Political, securitarian and infrastructural state-building (original) (raw)

Theorizing the Westphalian System of States: International Relations from Absolutism to Capitalism

European Journal of International Relations, 2002

This article provides a new approach, revolving around contested property relations, for theorizing the constitution, operation and transformation of geopolitical systems, exemplified with reference to early modern international relations. Against the cross-paradigmatic IR consensus that equates the Westphalian Settlement with the codifica- tion of modern international relations, the article shows to which degree 17th and 18th century European geopolitics remained tied to rather unique pre-modern practices. These cannot be understood on the basis of realist or constructivist premises. In contrast, the theoretical argument is that the proprietary and personalized character of dynastic sovereignty was predicated on pre-capitalist property relations. Dynasti- cism, in turn, translated into historically specific patterns of conflict and cooperation that were fundamentally governed by the competitive logic of geopolitical accumulation. The decisive break to international modernity comes with the rise of the first modern state — England. After the establishment of a capitalist agrarian property regime and the transformation of the English state in the 17th century, post-1688 Britain starts to restructure international relations in a long-term process of geopolitically combined and socially uneven development.

The 1648 Peace of Westphalia, a worldwide financial reorganization

Artkarel.com, 2022

In 1648, after five years of negotiations, led by the French diplomat Abel Servien on the instructions of Cardinal Mazarin, the “Peace of Westphalia” was signed, putting an end to the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648). Long before the UN Charter, 1648 made national sovereignty, mutual respect and the principle of non-interference the foundations of international law. The Republic of the Netherlands and the Helvetian Confederation were recognized and numerous bilateral peace treaties put an end to many conflicts.

The Westphalian Treaties

How important were the Treaties of Westphalia to the development of the modern international system?, 2018

How important were the Treaties of Westphalia to the development of the modern international system?

"In Amicable Agreement:" Westphalia in Retrospect

Speakers and scholars alike often invoke the name of Westphalia as an assumed turning point in international relations and political structure. David Broucher says that the Peace of Westphalia "provided the foundation for, and gave formal recognition to, the modern state 1

From ‘State System’ to a ‘System of States’: A Post-Westphalian Framework with Relinquished Sovereignty

During the era of signing the Treaty of Westphalia, sovereignty was a sacrosanct notion that had to be safeguarded at the cost of anything. The possibility of compromising with state‟s sovereignty was something that could never be imagined. But such idea has become obsolete in present days when statesmen are more concerned for ensuring, security, economic and other interests of their people, even if they have to compromise with sovereignty. In such circumstances, the state system which allows the rulers to act arbitrarily on the pretext of sovereignty is shifting to the system of states where other entities in addition to the state are similarly decisive and the supremacy of the governments is curbed in certain degree. This paper attempts to explicate the reasons for the transformation of this system for the purpose of outlining necessary policies.

THE CONCEPT OF STATE SOVEREIGNTY FROM THE 1648 TREATY OF WESTPHALIA TO THE PRESENT DAY

public international law, I648 Treaty of Westphalia, International labor organization 1919, 1945 UN Charter and Human Rights, The Friendly Relations Declarations, 1970, Modern doctrine, Collectivity or Collective or Pooled Sovereignty, Divisibility of sovereignty, Earned sovereignty, Constrained sovereignty, Phased sovereignty, Contingency of sovereignty.

Is Westphalia relevant to the evolution of international law?

ABSTRACT: this dissertation seeks to evaluate the Peace of Westphalia (1648) for the importance of discerning and validating its influential ramifications for the development of international law. It will argue that from the Westphalian agreements began the codification of norms and an emerging international system which continue in both international relations and international law today. It will first explore the background of Westphalia, including the precise language of the treaties, and the creation and early development of international law. It will then use the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as a key international institution as an example of direct lineage to Westphalian norms. Finally, it will discuss globalization as a challenger to international law and Westphalian relevancy. For these reasons this dissertation will employ neoliberalism as an appropriate theoretical framework but will also utilize methods of historiography to best analyze primary documents of the Peace of Westphalia and the ICJ.

Revisiting Westphalia, Discovering Post-Westphalia

The Journal of ethics, 2002

This article explores the structure of world order from the perspective of the Treaty of Westphalia, which is treated as the benchmark for the emergence of the modern system of sovereign states. Emphasis is placed on Westphalia as historical event, idea and ideal, and process of evolution, and also on developments that supersede this framing of world politics, especially, globalization and the megaterrorist challenge of September 11, 2001. At issue is whether the state system is resilient enough to adapt to new global conditions or is in the process of being supplanted, and whether the sequel to Westphalia is moving toward humane global governance or some dysutopic variant, or both at once.