Thought for the Day . . .

Papers about international affairs (some original)

Realpolitik is a word little understood by most people. Most people familiar with the term tend to confuse it with Realism, an entirely different political philosophy. In fact, many Realpolitikers are also Realists, but there have also been several Liberalist Realpolitikers, though the idealist bent common in the Liberal view of international politics does not mesh well with the hard-bitten nature of Realpolitik. Therefore, this page will begin with a few definitions.

Realpolitik

A political philosophy stressing adaptation to existing facts, the pursuit of achievable goals, and a rejection of the applicability of idealism to foreign policy. It focuses on the need or ethic that the relevant agent (politician, nation, culture) must ensure its own survival by securing its own needs and interests before it looks to the needs of others.

Realism

Political Realism is less a goal or attitude than an attempt to explain or categorize international affairs. It theorizes that states are the primary and most important actors in international affairs. In this philosophy, anarchy due to the lack of a higher power is the most accurate description of the state of the world and therefore power is, or ought to be, the goal of actors. For a more thorough description, see The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Liberalism

Liberalism (as used in international affairs), on the other hand, stresses the importance of non-state actors, such as non-government organizations (NGO's; e.g. Amnesty International), multinational corporations (MNC's; e.g. IBM), supra-national organizations (e.g. the UN or EU), or ethnic, national, or religious groups (e.g. the PLO, the Kurds). It rejects the notion that anarchy is the natural state of the world, and therefore tends to believe that moral or idealistic goals have an important place in world affairs.

The principal link between Realpolitik and Realism is the belief that the nature of international affairs renders the pursuit of a moralistic foreign policy impractical at best and therefore power is the only legitimate pursuit of states. However, there is an enormous variation in how Realpolitikers view the importance of non-state actors.

It should be noted that Realpolitik is, in its own way, a "moral" or "principled" foreign policy. The goal of any foreign policy is, and should be, the defense of the interests of the state and its people. The whole of the purpose of a state is to protect and promote the interests of the members of that state. Given that Realpolitikers and Realists believe that to pursue a moralistic foreign policy is ultimately fruitless and will result in the squandering of national power, thus resulting in a decrease in ability to protect their own interests, Realpolitik is a "principled" foreign policy.

Bios of some Realpolitikers

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