627 Review destined to embrace the western liberal model following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the opening-up of the country. The Kantian paradise of the European Union restored peace and stability to the member states. However, the world beyond its borders looks more like it did in the late 19th century than how liberals, such as Fukuyama, Doyle, Keohane and Nye, had envisaged it. Today, the EU has no policy with respect to Russia beyond the sanctions imposed upon it for the Ukraine crisis. If in the late 19th century it was France and Russia who were trying to prevent the unstoppable rise of Germany, today it is France and Germany who are trying to restrain Russia, even transcending the framework provided by the EU when doing so. However, despite the sanctions, the U.S. and Europe need Russia if progress is to be made on basic issues. This is particularly true in relation to Syria, where its proposal to confiscate chemical weapons has kept President Bashar al-Assad, a Kremlin ally, in power, and in negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme. With the volatility of the world today, Kissinger writes, it is crucial for the U.S. to stay engaged on the world stage as a “balancer” in places like the Middle East and Asia, especially at a time when Europe seems to be turning inward. Therefore, we are at a time when states have once again become the main unitary actors in international politics, where the anarchy of the system itself and the maximisation of security are the driving forces behind the behaviour of the major powers. Kissinger concludes by saying that he would like to live in a more stable world, more “Viennese”, given that the “world order” of the present day is not order and it cannot be considered a world one. http://revista.ieee.es/index.php/ieee
REVISTA IEEE 5
To see the actual publication please follow the link above