Institutionalism rejects the realist assumption that international politics is a struggle for power in which military security issues are top priority and argues that instead, force is an ineffective instrument of policy. In order to understand the impact of internationalism on IR theory and its criticisms we must first look at its definition and how it differs from realist perspectives.
One of the most depressing, and distressing, realities we have to acknowledge has been our inability to prevent or halt the recurring horror of mass atrocity crimes.
The responsibilities to prevent and react have been addressed in Libya, but the third stage of the R2P, “the responsibility to rebuild”, remains an ongoing issue. The extent to which the R2P can be seen as a “success” in Libya rests largely how this part of the R2P is implemented. In many respects, the “responsibility to rebuild” is the one of the most important parts of the R2P because requires intervening actors to establish a clear and effective post-intervention strategy.
Forced migration and refugee flows from Burma to Bangladesh are becoming increasingly difficult for the international community and the region to deal with. Failure at state, regional and international level to deal with the problems facing the Rohingya refugees reflects a wider need to re-evaluate international protection regimes when it comes to dealing with forced migration and minority groups in Southeast Asia.
The UN was neither designed nor expected to be a pacifist organisation. Its origins lie in the anti-Nazi wartime military alliance amongst Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union. The all-powerful UN Security Council is the world’s duly, and only, sworn in sheriff for enforcing international law and order.
NGOs have been voicing concerns that the military have intruded into their domain by conducting short term aid work and long term ‘hearts and minds’ projects that have blurred the lines between aid workers and military troops. This has had worrying consequences for humanitarianism.
The problem with R2P is precisely that which rendered “Never Again!” and the Genocide Convention impotent, namely that its enforcement is conditional on the support of the permanent five members of the Security Council. Only the very naive imagine that the P5 honour Article 24.1 of the Charter and act on behalf of UN member states; each state’s respective national interest determines their position.
The primary method of globally managing environmental issues is through the use of carbon trading. This has resulted from the hegemonic success of the ecological modernisation discourse – a discourse immortalised in the Brundtland report in 1987.
Access to information is a vital building block for lasting peace, yet media interventions are not a ‘quick fix’. While they may not be able to solve conflicts, there is certainly an important role for them in spurring debate, reconciling communities and changing behaviour towards peacebuilding.
In the wake of 9/11, private actors have played an increasingly crucial role at both sides of the conflict. Not only is the war on terror a response to the unprecedented threat posed by non-state actors such as terrorist networks; it is also a conflict characterized by a growing role of commercial actors supporting bureaucracies and military organizations.
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