International politics focuses on how the world’s most important political problems—like war, peace, global development and security—are addressed beyond national borders. It involves looking at the way different societies cooperate and make decisions, including examining the ideas, norms and interests that shape those decision-making processes. In addition to studying governments like the US or China, students of international politics may also look at international organizations like NATO or the EU, multinational corporations that have a strong influence on the global economy, movements for human rights or climate action, or media outlets that shape how we view the world.
One of the most important areas of international politics is diplomacy, which involves the use of language and other forms of communication to influence other countries’ decisions. In order to have any effect, diplomats must be able to understand the goals of foreign policy makers and then present their own perspectives. Diplomacy is a process that has been around since antiquity, but it was only during the modern era that permanent diplomatic missions were established.
Those who follow liberal theories of international relations (also known as liberalism) believe that states have a rational interest in cooperating with each other, especially when those partnerships can bring about positive sum games. They also recognize that military action is often counterproductive because of the damage it causes to the economy and to civilian populations.
The opposite to the liberalism approach is hegemonic realism, which believes that states are in a constant struggle to achieve dominance in the international arena. Hegemonic realism assumes that there will always be some form of conflict, and that someone must consolidate power to determine the nature of those conflicts and the international system.