Week 13

Question 1

Realism (Core Ideas)

Answer 1

States act in self‑interest, prioritize survival and power, system is anarchic, cooperation is limited. Key thinkers: Waltz, Morgenthau.

Question 2

Realism & the UN

Answer 2

Tool of great power interests (P5 veto), limited effectiveness, illusion of multilateralism, persistence of anarchy. Example: Iraq 2003 invasion without UNSC approval.

Question 3

Realism & NATO

Answer 3

Needed in an anarchic world, survival mechanism, balances rival powers, temporary alliances, dominated by U.S. influence.

Question 4

Realism & Peacekeeping

Answer 4

Exists only with great power consent, occurs in low‑risk conflicts, preserves status quo, manages disorder not peace.

Question 5

Liberalism (Core Ideas)

Answer 5

Cooperation, institutions, interdependence, shared norms, democratic peace theory, collective security. Key thinkers: Wilson, Keohane, Doyle, Ikenberry.

Question 6

Liberalism & the UN

Answer 6

Facilitates cooperation, collective security, promotes human rights and democracy, fosters interdependence. Example: Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), Agenda 2030 (SDGs).

Question 7

Liberalism & NATO

Answer 7

Institutional cooperation, democratic peace, rule‑based order, shared values, collective security, interdependence, human security justification for interventions.

Question 8

Liberalism & Peacekeeping

Answer 8

Institutionalized cooperation, reduces mistrust, neutral referees in security dilemmas, promotes liberal peace (democracy, rights, law), legitimized by international law.

Question 9

Marxism (Core Ideas)

Answer 9

International politics shaped by capitalism and class domination, institutions serve capitalist interests, global inequality is structural.

Question 10

Marxism & NATO

Answer 10

Protects Western capitalism, suppresses socialism, secures markets and trade routes, benefits corporations and elites, harms working people.

Question 11

Marxism & the UN

Answer 11

Reflects capitalist power relations, UNSC veto embeds imperialist privilege, IMF/World Bank promote neoliberal reforms, deepens dependency of Global South.

Question 12

Marxism & Peacekeeping

Answer 12

Instrument of capitalist stability, maintains negative peace not justice, selective interventions, legitimizes neoliberal reconstruction, generates consent for capitalist dominance.

Question 13

Realism Key Thinkers

Answer 13

Morgenthau: UN as “diplomatic machinery” masking power politics. Waltz: states act unilaterally when survival is at stake.

Question 14

Liberalism Case Examples

Answer 14

Desert Storm (collective security in Iraq‑Kuwait). Agenda 2030 (SDGs as blueprint for cooperation).

Question 15

Marxism Case Examples

Answer 15

IMF/World Bank structural adjustment programmes → dependency in Global South. NATO wars benefiting arms/oil companies.

Question 16

Peacekeeping Perspectives Compared

Answer 16

Realists: consent of great powers, freezes conflicts, protects status quo. Liberals: institutionalized cooperation, builds trust, promotes democracy & law. Marxists: manages capitalist stability, selective interventions, legitimizes neoliberal reconstruction.