(1)What major changes occured
in global politics after the end of cold war?
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Following the end of the Cold War, international relations experts are looking at the world in new ways. No consensus has yet emerged on
how to describe and analyze the current era of international relations. Is the world today multicentric? Unipolar? Hegemonic?
Part of the confusion results from the difficulty in characterizing the role of the United States. Some analysts point to the fact that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the other superpower in the Cold War, the U.S. is now the sole surviving superpower in the world. Others note the degree to which the U.S. is less dominant today than it was earlier. Although these two perspectives are not necessarily incompatible, they do capture the prevailing sense of ambiguity. Even the term most often used to refer to this periodóthe Post-Cold War eraóis past-oriented and says nothing about the present or future.
In addition to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, two major historical processes whose eventual consequences are still unclear have affected virtually every region of the globe. They are:
1. The continued rapid growth of international economic interdependence, and
2. The global information and technology revolution, which has resulted in a worldwide reach by broadcast media and the ability to move information of all sorts around the world at lightning speeds.
Compounding the problem of describing the current international system is the fact that, in many areas of the world, the post-Cold War era has brought about a decreasing interest in things international at the very time when life in the waning days of the twentieth century is internationalizing faster than ever before. There is a widespread sense that it is now time to devote much more attention to other issues, often very domestic and local. For countries to become more inwardly focused at a time when they are more affected by the outside world than ever will certainly influence the direction taken by the international system.
I suggest that the post-Cold War world has three main characteristics:1
1. Great Uncertainty: The Cold War provided a structure and predictability in international affairs that is no longer present.
2. Even Greater Complexity: As the Cold War structure disintegrated, an interdependent world became more complicated. As the Cold War alliance system collapsed, questions arose of inclusion and exclusion, organizations and coalitions sought new missions, new international actors emerged, and new conflicts and issues (often long dormant) appeared on the international agenda.
3. Greater Diffuseness of Power and
Control: After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. has re-examined its international commitments. Other international centers of power and influence have grown and become more significant, e.g., the European Union and the Asia-Pacific. Regional issues are becoming much more important for many nations, replacing the pervasive East-West global issues of the previous era. Nations large and small are now faced with taking more responsibility for dealing with and managing issues and potential conflicts in their neighborhood.
International Issues in the Post-Cold War Era
Given this post-Cold War context, what are some of the changes in international relations that need to be reflected in the K-12 curriculum?
1. Studying Cooperation in Addition to Conflict. A key change in the post-Cold War study of international relations is a greater emphasis on understanding cooperation between nations. Despite the unfortunate tendency of the media and individuals alike to focus on conflict and the use of force, the overwhelming proportion of international activity is non-violent.
ìCooperation under anarchy,î the title of an important book, is a concept that captures this change very well.2 As the Cold War waned, scholars became more interested in explaining cooperation and examining why there is not more violent conflict in international relations. The anarchic self-he
how to describe and analyze the current era of international relations. Is the world today multicentric? Unipolar? Hegemonic?
Part of the confusion results from the difficulty in characterizing the role of the United States. Some analysts point to the fact that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the other superpower in the Cold War, the U.S. is now the sole surviving superpower in the world. Others note the degree to which the U.S. is less dominant today than it was earlier. Although these two perspectives are not necessarily incompatible, they do capture the prevailing sense of ambiguity. Even the term most often used to refer to this periodóthe Post-Cold War eraóis past-oriented and says nothing about the present or future.
In addition to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, two major historical processes whose eventual consequences are still unclear have affected virtually every region of the globe. They are:
1. The continued rapid growth of international economic interdependence, and
2. The global information and technology revolution, which has resulted in a worldwide reach by broadcast media and the ability to move information of all sorts around the world at lightning speeds.
Compounding the problem of describing the current international system is the fact that, in many areas of the world, the post-Cold War era has brought about a decreasing interest in things international at the very time when life in the waning days of the twentieth century is internationalizing faster than ever before. There is a widespread sense that it is now time to devote much more attention to other issues, often very domestic and local. For countries to become more inwardly focused at a time when they are more affected by the outside world than ever will certainly influence the direction taken by the international system.
I suggest that the post-Cold War world has three main characteristics:1
1. Great Uncertainty: The Cold War provided a structure and predictability in international affairs that is no longer present.
2. Even Greater Complexity: As the Cold War structure disintegrated, an interdependent world became more complicated. As the Cold War alliance system collapsed, questions arose of inclusion and exclusion, organizations and coalitions sought new missions, new international actors emerged, and new conflicts and issues (often long dormant) appeared on the international agenda.
3. Greater Diffuseness of Power and
Control: After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. has re-examined its international commitments. Other international centers of power and influence have grown and become more significant, e.g., the European Union and the Asia-Pacific. Regional issues are becoming much more important for many nations, replacing the pervasive East-West global issues of the previous era. Nations large and small are now faced with taking more responsibility for dealing with and managing issues and potential conflicts in their neighborhood.
International Issues in the Post-Cold War Era
Given this post-Cold War context, what are some of the changes in international relations that need to be reflected in the K-12 curriculum?
1. Studying Cooperation in Addition to Conflict. A key change in the post-Cold War study of international relations is a greater emphasis on understanding cooperation between nations. Despite the unfortunate tendency of the media and individuals alike to focus on conflict and the use of force, the overwhelming proportion of international activity is non-violent.
ìCooperation under anarchy,î the title of an important book, is a concept that captures this change very well.2 As the Cold War waned, scholars became more interested in explaining cooperation and examining why there is not more violent conflict in international relations. The anarchic self-he
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