Introduction
A number of challenges, ranging from economic, political to social, characterize the 21st century. The main problems that confront all states in the global system are the preservation of sovereignty and promotion of national interests. In fact, states are concerned more with the promotion of national security.
Research shows that states would do everything within their power to protect their national borders. The emergence of global problems is indeed the main issue that threatens human life. The security of many states is at stake due to terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction.
Powerful states are threatened just as the weak states because terrorism does not spare any state. Moreover, there is always tension between the developed and the developing countries because of issues surrounding resource distribution. This article looks at some of the factors that have contributed to the prevalence of problems in the 21st century. The article invokes a number of theories and incorporates the views of international relations scholars.
Terrorism
In the current international system, terrorism is the major threat facing all states. Countries are faced with both internal and external threats, but terrorism remains the major threat. Terrorism is a problem that cannot be resolved unless states delve into its origins.
Terrorists use violence to frustrate governments, irrespective of whether the country is developed or poor. In other words, no country or individual is spared by the heinous acts of terrorists. In the modern international system, there are various categories of terrorists, each with its own mode of operation.
Some terrorists threaten to use weapons of mass destruction while others resort to suicide bombing. Scholars argue that terrorism is a result of depression, melancholy, hopelessness, helplessness, and defeat. Before the Cold War era, terrorism was not a big issue in the international system because extremist organizations were under the control of the US and the Soviet Union. The hostilities between the US and the Soviet Union could not give room to terrorism. In fact, countries that were suspected to support terrorism were constantly frustrated.
It should be noted that there is no Leviathan in the international system, which is compared to the centralized government. This gives state and non-state actors an opportunity to act in a manner that is beneficial to them. Moreover, there are weak and powerful states in the international system. Powerful states are well off in terms of military technology and development. In this regard, weak states feel threatened, which inspires them to develop some of the sophisticated weapons to counter the influence of powerful states.
Weapons and Mass Destruction
Availability of weapons of mass destruction is another threat to the world security in the current international system, which has made the 21st century the most disordered century in the human history. It is upon this that the Atomic Agency was created to supervise the production and distribution of weapons of mass destruction.
Before the Cold War, only powerful states, such as Russia and the US, had the capability of manufacturing weapons of mass destruction. However, these weapons could not be used to destroy life and property. In fact, the superpowers wanted to prove to each other that they were technologically competent.
They could not engage in war because they were mutually assured of destruction. Currently, a number of states have the ability to produce weapons of mass destruction. For instance, countries such as India and Pakistan have the ability to produce nuclear energy. This is very dangerous to the world security, especially when such weapons get into the hands of terrorism.
The ideas of Mearsheimer support the fact that the international system exists according to the Hobbestian state of nature meaning that life is short-lived, anarchic, brutal, and nasty. This implies that each state is concerned with its national security. States would do everything to ensure that they achieve their national interests.
The Gap between the South and the North
The third problem facing the world in the 21st century is the increasing economic gap between poor and rich states. Studies show that the gap between the south and the north is always in the increase. The problems facing countries of the south is how to initiate development projects.
However, scholars blame colonialism for the problems that are currently facing developing countries, particularly in Africa. The effects of neocolonialism are severe in the 21st century meaning that even the few available solutions are inapplicable. For instance, the issue of anger and insecurity cannot be resolved through provision of aid and monetary assistance.
Neocolonialists focus so much on establishing a cash economy by emphasizing on cash crops such as coffee and tea. This has always affected the agricultural policies of developing countries. Moreover, the infrastructural development was tempered with during colonialism, which is now haunting poor states in the 21st century.
This explains the reasons why weak states attempt to acquire nuclear energy. In the third assumption, Mearsheimer was of the view that states would always suspect the actions of each other because one state will never understand the intentions of the other. Due to this, states try as much as possible to match the policies of their counterparts in terms of economic and military development.
Since powerful states struggle to maintain their influence globally, they always apply repressive rules, which force weak states to repel. This has even complicated the situation in the 21st century because weak states are forced to adopt policies that do not support their domestic economic policies.
Conclusion
Mearsheimer seems to agree with the ideas of liberalist scholars such as Aart Scholte and Brent Steele because actors in the international system are rational actors meaning that they understand the external environment. This view is misplaced because states cooperate only to achieve their national interests.
Steele suggests that states respect the internationally recognized laws. This view is actually inaccurate because powerful states are not even members of the internationally established organizations such as the International Criminal Court. Scholte analyzed the role of global civil societies in the 21st century.
Similarly, his analysis was misplaced because the activities of the civil groups are not always similar in all societies. Globalization is a political concept that is used to suppress and dictate policies to the poor states in the international system. This means that globalization benefits only the rich states.
Bibliography
Mearsheimer, John. The Tragedy of Great Power Politics. New York: Norton & Company, 2001.
Scholte, Aart. The Political Economy of Globalization. London: Macmillan, 2000.
Sciolino, Elaine. Persian Mirrors: The Elusive Face of Iran. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000.
Steele, Brent. “Liberal-Idealism: A constructivist Critique.” International Studies Review 9.1 (2007): 23–52.