Michael Jackson

PS 12: Int'l Relations

Chad Rector
12:20
Economy:
The New World Order

Peace, and its maintenance, is the focus of international relations at the dawn of

the new millenium. The assertion has been made that nuclear proliferation, and its

prevention, is the single most important factor facing global peace in today's society.

This belief is archaic in nature as it ignores the shift of the global arena from superiority

by might to superiority of economy. The assertion brought forth by this paper is that the

single most important factor of international relations is the success of one's domestic

economy in respect to the international global marketplace. This proposition is supported

through historical as well as current trends in economic motives of nations. The basis for

this argument is held within four observations, which are nuclear war is not probable, the

Cold War and its economic basis, China's use of North Korea as a bargaining chip, and

the European Economic Community.

Nuclear weapons are not a significant factor of international relations in today's

society. This thought, however unlikely in 1949- 1967, is today a cornerstone of

international diplomacy. Nuclear weapons significance, a remnant of a time when

aggression and territorial expansion were still the hopes and dreams of world powers.

The nuclear mystery is one of great consideration and is the focus of many international

relations scholars such as John Mueller. The proposition set forth is that the use of

nuclear weapons by a superpower, or any government, is highly unlikely, as it does not

contain any profit for a nation. The weapons of mass destruction do not maintain the

peace but only further lay groundwork for a transition away from the classical view of
military gains. The nuclear weapon has been a device that would not bring a victor in a

war but a better off loser. This mentality has placed the use of a nation's nuclear arsenal

off limits, as it is not logical to destroy one's enemy only to gain the same fate in return.

This is echoed in the sentiment of Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev when they

agreed that "a nuclear war cannot be won and must not be fought." The nuclear arsenal

is not a legitimate factor to be the focus of global peace in the future; it is however a way

to allow smaller nations of the world to gain a bargaining chip in the international

economic arena. The nations of the world will desire to join this new economic system to

reap its benefits and to assert their niche in the global marketplace.

A prime example of an economic war is the Cold War between the USSR and the

USA. In this war the move from classical warfare to the modern economic mentality is

ever present. The original motive of this war was the hope of territorial expansion in a

move to gain superiority through a sphere of influence. This desire for superiority of

property has been present since the dawn of warfare and is the focus of many areas of

feudal strife and conflict. The move to the modern battle of economic superiority arose

when the desire for further territorial expansion proved non-profitable and a new

battlefield arose in which the goal was to have an economy that could beat or cripple the

enemy. The war time might of the United States proved to be superior to that of the

Soviet Union, however, we did not exit the Cold War unscathed by the terrors of global

economic warfare. The design of this economic war was the proposition that the need for

superior military technology was a need to spend extreme amounts of money on weapons

development and production in the hopes that a physical war would be won by your side.

This mentality concealed the true war in which the economies of the two nations were
stressed to their breaking points to see which economy could survive a massive arms

race. The victor is the United States, however we have spent a great part of the past

decade in efforts to repair the economy that was greatly weakened during the Cold War.

The economic war involved in this time period was one of great significance for it

changed the role of military objectives in future wars to come.

A current example of this new global warfare of economy is seen through the use

of North Korea and its nascent nuclear arsenal by China to gain Most Favored Nation

(MFN) status. This is an example that shows a growing power's desire to gain economic

assistance through the use of the nuclear bargaining chip. The Chinese move to use their

ability to negotiate with North Korea as a route to gain MFN status was a considerable

step to gain a strong foothold in the new international political economy. The MFN

move was a tying of hands of the USA, which desired improved humanitarian conditions

in China. This global bargaining chip was a clear example of a nascent economic

power's hope to attain a stronger role in the New World order. The most recent

development in this economic strategy was entrance into the World Trade Organization

by China. This was a move that has placed China as one of the major players in this new

climate of economic success and power.

The biggest conglomerate move to maintain a place among the leaders of this new

global economy is seen in the European Economic Community (ECC). The development

of the ECC is a giant step for the return of power from the West and East back to Europe,

a once great power. The nations of Europe have aligned to form a economic power house

that is in need of a commodity readily exchanged at the global marketplace. The union of

these nations has developed a clear block to influences of the West but as well developed
a unity, if it stands the test of time, which will play a significant role in politics of the

future. The ECC has moved to develop an international currency of exchange, a tariff-

less system, and an almost mirrored system of states within the USA. The belief of this

organization is to place themselves once again in the center of politics.

The economic shift of the political system is evident through the removal of

global barriers to trade as well as a dominant trend towards the benefits of economic

wealth of the domestic economy in relation to the global community. The individuals as

well as the populace define the domestic community of today, as it is evident that each

person through the development of instantaneous e-commerce plays an integral role in

economic stability of a nation. Through this new growth and role of the economic

welfare we see the development of international organizations that play crucial roles in

the economic strength of our nation. The world is moving away from a border system

and towards a global marketplace in which the strength of one's economy is more

important than the military might of any nation. The move of the global spectrum away

from war as a means to superiority is not a move from the principles of war but the means

by which a war is fought. The warfare of tomorrow is computers and business leaving

behind the weapons of the post World War II community.

What is the role of nuclear weapons in the future of the global system? The

answer to this question is that the threat of nuclear weapons is shifted away from nations

that understand that their are no winners in a nuclear war to the threat of terrorists that

gain the capability to threaten economic welfare with destruction of a nations economic

machine. The role of the military will move away from territorial expansion to protection

of domestic production as well as the intangible areas of the economy, such as the
electronic wealth of a nation and its digital infrastructure that allows it to join the global

marketplace. The future of international relations is in the hands of economic prosperity

and out of the hands of territorial expansion as a means of power. The battlefields and

deterrents of tomorrow will not be physical in all aspects but in the relations among

nations economically. The greatest evidence of this shift is the move away from global

independence and a shift towards niche production of goods and services that can be

exchanged readily in the global marketplace such as the hopes of the WTO.

The world of the future is one in which the maintenance of peace is defined by the

move away from a war of territorial gains to that of a war on production and economic

stability. The position of nuclear weapons and their threat will fade as the irrelevance of

their usage becomes more accepted. Through historical analysis as well as current trends

is the establishment of a global marketplace. It is evident that international relations is

about to shift from a world of terror to a world of peace with the weapons of war the

currency of the global markets.