In regards to World Politics, and the way nations compete and coexist in an infinitely changing environment, I believe interdependence is the most important issue. It is critical in the understanding of how the world has and will continue to function in an organized manner. Interdependence consists of the way countries and even individual leaders interact and adjust to cater to the needs of other global citizens, and more importantly the needs of their own people. History shows that in times of need such as war, famine, or disaster, nations are often unable to recover alone. Institutions such as the United Nations (UN) have even been implemented to organize this interdependence in order to make it more efficient. Although the UN has been successful in many efforts and accomplished such tasks as promoting democracy in over 42 countries including South Africa and Cambodia, and even working with other organizations such as UNICEF to help develop smaller nation states, the organization still struggles with human rights issues all across the globe.
Similarly, interdependence can result in both positive and negative effects. This can most clearly be seen in times of great challenge and change. Allies and enemies are an example of the two ends of this spectrum. For example, the alliance between Britain and the United States during World War II was significant for both countries, and both were successful because of the partnership. Conversely, when interdependence fails and nations cannot coexist peacefully, enemies are formed. Interdependence also plays a key role in economics. For example, China is dependent on the US for buying its goods and the US is dependent on China for providing these goods for an expected price. Trade offs such as these have existed since the time of the Mesopotamians, and continue to be an integral part of the interdependence of countries today. Through these symbiotic relationships, nations can create networks to better solve the problems often addressed through world politics.
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ReplyDeleteAditi, I agree with your sentiments on the importance of interdependence. However, as some of your examples displayed, the world has become so interdependent that nations tend to rely on each other for goods vital to the functioning of the borrowers state (for example, the US borrowing money from abroad). WIth that said don't you think it would be better to formalize a global state, a true united nation? Wouldn't a single nation of the world be better then these "trade offs"? Under an efficient single government other global issues could be dealt with at great speed and a with new found ingenuity from the mix of innovators (citizens). People could begin to falter away with the idea of nationalism and instead devote themselves to the entire human race. The entire issue of us vs them would slowly begin to dissolve, mainly because only one would exist- us.
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