President Woodrow Wilson, the only person to be elected to the presidency with a PhD in Political Science, left an undeniable mark on US history and world affairs. War can shape the values of a nation. I believe the American Civil War war influenced President Wilson as a young boy to such an extent, that it changed world history.
If America is an empire, it is not in the conventional sense of defined territorial occupation. However, it is essential to recognize the ways in which America has shaped the world of today.
Structural forces within a state and the extent to which powerful elites make the boundaries of ethnic difference salient will determine whether the state will experience conflict.
This paper will examine the development of NATO throughout the post-Cold War era within the framework of the ‘neo-neo’ debate. Following a brief outline of the two theories, the activities of the alliance will be considered thematically, with conclusions drawn as to the strengths and weaknesses of each perspective in offering explanatory accounts.
This essay suggests that ‘Europe’ cannot be primarily identified in terms of shared histories, cultures, or even geographies. Consequently, attempts to define the EU supranational paradigm as a teleological institution have failed, no European grand narrative of ‘unity in history’ (or culture, or religion) exists, nor can it exist.
The Iraq War presented opportunities for several groups to thrive while others endured a terrible plight. A nuanced appreciation of these issues is necessary.
Within the antagonism between capitalist and communist ideas in the period of the cold war the Sino-US rapprochement appears as a very out of character phenomenon, culminating in the spectacular visit of president Richard Nixon in 1972, as the first president to enter Chinese Communist soil.
The policy of containment led directly to a radical change in the global positioning of the U.S. In the early period of Truman’s presidency U.S. armed forces were undergoing a large-scale programme of demobilisation, yet by its end in 1953 military and economic alliances were held with states in virtually every continent of the globe.
While it would be wrong to discredit the idea that the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia was a major cause of war, it would also be inaccurate to portray it as the only factor that necessitated conflict.
“Never despise your enemy, whoever he is. Try to find out about his weapons and means, how he uses them and fights. Research into his strengths and weaknesses” asserted Field Marshal Prince Alexander V. Suvorov in 1789. In executing the most spectacular terrorist attacks in history in September 11th 2001 this is certainly what al-Qaeda did. To respond, the United States military must recognise the unconventional nature of its new opponent and greatly broaden its conception of threats and the means to counter them.
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