International politics : an introductory guide

This accessible, user-friendly and bang-up-to-date introduction to International Politics blends key facts and terms with strong analytical commentary, examining the debates and issues of greatest relevance to the study of the subject.Focusing on the period since 1900, the book provides detailed coverage of key events from the origins of the First World War to the post-Cold War international order. Written in a clear and jargon-free style, particular features include:*The shift from Great Powers to Superpowers in the first half of the twentieth century*The Cold War and post-Cold War order*A fresh approach to understanding the relevancy of theory*State and non-state actors*The challenge of globalization*Order, justice and security in International PoliticsThis clear and authoritative account of International Politics benefits from an exhaustive list of boxes, tables and figures, as well as extensive cross-referencing throughout. This book is an essential guide to understanding the challenges that face world peace and security in the twenty-first century.

Author Notes

Alasdair Blair is Professor of International Relations and head of the Department of Historical and Social Studies at De Montfort University. His books include Companion to the European Union (2006), The European Union since 1945 (2005) and Saving the Pound? Britain's Road to Monetary Union (2002).
Steven Curtis is Senior Lecturer in International Relations in the Department of Law, Governance and International Relations at London Metropolitan University.

List of boxes	p. ix
List of tables	p. xi
List of figures	p. xii
Abbreviations	p. xiii
Preface	p. xvi
1 Introduction	p. 1
Why study international politics?	p. 2
An overview of international politics	p. 9
Sub-disciplines	p. 14
The relevance of theory	p. 15
Summary	p. 22
2 Great Powers to Superpowers	p. 27
The onset of total war	p. 28
The First World War	p. 29
The Second World War	p. 35
Post-war settlement	p. 38
Summary	p. 47
3 The Cold War	p. 52
Early Cold War	p. 53
Decolonisation	p. 58
Cold War confrontation and compromise	p. 66
Cuban missile crisis	p. 69
Vietnam War	p. 71
Emergence and decline of detente	p. 73
Arms limitations	p. 76
Summary	p. 77
4 End of the Cold War	p. 85
Second Cold War	p. 86
Arms racing and the Strategic Defence Initiative (Star Wars)	p. 89
End of the Cold War	p. 91
Reducing Cold War insecurity	p. 93
From the Brezhnev Doctrine to the Sinatra Doctrine	p. 94
The implosion of the Soviet Union	p. 95
Unpicking the causes of the Cold War	p. 97
Did the United States win the Cold War?	p. 98
Summary	p. 101
5 The Post-Cold War Order	p. 105
The post-Cold War order	p. 106
The United States and the 'new world order'	p. 108
The war on terror	p. 112
Mapping the contours of the post-Cold War order	p. 117
Summary	p. 120
6 Theories of International Politics	p. 124
The importance of theory	p. 125
International history and the history of international theory	p. 127
Mainstream approaches	p. 130
Realism	p. 131
Liberalism	p. 136
Radical approaches	p. 140
Marxism and its offspring	p. 141
Constructivism	p. 145
Summary	p. 147
7 The State in International Politics	p. 151
The emergence of the modern sovereign state	p. 152
The rise of nationalism	p. 153
Military power	p. 157
Strong and weak states	p. 159
Sovereign statehood: conformity and diversity	p. 163
The state and globalisation	p. 166
Summary	p. 169
8 Non-State Actors	p. 173
The rise of non-state actors	p. 174
Intergovernmental organisations	p. 177
Multinational corporations	p. 187
Non-governmental organisations	p. 194
The sources of non-state actors' influence	p. 198
The enduring importance of states	p. 201
Summary	p. 203
9 A Globalising World	p. 207
Understanding globalisation	p. 208
A recent development?	p. 214
Global issues	p. 215
Globalisation of economic activity	p. 217
Globalisation and the state	p. 223
Interpreting globalisation	p. 225
Summary	p. 229
10 Order, Justice and Security	p. 233
National security and collective security	p. 234
The problems with collective security in practice	p. 235
Regional and expanded notions of security	p. 248
The sources of international order	p. 250
Human rights in international politics	p. 252
The tension between order and justice in international politics	p. 256
Security, order and justice after 9/11	p. 259
Summary	p. 260
11 European Integration	p. 265
The context of European integration	p. 266
Why integrate?	p. 267
Building a Community	p. 271
Transformation	p. 275
Enlargement and institutional reform	p. 278
Explaining integration	p. 283
Institutional balance of power	p. 287
Summary	p. 289
12 Conclusion	p. 294
Globalisation of international politics	p. 295
The universalisation of the nation-state	p. 298
The enduring importance of nuclear weapons	p. 301
The 'end of history'	p. 304
Summary: world at war, world at peace?	p. 307
Glossary of key terms	p. 310
References	p. 324
Index	p. 337

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