Geopolitics Unit 5: Conflict & Cooperation

Definitions  Politics: The practice of decision-making by society as a whole, usually formalized at the government level.  Geopolitics: The interplay of geography and politics on national or international levels.  May deal with: determining borders, resolving international conflicts, forming military alliances, striking trade agreements, developing and protecting natural resources, controlling access to sea and air routes, etc.

Geopolitics  Geographical Factors can cause Political Changes (e.g. When Switzerland restricts immigration because it already has a high enough population)  Political Factors can cause Geographical Changes (e.g. An increase in oil prices has led to an expanded search for oil in the Arctic and North sea, thus causing Geographical changes)

Political Topics Concerned With Geography  Trade  Military Alliances  Foreign Aid  Immigration / Emigration  Territorial Control  Economic Systems  Areas of land suitable to support society and distribution of wealth

States  Have recognized boundaries (borders)  Are recognized as such by other states  Are governed by a recognizable body with rules for the administration of the state.  Individuals are therefore tied to a state and subject to its rules.

Nations  Is a cultural group which is based on variables such as language, religion, ethnicity.  These factors give people a sense of identity and community.

Nations vs. States  A NATION is different from a STATE: a nation is a cultural distinction, while a STATE is a political one.  Really, you can belong to whatever nation you CHOOSE.  The same thing cannot be said for the idea of a state.

Nation-State Definitions  Is a clearly defined cultural group (a nation) occupying a defined territory (a state).  A nation state is a sizeable group of people who have adopted a unique common identity as fellow citizens, who live together under one government within a certain geographical area.

Nation-States  Nationalism: the belief that the nation and the state should be the same or congruent.  Nationalism to some also means that it is inappropriate for other national groups to live within the borders; therefore, the government must be in the hands of the dominant national group.

Border Issues Despite this rise of nationalism, the world has lots of examples of multinational and binational states. For example: African countries whose boundaries were drawn by Europeans without considering African national cultural groups. Many multinational states are unstable, especially in Africa, but not all, e.g., the US, Switzerland. Binational states include Canada and Belgium, both of which suffer internal stresses due to differing political desires of dominant cultural groups.

Border Issues Pre-colonial African Tribal Areas Africa 2014 (mostly colonial borders)