INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND STABILITY
Neo-liberalism as a concept cannot be simply criticized as being non-encompassing but instead social constructivism can be employed, not to replace it but to complement it. Peace is not simply the absence of war Ronald Regan. Reflecting on the quote provided by Ronald Regan, it is very clear that the context of peace does not imply about problems relating to violence in war but also in other context such as economic stability. Hence, other forms of peace are dependent on the view point of various sectors in a country.
Liberals believe that when there is economic interdependence, the possibilities of war and conflicts are minimized as trading becomes more valued as compared to the other option which is aggression. When different states are economically interdependent, war and invasion are viewed as being very expensive and as such there is the likelihood of employing other measures in dealing with their conflicts rather than engaging in combat. The level of economic interdependence as well as the possibility of changes in future trade play a very important role in enhancing peace. When the future of trade seems good and viable, there is a great possibility that highly interdependent states are bound to avoid any conflict. Many countries have employed neo-liberalism as an economic concept. Neo-liberalism has resulted into the establishment and upholding of the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). FDI entails the introduction of foreign investors to channel their funds to given countries in a bid to elevate such countries economic capabilities.
Some states which have engaged in privatization have realized the growth of their economies through aid from foreign investors. While FDI has been successful in enabling the economic growth of some countries, this has not been the case for most of the countries which have engaged in it. In contrast to its intended objective, FDI has even led to a faster decline in the economic conditions of other countries. Economic interdependence among states can be a vital concept in the provision of peace as well as stability (Barbierre, 2006, p. 31). In the context of this paper, social constructivism is going to be used in explaining how economic interdependence in a given social and cultural setting can enhance peace and stability
Neo-liberalism
In the context of international relations, neo-liberalism has been defined as the school of thought that is based on the belief that states are bound to be concerned with absolute gains as opposed to relative gains in comparison to other states. States are always trying to involve themselves in ventures that are going to be profitable to them in the long run. From an economic point of view, neo-liberalism has always aimed at transferring part of the economy control from public sectors to private sectors. The objective for this transfer is usually the improvement of the efficiency of the government and ensuring the sustainability of the economy of a given nation. In 1980s, the worlds economy had greatly subsided, at a time when the cost of gasoline had rocketed. Many countries struggled to sustain their economic wellbeing. To eradicate and possibly mend this condition, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) granted loans to these countries to recover from the near-collapse of their national economies. Hence, after these loans were offered, different results were witnessed. In Latin America, many countries were reported to have plunged into economic crises after this grant (Barbierre, 2006, p. 35).
The culture as well as the social construct of a given state is very important in determining the possibility of success of such ventures. Given the fact that IMF as well as most international organizations which are able to extend such kinds of funds is in the domains of developed countries. Developed countries, are characterized by relatively strong economies hence, the researches they conduct are only plausible in the context of developed countries (Viner, 1951, p. 212). International institutions which offer such kinds of lending, do not always take into consideration the social as well as the cultural perspectives of the recipient states before the formulation of policies. Since culture and society remain fluid, some of the policies adopted by international financial lending institutions do not fit into the context of developing nations mainly because of their cultures and society. It is an uncontested fact that the society is has the ability to manipulate economic process thus it is necessary to take into consideration as international financial lending organizations formulate their policies towards a given country (Viner, 1951, p. 217).
An example is Philippines, which is in Asia. Philippines had been ranked among developing nations for many years by virtue of its economic situation. Philippines government was not able to extend subsidy to cater for its agricultural products. The led to an extra expense in the production of the good, hence more expensive (Wooten, 2007, p. 46). Whereas developed countries like Australia and the United States provided subsidy on their products leading to the reduction in production cost, hence their goods are comparatively cheaper. This gave the developed countries a competitive advantage for their products in the international markets. Due to the subsidy extended and technological advancements, developed countries are able to produce many products of comparatively higher quality (Barbierre, 2006, p. 9).
The relationship between Conflict and Economic Interdependence
The openness of the international markets as well as an increase in economic exchanges has been documented to pivotal aspects that can lead to the inhibition of interstate hostilities. Liberals have stipulated that conflict and economic exchange are mutually exclusive means of attaining resources that are required to sustain the economic growth as well as promoting political security. A state may thus choose to employ one of these means to obtain the vital resources. With an increase in foreign investments and trade, a state finds it needless to engage in military encounters and conflict. When there is less economic interdependence, there is bound to be incessant conflicts which may in the long run turn out to be a war (Viner 1951, 259).
In the context of bilateral economic interdependence, increasing interdependence leads to an increase in contact as well as the promotion of communication between the private actors in these countries and also between these governments. The rise in contact as well as communication is bound to foster cooperation and enhance political relations. When there is commercial openness leads to efficiency gains, this ensures that private traders as well as consumers rely on foreign market. Incase political antagonism arises there is the imminent disruption of economic relations putting trade in jeopardy. The actors in trade will have an obligation of pressing public officials against engaging in armed conflicts to resolve their differences. The public officials usually act on the interest of the population and are more likely to avoid military combat in the interest of commercial gains. The economy of a given country is usually sustained by these kinds of traders and there is little possibility that the government would ignore their request unless there is a more urgent reason (Barbierre, 2006, p.18).
Realists have been documented to oppose this claim. They feel that economic interdependence has always led to rivalry between the trading parties. Liberals view this as contest and not necessarily conflict. Contest can lead to conflict but this is not necessarily always the case. Each state views the opportunity cost associated with cooperation and that associated with conflict differently. Moaz feels that economic interdependence may not always lead to peace as well as stability. The reason behind this concept is that the society and cultures of a given country are subjective. Researches that have been carried out on international peace and stability have established that economic robustness remains a prerequisite for the achievement of stability and the appreciation of peace culture (Katzenstein, 1996, p. 537).
There have been cases whereby economic interdependence has led to serious problems including war. This is a clear demonstration the economic interdependence do not always lead to international stability. While economic interdependence is supposed to foster peace, it does not always achieve this target because the cultural and social aspects are not always taken into consideration. Social constructivist approach takes into consideration the materials, the cultural as well as the social aspects of a given people.
Social Constructivism
Neo-realism has been established to be placing too much attention on the material needs. It is more skewed towards the balance of power between states. They tend to focus on the military might and economic capabilities of these countries. Constructivists fell that this kind of approach is more or less one sided. They express the opinion that social aspects of international relations goes far much beyond the material aspects. They feel that the social aspects of international relations are the basis of good relations as opposed to the material aspects. Social reality is subjective and cannot be compared to the material aspect, which is objective. The social as well as political worlds are not physical entities or material objects that are beyond human consciousness. International relations should incorporate the beliefs and the ideas which are able to give information to the international actors and the understandings they share. The international system is constituted with peoples inter-subjective awareness. This system is based on ideas as opposed to material forces (Wendt, 1999, p.39).
Since the system is composed of ideas, there is bound to be a change in the system when new ideas are adopted. One of the most notable social constructivism theorists is Alexander Wendt. Wendt on his part emphasized most on two principles of social constructivism. The first principle he greatly stressed on was that human association relied more on the ideas the people shared rather than material forces. The second principle was that interests and identities of the actors in the international scene were created by ideas and not their nature. Social constructivism thus emphasizes on the need of taking into consideration, the cultural as well as the social context of a given country as well as its role in the international scene. Social constructivism thus goes into details in explaining the missing link between economic interdependence and peace as well as stability. The link is the consideration of different cultures in different countries within the international scene. The methodology and theoretical approaches that have been employed in the study of international relations have been based on a single theory that best suits the scenarios. In a number of instances, realist theory has been employed in trying to establish the root of conflicts among countries. When the realist theory is taken into consideration, other theories like the neo-liberalism theory are usually ignored. Social constructivism complements neo-realism in ensuring that economic interdependence yields peace and stability. This is only possible when economic interdependence is integrated into the cultural as well as the social context (Wendt, 1999, p.51).
When there is change within a given international system, there is bound to be a difference in the manner by which the states as well as the people perceive each other. They would start thinking about each other differently and new norms may be formed that are different from the ones which have existed before. States are believed to be artificial creations of men, and men have powers to change them or develop them in different ways. Human beings tend to understand each others actions and assign meanings to these actions. Human interaction cannot thus be understood as would be the case with natural phenomena. To understand human interaction meanings of actions must be known. Such meanings are bound to vary across cultures and from one society to the other. Subjective understanding is what should characterize human interaction (Wendt, 1999, p.63).
Realists value power and the interest of the nation. They feel that these are the factors that drive international politics. They lay little emphasis on ideas. National interest and power are considered material factors since they are objective in nature. Ideas only come into play when rationalizing actions which were caused by material interests. Social constructivism does not disregard interest and power but instead focuses on the ideas such aspects make up. Ideas are deemed to define material power. Constructivists focus on inter-subjective beliefs (the ideas, the conceptions as well as the assumptions) that people share among themselves. The importance of a given idea only matter when they are shared by many people. Ideas can also be unique to a given group of people or societies. Ideas are diverse and varied in nature. They feel that the analysis of social actions should be based on interpretive understanding (Wendt, 1999, p.92).
Social constructionism is based on the belief that interaction between states leads to the creation of the interests and identities. Neo-realism is based on the conception that states know their interests and identities before they engage in interaction with other states (Wendt 1992 394). Both neo-realism and constructivism find a common ground on the concept that the survival and security of a given state are very key needs of the state. Economic interdependence among states leads to Kantian culture in which states view other states as their friends they are able to explore peaceful means of settling disputes and are even prepared to aid their business partners incase of a potential threat from another state. They go to this extent to protect their mutual friendship and economic wellbeing which would otherwise be in jeopardy (Wendt 1999, p.299).
Social constructivism emphasizes on the need of interaction between states and the establishment of their interests based on such interactions. When states interact closely, they are able to have a clearer understanding of each other. They will in turn respect and appreciate each others cultures. Their economic interdependence will be based on better understanding of the cultures, beliefs and ideas of other states. Power and other material aspects of such kind of relationship basically rely on the ideas within the relationship. Economic interdependence should not only take place as material exchange, instead, the understanding of the cultural and social beliefs of the trading partners should be a common interest. With better understanding between states, there is bound to be a better way of resolving conflicts. While each of the parties may experience some form of vulnerability within the relationship, the understanding of the cultural beliefs and the societal organization may just offer the first crucial step towards the resolution of conflicts and potential misunderstanding. With better ways of resolving conflicts among economically interdependent states, peace and stability will not be too great a task to achieve. Economically interdependent states may favor a conflict resolution system that is bound to ensure their continued growth in economic gain. They are least likely to engage extreme measures that are bound to hinder economic activities and harm their economy. This would not be the case even when one of the countries is deemed to have greater military capabilities compared to the others (Wendt, 1999, p.115).
International financial organizations which are able to fund state projects and offer loans to countries that are experiencing potential threats to the economy should ensure that they consider the cultural as well as the political aspects of the countries they are bound to help before formulating their policies. There is a very wide gap between the developed and developing countries, the cultures and social settings are also diverse. This means that a policy which may have been very successful in one setting may only offer little help in the other, if not hurting the economy further. When this is done, the comparatively less developed states can have the competitive advantage they require to compete in the international markets. There would be a level ground for most countries and less animosity. Increased interdependence will most likely lead to peace and stability when mutual respect and understanding have been set as the foundations of the economic activities. In some instances this may not necessarily be the case especially, when such economic interdependence are based solely on material aspects (Barbierre, 2006, p. 24).
Conclusion
The need for economic interdependence for peace and stability cannot be understated. Countries should be encouraged to venture into economic activities with other countries as a move aimed at fostering international peace and stability. This should be the case even in countries that have never had a history of conflicts. Countries should realize the need for continued co-operation. Preferential trade ventures should be initiated in different regions. Such interdependence should not only be focused on material exchange but it should also be aimed at understanding the cultural as well as the social aspects of the people from other states. Social constructivism compliments neo-liberal view of economic interdependence as a means of fostering international peace and stability.
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