Liberalism Theory Essay

There are several approaches to international relationships with Liberalism being one of the most prominent ones. It is essential to gain a proper understanding of it since many notable actors, particularly the EU, are the supporters of this approach. One should understand the three fundamental principles of it, the role of the Kantian triangle, and how the EU supports Liberalism.

To begin with, it is crucial to point out that there are three fundamental ideas behind Liberalism. The first focuses on the rejection of power politics. While this might seem to be obvious for many people, one should keep in mind that the use of power as a diplomatic tool has been quite popular over the ages (Johnston, Clinton, & Sims, 2016). That is why Liberalism introduced a radical change of international relations. Secondly, this approach puts a significant emphasis on the importance of international cooperation. Once again, this might be seen as something that is too obvious; however, in reality, this is a serious transition from what used to be acceptable before. The key here is that the states should cooperate to solve problems and not dominate the situation. Finally, Liberalism claims that international organization and various non-governmental organizations should have a significant impact on various policies. In other words, the government should not be guided by its own views only when making decisions.

The understanding of Liberalism will be incomplete without examination of the Kantian triangle. The latter is a framework that focuses on the interaction of three elements: institutions, economic interdependence, and democracy. It is suggested that together they affect each other and bring (Shiraev & Zubok, 2016). The institutions influence the democracy by promoting democratic ideas within the country and facilitate economic interdependence. On the other hand, economic interdependence will affect the kind of institutions that will be established. In addition to that, it will also promote the idea of democracy since the authoritarian rule is incompatible with the economic interdependence. Finally, if one considers the impact of democracy, one will have to point out that it will also contribute the emergence of various institutions that will facilitate and promote it in the countries affected. The same goes for economic interdependence: two democratic countries will be able to find common ground easier which will be mutually beneficial. All this together will contribute to peace.

Finally, one should note that the EU may be a prominent example of a supporter of Liberalism. There are several aspects that should be highlighted with this regard. The first is the obvious rejection of power politics. In spite of the fact that NATO is the major military force of the EU, it does not rely on the use of power as a way to negotiate: the parties are often invited to the roundtable in order to work out their differences. This leads to the second important aspect: the increased emphasis on international cooperation (Cladi & Locatelli, 2017). It is clear that the EU is mostly known as an organization that promotes its values in numerous ways an invited those who are interested in them to negotiations. Finally, there are plethora of organizations that facilitate cooperation with other countries and influence the decision-makers in a way that would be aligned with the ideals of the EU. Given all this, one might suggest that the latter is a strong supporter of Liberalism.

All in all, there is no doubt that Liberalism is an important approach to the understanding of the international politics. It relies on the rejection of the principles that contributed to the formation of Realism. The understanding of the Kantian triangle is important in this regard as well.

References

Cladi, L., & Locatelli, A. (2017). International Relations Theory and European Security: We Thought We Knew. London: Routledge.

Johnston, S. W., Clinton, W. D., & Sims, S. (2016). Realism and the liberal tradition. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

Shiraev, E., & Zubok, V. M. (2016). Current debates in international relations. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]
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