THE GLOBAL

INTERSTATE
SYSTEM
Defining “STATE”
"states are independent
political communities each of
which possesses a
government and asserts
sovereignty in relation to a
particular portion of the
earth's surface and a
particular segment of the
human population" (Hedley
Bull)
Defining “INSTERSTATE”
"a system of unequally
powerful and competing
states in which no single state
is capable of imposing control
on all others, These states are
in interaction with one
another in a set of shifting
alliance and wars and
changes in relative power of
states upsets any temporary
set of alliances, leading to
restructuring of balance of
power
The attributes of modern
international politics started
as territories that were
governed as nation states.
Sovereign states in which their
relationships were facilitated
through international
organizations which later on
became institutions and in the
process promote norms
(Claudio, 2016)
 Peace of Westphalia

Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) in the Holy

Roman Empire between the Habsburgs and
their Catholic allies on one side, and the
Protestant powers and their Catholic French
allies on the other;

◦Eighty Years’ War (1568-1648) between

Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain
formally recognizing the independence of
the Dutch Republic.
◦The Peace of Westphalia
established a new system of political
order in central Europe based upon
the concept of sovereign states,
which became known as
Westphalian sovereignty.

- a norm was established against

interference in another state’s
domestic affairs.
The Peace of Westphalia established the
notion of European Sovereignty.
 Legal equality of states;
 Law of non-intervention;
 The repudiation of supranationalism.
- This paved the way for the development of the notion of
Nationalism.
◦Direct challenges to sovereignty:
Adolf Hitler during the times when
he was the leader of Nazi Germany,
the challenge posed by the Marxist
communist ideology, the
establishment of the U.N. and the
challenge posed by Osama Bin Laden
when he launched his own holy war
against the United States after the
U.S. had helped the Afghan Holy
warriors overthrow the Soviets
(Claudio, 2016).
Napoleon Bonaparte who sought to
spread the principles of the French
Revolution across Europe. He
espoused the Napoleonic Code.
 Three paradigms of Concert of Europe
Realists, who emphasize the primacy of
international power distributions and
states’ national self-interest;
Liberals, who focus on the abilities of
international organizations to mitigate the
effects of international anarchy
emphasized by realists and help even
selfish states achieve common goals;
Constructivists, who point to the
importance of transnational collective
identities that purportedly form between
states as a product of their interactions.
The Concert of Europe was an agreement
among the elite statesmen of Europe’s
great powers to adhere to & enforce a
particular set of principles in their relations
with one another on the European
continent (Lascurettes, 2017).
AN ALTERNATIVE: MARX AND ENGELS
SOCIALIST “The Communist Manifesto” published in
INTERNATIOALIS 1848. A call to arms for the
M proletariat-”Workers of the world, unite!”-
the manifesto set down the principles on
which communism was to evolve. Marx held
that history was a series of class struggles
between owners of capital (capitalists) and
workers (the proletariat). As wealth became
more concentrated in the hands of an few
capitalists, he thought, the ranks of an
increasingly dissatisfied proletariat would
swell, leading to bloody revolution and
eventually a classless society (Marx, 1973).
 Marx, may have indirectly taught that the
AN ALTERNATIVE: affinity to the nation retards the workers'
SOCIALIST struggles. This teaching was adopted by the
INTERNATIOALIS
M
socialist international in 1889-1916. It was an
organization of communists and labor parties
that were predominantly based in Europe. Its
achievement were the implementation of the
eight-hour work per day and the celebration
of International Women's Day, and the May 1
Labor Day. Its parties became major players
in the electoral processes of Europe.
However, it somehow collapsed in 1916 as its
member parties supported the war efforts of
their respective states (Claudio, 2016).