Political Geography Study of human political organization of the Earth at various levels Studied at three scales Supranational scale Ex. United Nations Country/nation scale How government is organized Sub-national (local) scale Boundaries for voting districts Political geographers also study the changing role of the country in the world’s political affairs Geopolitics The state’s power to control space or territory and shape international political relations

During the 20th century, the collapse of large political federations such as existed in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) led to the understanding that countries should have common economic goals to solidify connections between their governments. These goals should overcome their resistance to work together because of ethnic conflicts. Political Geography Geographic concepts helps us to understand the changing political organization of Earth’s surface Can use geographic methods to examine the causes of political change and instability and to anticipate potential trouble spots throughout the world When looking at earth, it’s easy to distinguish places What we cannot see are boundaries One of Earth’s most fundamental cultural characteristics is the division of our planet’s surface into a collection of spaces occupied by individual countries

When a nation undergoes political turmoil such as a revolution, its population tends to disperse into neighboring countries. This leads to the potential for more ethnic diversity in countries that surround the nation that is experiencing political problems Political Geography Today Globalization means more connections among states Individual countries have transferred military, economic, and political authority to regional and worldwide collections of states Power is exercised through connections among states created primarily for economic cooperation

The act of locating environmental hazards close to regions or neighborhoods that are mainly populated by minorities, accomplished via political representation, has been termed environmental racism. This practice disadvantages certain groups because of their race and ethnic origin. Human Territoriality Territoriality is creating ownership over a defined space Territoriality can apply to your bedroom or an entire country Often evokes emotional response Ex. Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait triggered the Gulf War Ex. Germany’s invasion of Poland triggered WWII Personal Space Territoriality can also be applied to personal space Personal space is the area we claim as our own territory into which others may not enter without our permission How much is personal varies

A country that contains distinct environmental zones that encourage different ways of life is more likely to be home to a population that sees itself as socially and politically divided. Sovereignty Definition: Internationally recognized control a place has over the people and territory within its boundaries Nearly 200 countries on earth with sovereignty Disputes Sovereignty of Taiwan Sovereignty of Kurdistan Sovereignty of Kosovo Oceans

State refers to: Nation refers to: When two states compete with one another economically, they are likely to become political antagonists. Economic competition encourages political competition. A state that wants to reach the same markets and utilize the same resources as another state is likely to develop political concerns about the actions of its competitor State refers to: Arguably most powerful institution in globalization To be a state: Political unit with permanent population citizenship Territorial boundaries that are recognized by other states Effective government Working economy Sovereignty Nation refers to: a group of people who share a common culture and identity as a cohesive group Needed: Language Religion Shared history Territory (not always) Example: Jewish nation

A nation-state is most often defined by its twin attributes of sovereignty and ethnic homogeneity. A nation-state is a country in which the population is ethnically uniform, which allows for a shared language, cultural heritage, and religion Stateless nation When a nation does not have territory to call its own Assyrian Christians of Iraq Kurds of Iraq, Turkey, Iran Ughirs of Western China Multinational state Country that includes more than one nation within its borders Ex. Soviet Union Nation-state State with only one nation in its borders Ex. Japan, Iceland

History of Nation-State Concept Humans have organized political space in different forms throughout their existence Early humans organized into clans When conquered became kingdoms and empires Ancient Greeks and Romans created city-states Political space revolved around a central city and surrounding farmland After fall of Roman Empire, Western Europe was divided into a feudal structure Mainly based on religion Eventually faded, strong monarchies emerged Stronger monarchies led to more internal cohesion and rise of nation-states More cohesive group of people linked to their territory through a shared government and common goals Pattern diffused throughout Europe Goal of WWII Idea of linking people who share strong send of unity a way to prevent ethnonational violence

The Peace of Westphalia, signed in 1648, was a set of European peace treaties that ended different conflicts between Spain and the Dutch Republic. These treaties did not lead to peace in western Europe but allowed the heads of nations to meet and agree that each country held sovereign powers

Ethnonationalism and Conflict Definition A powerful emotion attachment to one’s nation that occurs when a minority nation within a state feels different from the rest of the state’s people When a minority feels that they do not have enough self- determination, or the power to control their own territory and destiny, ethnonationalism can lead to conflict Example The Chechen people comprise a minority nation that live in Russia and have a strong sense of ethnonationalism that has led to violent conflict with the Russian government.

A political leader might use popular media to push for the idea of a united, relatively homogenous and shared national culture. The traditional concept of a nation-state involves the population of the country having cultural solidarity and remaining resistant to change from outside Irredentism Members of a nation do not always live in just one place The Serbs are a nation, but they exist in several countries, not just the land that is considered Serbia Conflict can arise when a nation’s homeland is spread into the territory of another state or several states Definition A movement by a nation to reunite its parts when they have spread across other borders Ex. Irredentism occurred when Hitler believed that the German nation had spread into Czechoslovakian territory, he wanted to take control of that land to reunite Germans into one state

Examples of Ethnonational Conflict Place Conflicting Parties Reason South Asia India and Pakistan Two parties are fighting over control of Kashmir Palestine, Southwest Asia Jewish Israelis vs Muslim Palestinians and Arab allies The stateless nation of Muslim Palestinians and their Arab allies are warring against the Jewish-controlled state of Israel for autonomy Southeast Asia Mainland China and Taiwan Taiwan founded in the 1940s. China does not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state Former Yugoslavia Serbs vs all the other nationalities that were once part of “Yugoslavia” In the 1990s different nations in the multinational state of Yugoslavia warred to break away from the Serb-dominated government in Belgrade. Russia Russia vs Chechnya Chechnya is a state in the Russian republic, governed by Moscow.

Ethnonationalism and Conflict Shatterbelts State or group of states that exists within a sphere of competition between larger states and is often culturally, economically, and politically fragmented and splintered Eastern Europe Existed as a sphere of competition between U.S.S.R. and western powers Buffer States and Zones A buffer state is an independent country located between two larger countries that are in conflict Russia and China have warred over boundaries for centuries, but Mongolia, a buffer, has helped reduce direct confrontation between the two states Satellite States Countries controlled by another, more powerful state During the Cold War, the Soviet Union worked to dominate the Eastern European buffer zone and install Communist satellite states there Called the “Iron Curtain”

A nation-state is partially defined by its sovereignty A nation-state is partially defined by its sovereignty. The state government’s most important responsibilities include defending the state from invasion and outside rule. The state government must also prevent conflicting populations within its borders from fragmenting the state Geometric Straight-line boundaries that do not related to the cultural or physical features of the territories involved Ex. North/South Korea 38th parallel Physical (or natural) Separate territories according to natural features in the landscape, such as mountains, deserts, or rivers Ex. France and Spain are divided by the Pyrenees Three types of boundaries Geometric Physical Cultural Best boundaries are those to which all affected states agree, regardless of the rationale used to draw the line

A nation-state that experiences a large influx of immigrants is the most at risk to suffer a crisis of identity, which could fragment it politically and socially and lead to a nation no longer being a nation-state Cultural Boundaries Mark changes in the cultural landscape, such as boundaries that divide territories according to religion or language Sometimes drawn according to geometric straight lines Religious Only a few cases where religion has been used to select the actual boundary line Example: South Asia, partition of India and Pakistan Ireland and North Ireland Language Europe best example Idea spread during 20th century Versailles Conference

Cyprus “Green Line” Boundary The leader of a nation-state would not be likely to agree with an intergovernmental action that mandated that her or his country exchange territory with another country. Nation-states tend to view the land of their country as nontransferable Cyprus “Green Line” Boundary Contains two nationalities Turkish= north, eastern 18% of population Greek= south 78% of population Cyprus gained independence in 1960 Constitution guaranteed Turkish minority rights Cyprus never peacefully integrated the Greek and Turkish nationalities Series of Coups led to Turkish section declaring itself independent in 1983 no one except Turkey recognizes independence Wall constructed between two areas Buffer zone patrolled by UN Accepted to EU in 2004

Gerrymandering involves redistricting a legislative territory to provide one party with an unequal advantage during the electoral process Frontier: Region where no state exercises complete and political control or boundaries are weakly developed Antarctica Saudi Arabia and Yemen Tangible geographic area whereas a boundary is a infinitely thin, invisible, imaginary line Frontier provides an area of separation but a boundary brings two neighbors into direct contact A frontier area is uninhabited or sparsely settled by a few isolated pioneers 19th Century (1800s) Vast amounts of frontiers Australia American West Canadian North Sub-Saharan Africa

The Arab League, an international organization of Arab countries, acts to coordinate free trade among member states and reduces each nation’s sovereign authority over its economic affairs Boundary Creation Several steps on the growth of boundaries into final form Definition Phase in which the exact location of a boundary is legally described and negotiated De Jure or De Facto Delimitation Is the step when the boundary’s definition is drawn onto a map Demarcation Is the visible marking of a boundary on the landscape with a fence, line, sign, wall, or other means Administration Is the enforcement by a government or people of the boundary that has been created Evolution Another way to classify boundaries depends not on how they were created, but how they evolved over time Antecedent boundaries Existed before humans cultures developed into current forms Subsequent boundaries Grow to divide space as result of human interaction Superimposed boundaries Forcibly put on the landscape Relict boundary No longer functions has a boundary

Conflicts over boundaries are divided into different categories The fragmentation of the Roman Empire that occurred between the first and third centuries BCE led to the destabilization of the empire’s outer frontiers. An empire’s political fragmentation is most likely to lead to instability in frontier regions. This is what occurred as the Roman Empire declined, especially in the areas that today composes France and Germany Conflicts over boundaries are divided into different categories Can include mix of categories Type of Disputes Definitional disputes Fight over the language of border agreement in a treaty or contract Japan and Russia Locational disputes Occur when conflicting parties agree on the definition but not on where the boundary exists on a map Operational disputes Conflicts over the way a boundary should operation or function Allocational boundary disputes Fights over resources that may by

Territorial Morphology Devolution involves the distribution of powers formerly held by the central government to regional or state governments. Devolution may be temporary or can be a permanent arrangement, but the central government continues to hold most of the authority 5 basic shapes Compact Elongated Prorupted Perforated Fragmented Territorial Morphology Relationship between a state’s geographic shape, size, relative location, and it’s political situation Shape of states Controls the length of its boundaries with other states Shape affects potential for communication and conflict with neighbors Shape is part of its identity Shape can determine the difficulty or ease of internal administration and social unity