POWER VS. MORALITY IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS.   Term Paper ID:23027 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Compares theories, values & goals of two approaches & applies them to three crises: Abyssinia (1930s), Cyprus (1960s-1980s) & Somalia (1990s).... More...

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Paper Abstract: Compares theories, values & goals of two approaches & applies them to three crises: Abyssinia (1930s), Cyprus (1960s-1980s) & Somalia (1990s). Paper Introduction: MORALITY, POWER AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS This research paper compares and discusses two schools of thought, the power reality and morality approaches to the shaping and explanation of international relations and in particular the use made of international organizations and their effectiveness. After outlining these alternative modes of analysis, three specific cases are studied: (1) the role of the League of Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. forthe first time since the Crusades an invasion has been launchedfor a purely moral rationale."17 The Somalia experience wassobering and suggests that military interventions on purelyhumanitarian grounds where no vital American interests areinvolved can easily get out of hand. . . P. . In addition todebates in New York, the UN has sponsored at various intervalsbetween 1968 and on into the 198 s bilateral discussions betweenGreece and Turkey in Beirut which served to ease the tensions ofde facto partition which prevailed after Turkey occupiedenclaves on Cyprus in 1974. C.: Library of Congress, 1991.Taylor, A. A good example among several of theUN's utility in defusing conflict among the smaller powers wasits constructive role during various Cyprus crises. Several warswere narrowly averted by the diplomatic intervention of Britainand the United States. He likened an aroused democracy inwartime to "those prehistoric monsters with a body as long asthis room and a brain the size of a pin."3 He was particularlycritical of Woodorw Wilson's overstated war aims in 1917-1918, a"war to make the world safe for democracy." He placed uponWilson a large share of the blame for the failure of the Alliesto achieve a peace "with a minimum prejudice to the stability ofthe [European] Continent,"4 which he believed stemmed fromWilson's misguided faith in the efficacy of moral suasion andin the League of Nations. 1 Winston Churchill, The Gathering Storm (Boston: HoughtonMifflin, 1948), 176. "Multilateralism's Obituary Was Written in Mogadishu." Christian Science Monitor, 27 October 1993, 19.Mosely, Leonard. In 1964 the UN sent a peacekeeping forceto Cyprus which still maintains a presence there. P. . The Gathering Storm. 15 . . . Kissinger. . Potential aggressorssaw they could flout it with impunity."13 Taylor said, "thiswas the deathblow to the League."14 The Role of the UN in the Cyprus Crises FDR and the other founders of the United Nations had lessgrandiose expectations than had Wilson as to the UN's ability tokeep the peace among the great powers. Washington, D. Britain could have closed the SuezCanal" but failed to do so.11 Britain and France had reasons for not wishing to challengethe Italians, but by saying one thing and doing another, Lichthensaid that they exposed "the League of Nations for the hollow shamit was."12 Gilbert concluded that "the League showed itself tobe a false guardian of European security. Chicago: University of Chcicago Press, 1951.McConnell, Mitch. 18Joshua Muravchik, "Beyond Self-Defense." Commentary,December 1993, 24.BibliographyChurchill, Winston. 4Kennan, 72. The export ofwar materials to Italy was banned, but not oil, which Italylacked. 14A. The Origins of the Second World War. 11Leonard Mosely, On Borrowed Time (New York: Random House,1969), 7. As Winston Churchill said, "the League of Nations,therefore, proceeded onto the rescue of Abyssinia on the basisthat nothing must be done to hamper the invading Italianarmies."1 While the British and French Foreign Secretaries(Hoare and Laval) secretly agreed to partition Abyssinia, Moselysaid that "the Italians bluffed the British into keeping theirown [war]ships in harbor. Theresulting "nation-building" effort did not succeed and led toan abrupt withdrawal of forces. . Realpolitik v. The value of suchorganizations and their acceptance by the great powers can bediminshed by witless or poorly planned or executed exercises inthe pursuit of vague or unattainable goals.Endnotes 1George Kennan, American Diplomacy, 19 -195 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951), 93. Cyprusachieved independence from Britain in 196 , subject to certainBritish base rights. Even when an American involvement is partly based on . The actions taken by the United States and others duringthe Persian Gulf War were undertaken under UN resolutions. (The one exceptionwas during the early phase of the Korean War when the SovietUnion was, fortuitously from the West's point of view, absentfrom the Security Council). . today [1951] places us in greatperil."1 Kennan attributed this failure to a lack ofrealistic foreign policy planning and to what he called a "legal-moralistic approach to international problems."2 He said thatthe American tendency to project into its view of internationalrelations its own national values and experience often led to anAmerican failure to back up its words with action and a foreignpolicy which was based on impractical idealism rather than upona realistic appreciation of American long term strategicinterests. . . . is that . Morality in Foreign Policy Two leading conceptualizers and implementers of the powerreality school of thought in recent times are the Americanhistorians and diplomats, George Kennan and Henry Kissinger,whose views differ sharply from those of the principalarchitect of the more idealistic approach to internationalrelations and international organizations, Woodrow Wilson. Thiswas possible because the great powers were in substantialagreement on the steps to be taken to counter Iraq's invasion ofKuwait and subsequently. Article 16 of theCovenant provided that "should any member . In 1992-1994 American and UN forcesjointly intervened in Somalia. . . we may hope that the UNwill in time improve . Starting in the mid-195 s pressures forenosis or annexation of Cyprus by Greece led to terrorism on theisland and potential war between Greece and Turkey. In fact, until the end of theCold War, the UN has served primarily as a forum for debate andinformal communication during such conflicts. 8Isaacson, Kissinger (New York: Simon & Schuster,1992), 767. 2Kennan, 95. Muravchik said that "what isdoubtful . Kissinger "emphasized the importance of 'furtheringAmerica's interests in a world where power remains theultimate arbiter.'"5 He opposed the efforts of PresidentNixon's UN Ambassadors to expand the peacekeeping role of theUnited Nations which Kissinger viewed as a useful adjunct toAmerican foreign policy but not as a substitute for a cold-blooded assessment of American geopolitical interests. Taylor, The Origins of the Second World War(New York: Atheneum, 1985), 98. MORALITY, POWER AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS This research paper compares and discusses two schools ofthought, the power reality and morality approaches to theshaping and explanation of international relations and inparticular the use made of international organizations andtheir effectiveness. Casualties were suffered. The European Powers 19 -1945. self-interest, the more high-minded goals are the ones that tend to be publicly emphasized."8 The League of Nations and the Abyssinian Crisis As Wilson originally envisaged it, the League of Nationswould enforce peace in cases involving conflict between thegreat powers; however, its incapacity to do so was partiallyimpaired at its outset by the failure of the United StatesSenate to ratify the League Covenant. Senator MitchMcConnell said that "our policy failed because we surrenderedour interests and leadership to the United Nations."16 Themoralists such as Isaacson said that "what makes America'sintervention in Somalia seem so inspiring . 7Walter Isaacson, "Sometimes Right Makes Might." Time,24 February 1992, 82. a very significantgap between challenge and response in the conduct of foreignpolicy, . 5Walter Isaacson, Kissinger (New York: Simon &Schuster, 1992), 659 quoting from a 1975 speech by Kissinger on"The Moral Foundations of Foreign Policy." 6Isaacson, 1 8, 767. ByApril, 1994, the UN had spent $1.7 billion and the UnitedStates $1.8 billion. In general, thepower reality approach has tended to produce a more tailoredand stabilizing use of international organizations than haveforeign policies strongly influenced by more idealisticconsiderations. . . The realists argued that the intervention expanded beyondthe legitimate interests of the United States. [it had] a dismal record of hypocrisyand mediocirty."18 Conclusion The use of international organizations to achieve grandiosehumanitarian aims in peripheral areas can become disproportionateand dangerous to international stability when excessivemoralismtakes over as it did in the 193 s in the League ofNations and threatened to in Somalia. . The UN's role in suchconflicts was perforce limited by the presence of great powerveto power in the Security Council. . American Diplomacy, 19 -195 . . After outlining these alternative modes ofanalysis, three specific cases are studied: (1) the role of theLeague of Nations in the Abyssinia crisis in the 193 s; (2) thepart played by the United Nations in defusing the Cyprus crisesin the 196 s, 197 s and 198 s; and (3) the United Nations andAmerican intervention in Somalia in the 199 s. Kennan said that "there has been . . New York: Atheneum, 1985. New York: New American Library, 1965.Isaacson, Walter. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992.Isaacson, Walter. Eighty percent of its population was Greek,18 percent Turkish. J. As Wilson put it, "America is the only idealisticnation in the world."7 Isaacson explains this phenomenon asfollows: "A belief that America's actions are moral and noble is necessary to rally a naturally isolationist people. . resort to war indisregard of the covenant . 13Gilbert, 15 . Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1948.Gilbert, Martin. J. 12George Lichthen, Europe in the Twentieth Century (NewYork: Prager, 1972), 131. In October, 1935, FascistItaly launched an unprovoked invasion of Abyssinia, a memberstate, and conquered it in less than a year. is whether 'nation-building' in Somalia justifiesthe expenditure of American lives" and "we ought to beskeptical of UN-led multilateralism . The original intervention,Operation Restore Hope, was designed initially to alleviatestarvation and disease, goals which were largely accomplished;however, "mission creep" set in and the operation evolved intoa much deeper involvement in Somalia's internal affairs. . 3Kennan, 66. These "UN efforts to settle theisland's political disputes" have kept alive the possibility ofan eventual agreement on a bicommunal federal republic and openwarfare has thus far been avoided.15 Intervention in Somalia The end of the Cold War has led to expanded peacekeeping andother possible new roles for the UN and has sharpened the debatebetween the political realists and the moralists concerning theproper scope of the UN's responsibilities, powers andeffectiveness in certain conflicts on the periphery of the greatpowers. America draws its motivation from a desire to defend its values . New York: Random House, 1969.Muravchik, Joshua. 15Eric Solsten (Ed.), Cyprus: a country study (Washington,D.C.: Library of Congress, 1991), 2 9. . . On Borrowed Time. . "Sometimes Right Makes Might." Time, 21 February, 1992, 82.Kennan, George. "Beyond Self-Defense." Commentary, December 1993, 19-24.Solsten, Eric (Ed.). Cyprus: a country study. Isaacsoncomments that "Kissinger's realpolitik was ill-suited to an openand democratic society, where it is difficult to invoke distantends to justify unpalatable means."6 Although their actions often have belied their rhetoric,all American presidents since Wilson, especially Democratic ones,have tended to stress the moral foundations of American foreignpolicy, such as the promotion of freedom and democracy abroadand the protection of human rights as well as their support forthe United Nations as an important guarantor of world peace andstability. 9Martin Gilbert, The European Powers 19 -1945 (New York:New American Library, 1965). 17Isaacson, "Sometimes Might Makes Right," 82. . He pointed out that the Anglo-Saxon democracies wereprone to moralistic passions. this gap . it shall ipso facto be deemed tohave committed an act of war against all members."9 The Leaguecondemned the invasion and authorized the League of NationsCommittee to draw up sanctions against Italy. 16Mitch McConnell, "Multilateralism's Obituary Was Written inMogadishu." Christian Science Monitor, 27 October 1993, 19. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.