liberalism

1. Liberalism (Pluralism)
 From a liberal perspective, international
relations is not only about state-state
relations; it is about transnational relations
that means relations between people, groups
and organizations from different countries
 Due to this emphasis on society, state and
many different actors, liberalism is also called
pluralism

2. Basic Concepts and Issues in
Liberal Theory:
 Liberals focus on norms, regimes, economic
interdependence, international organisations
 no distinction between
 ‘high’ politics (high-level relations between states)
and
 ‘low’ politics (internal socio-economic issues)
 İssues of terrorism, drug trafficking, human
rights, environment, technology and finance
are as important as security issues

3. Basic Liberal Values
 Liberals focus on values of order, liberty, justice, and
toleration into international relations. All individuals
are juridically equal and posses basic rights to
education, access to a free press, and religious
toleration.Domestic and international institutions are
required to protect these values.
 State posseses only the authority given to it by the
people
 All individuals have the right to own property
 Most effective economic exchange system is market
economy. Economy should not be subordinated to
bureaucratic control

4. Peaceful World Order
 Rational individual,
Republican/democratic state,
commercial interdependence, universal
rights, international law, international
institutions peaceful world order

5. Historical Overview
 Liberal perspective is based on the ideas
developed during the Enligtenment period.
 The development of the idea of Republican
state and free trade led to the emergence of
liberal perspective in IR.
 Cosmopolitan morality could be achieved
through the exercise of reason and through
the creation of democratic states.

6. Liberal Universalism of the
Enligtenment Period
 The focus is on how the cooperation among
Republican states, free trade and mutual
interdependence lead to perpetual peace and
international harmony
 Focus on the individual, rationality,
progressive history and positivist science
 Bourgeoisie emerged as a new class and
supported the ideas of the Enligtenment such
as the autonomy of the individual, equality,
tolerance, freedom and property

7. Reorganizing Domestic Politics
 Liberals opposed to the monarchies, conquest of new territories,
balance of power, formation of alliances, secret diplomacy, and
imperialism .
 Establishment of Republican states instead of monarchies
 Rational individual and rational morality: each person belives
that he has to work hard for creating himself a better future.
This benefits whole society.He is aware of his moral
responsbilities and duties, this creates a harmonious society.
Individuals focus on pursuing their own interest, but this does
not create conflict. Rationality puts freedom and justice to the
heart of international relations.
 It is believed that states that treat their citizens morally and
enable them to participate to the political process do not behave
agressively.

8. Focus on the Individual
 John Locke (1632-1704) emphasizes that all
individuals have rights such as freedom,
equality, property, and right for living. A state
is responsible for protecting these rights.
 Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) in his work
“Perpetual Peace”: A peace federation based
on the rational individual and Republican
government can be created.

9. Immanuel Kant and Perpetual
Peace
 Peace can be achieved through 3 steps:
1. Human rationality: rational individuals having moral values
create peaceful society thus a peaceful world.
2. Constitution Based Republican state: as all individuals are
rational, they know that they will bear the costs of a war. In a
republican state they can prevent their leaders from going to
war. The rule of law, seperation of legislation, executive, and
judiciary.Respecting each other’s rights and freedom
3. Spreading human rationality, free trade and republicanism
worldwide: perpetual peace

10. The Importance of Free Trade
 Free trade brings people from different race,
religion and language together.
 Protectionist economic policies lead to
insecurity and also low level of interaction
among states
 Borders that seperate states should be
transcended and common values should
be created. Free trade is essential in
creating these common values
 It is believed that market societies are
against war.

11. The Importance of Free Trade
 For creating wealth for the world, there should be
increase in production. This will satisfy human needs
and prevent evil intentions of individuals.
 International distribution of wealth can be equal if
individuals freely pursue their interests all around the
world.
 The increase in production and equal distribution of
wealth depend on a free international trade.
 If all states try to maximize their economic
interests, then whole world will benefit from it.
Global wealth will lead to global peace.

12. Idealism
 Unlike the classical liberalism which argues that if
individuals pursue their self-interests, societal harmony
will be achieved, idealism argues that state intervention is
necessary for creating societal harmony.
 States must be part of an international organization and be
subject to its rules and norms.
 Idealism has an active and regulatory character. It suggests
that wars like first world war should not be experienced
again. So, idealism suggests that international peace should
be achieved through cooperation between democratic
states and the commonsense of the people.
 The League of Nations was founded in 1920 to maintain
peace and stability, but its collective security system failed
to solve the economic and political crises of the 1930s.

13. Woodrow Wilson’s Principles
 Establishment of an international organization
 The right to determine each nation’s own
destinty
 Mutual respect for each state’s independence
 Resolution of problems through diplomacy
 Removal of customs tariffs and strengthening
mutual trade between states
 Spreading economic liberalization

14. How to Avoid War?
 The spread of economic relations between states
makes war costly. Because states have common
interests due to mutual economic interdependence.
In order not to lose their interests, states avoid from
war.
 Establishment of democratic states.
 Democracy should be preferred instead of monarchy,
free trade instead of protectionism, common security
instead of balance of power
 Focus on individual rights and economic welfare
avoids war. Rational individuals create harmonious
societies which in turn create international peace.

15. Liberal Theory After the
Second World War
 In the post-1945 period, liberals turned
to international institutions to carry out
a number of functions the state could
not perform.

16. Rise of Liberal Perspective
(pluralism)
 By the early 1970s, liberalism (pluralism) had mounted a significant
challenge to realism. It focused on new actors (multinational
corporations, non governmental organizations) and new patterns of
interaction (interdependence, integration).Key factors included:
 The decline of US economic hegemony.
 The rise in the number and influence of nonstate actors.
 the emergence of MNCs
 Increased levels of international cooperation in economics, cultural
affairs and science.
 emergence of the European supranationalism
 The evolution of communication and transportation technologies
increased the level of interdependence between states. Thus,
transnational actors are important, and welfare is becoming more
important than security for states. That means a world of more
cooperative international relations.

17. Complex Interdependence and
Transnationalism:
 Keohane and Nye, Power and Interdependence (1977): the
world had become more pluralistic in terms of actors involved
and these actors became more dependent on each other.
 4 basic characteristic of this pluralistic world:
 - increasaing linkages between states and non-state actors
 - no distinction between high and low politics: Mutual interests
extend beyond trade and development issues. Due to the
globalization of security concerns like terrorism, drug trufficking
and diseas like AIDS, any country’s security cannot be
addressed unilaterally.
 - multiple channels for integration among actors across national
boundaries
 - decline of the importance of military force. Force will not be of
primary importance
 Broad view of power and its sources: economic, social etc.

18. The Role of Interdependence
 Throughout history states sought power by means of
military force and territorial expansion, but for
industrialized countries economic development and
foreign trade are more important and less costly for
achieving prosperity
 Industrialized counties like Japan and Germany
refrained from high military expenditure and
economic self sufficiency, instead they focused on
trade and increased interdependence
 Liberals argue that high division of labor in
international economy increases interdependence
between states and reduces conflicts between states

19. ‘Liberal Institutionalism’:
 Institutions are enduring sets of norms, rules and
expected patterns of behaviour
 Gains from institutions:
 facilitate activities that are beneficial to states
(e.g. trade)
 reduce states’s fear of each other
 provide a flow of information and opportunities to
negotiate between states, facilitate the risks of
tricky negotiations (e.g. over arms control)
 enhance the ability of governments to monitor
others’ compliance and implementing their
commitments, thus the ability to make
commitments credible