The basic Liberal Principles as an International
Relations theory?
Student name :
Student number:
Class:
Teacher: Ms. Anghel
Words count: 1056
1
, Assignment 3 :
Question 1 : What are the basic Liberal principles as an IR theory?
Even though realism has been a dominant international theory for many years, liberalism
also has become a very competitive theory in the international relations field. While realists
look at the world as a hostile place in which each state needs to compete constantly for its
power and security, Liberals tend to concern for cooperation between states and commit to
liberal values and the free market (Walt, 1998). Liberalism is a set of values and principles
such as “commitment to individual freedom, government through democratic
representation, rights of private property, and equality of opportunity” (Doyle, 1997,
para.5). After years of fluctuation between realism and liberalism during the first and
second world war and the cold war, liberal ideas appeared to be dominant and widespread
in the 1990s creating a new world order. However, in 2001 as the United States involved in a
military conflict against other states, the world again seemed to be more directed towards
realists’ ideas (Dunne, 2017). The basic Liberal principles as an international relations
theory are creating an international organization to preserve peace, the democratic peace
theory and self-determination.
Before diving into the core principles of liberalism, it is important to mention that liberalism
as an international theory has emerged initially from political philosophers and publicists of
the 18th and 19th centuries. Ideas of Prominent philosophers such as Immanuel Kant, Adam
Smith, and John Stuart Mill paved the way for the evolution of liberalism as a modern
international relations theory (Moravcsik, 2001, p. 21).
The first principle of liberalism as IR theory is creating an international organization to
preserve peace and spread democratic values. In 1795, the German philosopher Immanuel
Kant published his well known essay Perpetual Peace in which he argued that true peace is
possible via a federal organization between states. He claimed that to reach perpetual
peace, the states should respect the human rights of their citizens as well as other states’
citizens. Kant’s ideas for the federal league of states have been strenuously disputed for
many years (Kleingeld, 2006).
2
Relations theory?
Student name :
Student number:
Class:
Teacher: Ms. Anghel
Words count: 1056
1
, Assignment 3 :
Question 1 : What are the basic Liberal principles as an IR theory?
Even though realism has been a dominant international theory for many years, liberalism
also has become a very competitive theory in the international relations field. While realists
look at the world as a hostile place in which each state needs to compete constantly for its
power and security, Liberals tend to concern for cooperation between states and commit to
liberal values and the free market (Walt, 1998). Liberalism is a set of values and principles
such as “commitment to individual freedom, government through democratic
representation, rights of private property, and equality of opportunity” (Doyle, 1997,
para.5). After years of fluctuation between realism and liberalism during the first and
second world war and the cold war, liberal ideas appeared to be dominant and widespread
in the 1990s creating a new world order. However, in 2001 as the United States involved in a
military conflict against other states, the world again seemed to be more directed towards
realists’ ideas (Dunne, 2017). The basic Liberal principles as an international relations
theory are creating an international organization to preserve peace, the democratic peace
theory and self-determination.
Before diving into the core principles of liberalism, it is important to mention that liberalism
as an international theory has emerged initially from political philosophers and publicists of
the 18th and 19th centuries. Ideas of Prominent philosophers such as Immanuel Kant, Adam
Smith, and John Stuart Mill paved the way for the evolution of liberalism as a modern
international relations theory (Moravcsik, 2001, p. 21).
The first principle of liberalism as IR theory is creating an international organization to
preserve peace and spread democratic values. In 1795, the German philosopher Immanuel
Kant published his well known essay Perpetual Peace in which he argued that true peace is
possible via a federal organization between states. He claimed that to reach perpetual
peace, the states should respect the human rights of their citizens as well as other states’
citizens. Kant’s ideas for the federal league of states have been strenuously disputed for
many years (Kleingeld, 2006).
2
