self-help. Liberals, on the other hand, think of the world as interdependent wherein international
institutions decreases the probability of conflict and increase the probability of cooperation. In
Locke’s State of Nature, he asserts that there is a law of nature to govern which obliges
everyone. Immanuel Kant supported this assertion by stating that to secure lasting peace
among states, there must be law of nations. Adam Smith associated this with the harmony of
interests: the economic liberalism. According to Smith, in free trade the states can promote
interests as long as it is identical with other states. Furthermore, Montesquieu believes that to
achieve liberty, people must obey the laws and the state will not be directed against them.
Wilson also suggested that the cause of instability and conflict was the undemocratic nature of
international politics. In liberalism, people think about the world as interdependent: focuses on
institutions and shared power.