The Theory And Application Of The Balance Of Power In International Relations

The balance of power is the very heart of Realist strategy in world politics, which is also a disputable theory for centuries' students of international relations. Balancing strategies can be identified in the historical record; true balance of power thinking began to emerge at the end of the Renaissance period in Europe. Following the development of international society and evolution of world structure, the theory of the balance of power has been greatly enriched.The dissertation with four sections examines the various meaning given to the balance of power over the centuries and traces the historical evolution of the theory and practice through steadily more forms.A good beginning of studying the balance of power is to dig out what it meant to balance of power. The dissertation firstly defines the concept of the balance of power on the base of scholars' explanations. As a policy the balance of power endorses the creation and preservation of equilibrium, as system it implies interdependence. The balance of power both as a strategy and a system performs a significant role in the world politics.It is worth studying the category of balancing pattern in world politics instead of plunging into the swamp of the alternative interpretations. In the third section, I have classified the mode of balance into two categories, bipolar balance pattern and multipolarity balance pattern. To explain each mode, the approach I take is to demonstrate the structure of the world system through graphic method. In order to illustrate what the balance can achieve and what causes can be associated with those achievements, I assess the balance of power in light of the chief events in history.The last section analyzes the development of the balance of power in world politics after the Cold War. The impact of the balance of power into China's foreignstrategy becomes the focus of the section. I expound the opportunity and choices for China's foreign policy from four aspects: i) to carry out technique foreign policy according to the China's geopolitical advantage; ii) to pay enough attention to triangular interstates relations so as to hold the predominant position in the international society; iii) to highly evaluate the importance of nuclear weapons in the regional balance and to ensure the successful settlement of the Taiwan issue; iv) to combine the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence with the balance of power and to perform a main role in world peace making.The function of the balance of power is finally emphasized: i) a key to understand the recurrent patterns of behavior of state living in a condition of international anarchy; ii) a method for statesmen to secure the continuing independence of their states; iii) an access to refrain hegemony while the world government is absent from international society.I conclude with the point that the balance of power is a fundamental law of interstate relations to the statesperson and scholars, for the world still remains in the anarchy system with nuclear power. Plus we could hardly expect that any flawless international political theory become the golden rule to keep the world from warfare, neither does the balance of power.