The Role of International Organizations in Global Politics - Essay Example

The Role of International Organizations in Global Politics and Section # of Introduction With horizons of the new world ever expanding, global relations are ever contracting and intertwining. More and more countries are choosing to make their mark on the world map and protect the world from humanitarian crisis. As a result there is an ever increasing global involvement in world politics, whether it be related to superpowers or third world countries. So who regulates these politics and resolves the conflicts that naturally arise? And who regulates this regulatory body? The answer to that is a body that is not only answerable to by other countries but also answerable for itself to itself. These bodies are collectively known as International Organizations. The Penguin Dictionary of International Relations (2004) defines International Organizations as “formal institutional structures transcending national boundaries which are created by multilateral agreement among nation states. What is the role these structures play, and how do they transcend these boundaries? How are these multilateral agreements reached and how is it ensured that they are abided by. These are the questions this essay hopes to explore. Purpose of International Organizations The main purpose of international organizations is to foster international cooperation in areas such as security, law, economic and social matters, and diplomacy.” In other words, international organizations are organizations that have global participants and therefore a global influence, and mainly are either government or semi-government in nature. As the name suggest, the former refers to global organizations that have a global influence, but they are organizations without government influence of involvement, such as International Committee of the Red Cross or even certain multi-national corporations, as strictly speaking, they too fit under the definition of an international organization. The latter is the better understood form on an international organization. Intergovernmental International Organizations refer to organizations that are made up of representatives of sovereign states from all over the globe. Examples of these organizations are famously, but naturally not confined to, the United Nations or the European Union. This essay will explore the role of international organizations in global politics in reference to the second category, with particular focus on the two examples given as well as several others. Bennett (2001) identifies the characteristics of international organizations as one that constitutes the following: 1. An enduring organization that carries on with a defined set of functions; 2. Voluntary association of entitled parties; 3. A fundamental document that states the goals, composition, and operational plan; 4. An enduring secretariat as headquarter for conducting the functions related to the administration, research, and sharing of information. The main purpose of International organizations is the betterment of constituent member countries. This betterment can be in the form of economic development, in providing security to nations, or food and health to under-developed countries, or in promoting general good relations between countries. This last purpose, global politics, is possibly where international organizations have the greatest influence. Although different organizations have different agendas and areas of focus their main motive is the same: international cooperation. With the increasing popularity, importance and participation in these organizations they have an ever expanding say in international politics. They have a greater influence on the decisions nations take and as they are a global central link, as well as the only link between some nations, their say is generally heard and their influence considered. International Organizations serve as a platform for representative members of various countries to interact and collaborate. Consider a platform such as the UN general assembly, where countries can freely discuss way of turning ideas into actions, providing or arranging help for other countries or resolving conflict between two nations. The UN Security Council aims to provide communication between these countries, protect weaker nations and influence stronger nations. International Organizations rely on treaties, conferences, discussions and global diplomacy to achieve their means. They work on regulating global laws and norms while keeping in consideration the varying cultural backgrounds of each country. Administrative issues, security, disputes and general assistance of members all come under the domain of the organization the members belong to. Let us consider the example of the UN. The UN has certain powers and privileges which it uses to excise control over member countries. The United Nations was founded by the end of World War II after President Woodrow Wilson felt the need for one singular organization to arbitrate world politics and resolve dispute before such a war could repeat itself. The original United Nations had 51 members, a number which has now grown to 185. Nations that are a member of the UN are forced to abide by the rules of the UN as each nation in some way or the other benefits from as well as contributes to the organizations. The UN has five main organs, each focused on a particular area of development, but there are countless sub-organizations, each under these main organs and each with a specific purpose. One such sub-organization is the International Court of Justice, which was created to settle legal disputes between nations and to reduce the factors that could lead up to an eventual war. Similarly, the General Assembly, which has representatives from each country, serves as a forum for nations to voice their opinions and bring up discussion on issues of relevance and interest. This can also serve as a platform for regulating global politics. The Security Council also plays a great role in this respect. Headed by the five major superpowers of the world, the council reviews disputes and resolves conflicts. Countries are forced to abide by the decisions this council takes as failure to do so could result in trade sanctions and the passing of unfavorable policies in respect of the offender. So how successful is the United Nations in international peace keeping efforts? The main way in which the Security Council implements peace is through declaring and monitoring cease-fires as well as creating buffer war-free zones. The UN is a non-violent organization and therefore it has no army of its own but weaker nations are provided military help by other volunteer countries. The UN is indeed very influential in terms of global politics. Most countries cannot go against the wishes of the UN as due to the support of the entire globe doing so would no doubt have dire repercussions. Consider for example the UN influence during the 1990 invasion of Iraq on Kuwait. After Iraq’s continual violation of the UN’s security resolutions and unjust invasion of Kuwait, the United Nations created the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) to verify the elimination of Iraqs chemical and biological weapons and imposed economic sanctions on Iraq, which included a trade embargo banning import from Iraq and allowing only the export of medicine, food and other humanitarian aid. Another example is when in response to growing unrest in the country and refusal to abide by humanitarian laws, the UN Security Council imposed sanctions on Sudan in July 2004. This included the sale, supply or transfer of arms, as well as assistance to provide training which could assist in the acquiring of such arms. The UNSC continually plays in a role in on-going conflicts such as Palestine-Israel, The Kashmir Conflict, etc. How successful the role of an international organization in global politics is depends upon the influence of the organization which in term depends upon what a country has to lose by going against the wishes of the organization. International Organizations of the first category, i.e non-government international organizations also play a role in global politics but it’s more of a passive one than an active one. Conclusion In general terms of example, the UN is naturally the most influential international organization of all. Other influential organizations include the European Union, but the influence of the EU is confined to Europe only. The cooperation of constituent members as well as the harshness of imposed terms will also influence the role these organizations play. Perhaps their influence is not as great as it should be, with countries violating imposed sanctions and war still being prevalent, but it is an ever increasing influence, one that cannot under any circumstance be ignored. Conflict is natural and difficult to resolve but without such regulatory organizations, chaos would prevail, a fact very naturally evidenced by the fact that before the creation of an organization like the United Nations, there were two world wars in the span of 40 years, but it has been 70 years after it with no war to match that same scale of destruction. Border regulation, territory impeachment, trade conditions and cease-fires, all are dependent upon the influence of international organizations and there is no doubt that with time, the hold of these organizations on international politics will be even stronger. References Bennet, L. & Oliver, J (2001) International Organizations: Principles and Issues Diehl, P. (2005) The Politics of Global Governance: International Organizationsin an Interdependent World Diehl, P. (2007) Rules for the World: International Organizations in Global Politics. Journal of Cold War Studies 9:4 Journal of Cold War Studies 9.4 Iriye, A. (2002) Global Community: The Role of International Organizations in the Making of the Contemporary World. Publisher University of California Press Pease, K. (2000) International organizations: perspectives on governance in the twenty-first century. Prentice Hall Teegen, H. & Doh, J. & Vachani, S. (2004) The importance of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in global governance and value creation: an international business research agenda. Weiss, T. & Forsythe, D. & Coate, R. (2007) The United Nations and Changing World Politics Williamson, J (2010) The Role of International Organizations in Creating a More Stable World Economy. Peterson Institute for International Economics Read More