You can login if you already have an account or register by clicking the button below.
Registering is free and all you need is a username and password. We never ask you for your e-mail.
IR scholar here. That's a way bigger question than it seems, so I'll try to be succinct...
There's a famous quote by Charles De Gaulle, "France has no friends, only interests."
The international system is anarchy, and there's no morality to be had. When interests are at stake, you will find even the most seemingly benevolent states acting in a way that would be perceived as immoral.
So why do we see "moral" behavior sometimes? Like taking in refugees, or campaigning for human rights? Because it advances the systems that maintain the status quo.
States, particularly Western ones, want to advance ideology that entrenches their values and ensures protection of the interests that are important to them. In times when those interests must be had, consequences be damned, you see these nations engaging in all sorts of behavior that goes against their traditional values.
So no, there is no morality, there is only anarchy. Any scholar would also tell you that "international law" isn't really law, it's selectively enforced and applied, and its strength is rooted entirely in the willingness of powerful nations to enforce it (which they do only at their convenience).
view the rest of the comments →
[–] Porcupine_Ninja 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
IR scholar here. That's a way bigger question than it seems, so I'll try to be succinct...
There's a famous quote by Charles De Gaulle, "France has no friends, only interests."
The international system is anarchy, and there's no morality to be had. When interests are at stake, you will find even the most seemingly benevolent states acting in a way that would be perceived as immoral.
So why do we see "moral" behavior sometimes? Like taking in refugees, or campaigning for human rights? Because it advances the systems that maintain the status quo.
States, particularly Western ones, want to advance ideology that entrenches their values and ensures protection of the interests that are important to them. In times when those interests must be had, consequences be damned, you see these nations engaging in all sorts of behavior that goes against their traditional values.
So no, there is no morality, there is only anarchy. Any scholar would also tell you that "international law" isn't really law, it's selectively enforced and applied, and its strength is rooted entirely in the willingness of powerful nations to enforce it (which they do only at their convenience).