The Persistence Of Anglo-American Special Relationship In The Post-Cold War Era

The Anglo -American Special Relationship was born during the era of the Second World War, mature during the era of Cold War and has been persisting during the era of Post-Cold War manifesting unmatched adaptability. It is a rare phenomenon in the international relations where most alliances are short-lived that, as an informal alliance, the Anglo -American Special Relationship not only has managed to survive almost 70 years, but also has marvelously succeeded in keeping its vitality. On the one hand,the Anglo-American Special Relationship has been a tool of the US to maintain its predominance in the contemporary international system;On the other hand, it has been the indispensable component in the "Three Circles " which has been the cornerstone of British foreign policy since the end of the Second World War.It is largely due to the purpose of coping with the external threats which once threatened the survival of both the US and the UK,that is,the fascism of Germany,Italy and Japan and the Soviet communism,that the Anglo-American Special Relationship was born and became mature.When the external threats which once threatened the survival of these two countries was gone with the end of Cold War,why the Anglo -American Special Relationship remains persistent in the Post-Cold War era ? By Reviewing the background and development of the Anglo -American Special Relationship since the Second World War, this thesis tries to analyze the reasons of the persistence of it in the Post-Cold War era.The Alliance Theory has been explored and developed by three most influential genres of theories of international relations. As a result, there are four typical alliance theories, that is, alliance theory of traditional realism, alliance theory of neo-realism, alliance theory of institutionalism and alliance theory of constructivism. However, these alliance theories mostly focus on the establishment of alliance while they pay relatively less attention on the persistence of alliance.Based on summing up these alliance theories,this thesis constructs a theory framework in order to do the research on the persistence of alliance.At first,this thesis defines five variables :the power structure of alliance,external threats,national interest,the level of institutionalization of alliance and the level of solidarity of collective identity.Then this thesis sums up five hypotheses:(1) If other conditions are equal,as for the stability and life span of alliance, the alliance of benevolent hegemony> the alliance of arbitrary hegemony >the alliance of oligarch >the alliance of equilibrium;(2)If other conditions are equal, alliances which suffer from continuous external threats are more stable and easier to enjoy longevity than alliances which lack of external threats;(3)If other conditions are equal, the higher compatibility and complementarity of national interests among the member states of alliance,the alliance is more stable and its life span is longer;(4)If other conditions are equal,the higher the level of institutionalization of alliance,the alliance is more stable and the life span of alliance is longer;(5)If other conditions are equal,the higher the level of solidarity of common identity among the member states of alliance, the alliance is more stable and the life span of alliance is longer.After constructing the theory framework, this thesis will focus on summing up the history of the Anglo -American Special Relationship and outlining the reasons why the Anglo -American Special Relationship remains persistent in the Post-Cold War era. Firstly,this thesis sums up the history of the Anglo-American relations since the year of 1783 and has a detailed analysis of the history of the Anglo -American Special Relationship in particular; Secondly, this thesis outlines the reasons of the persistence of the Anglo -American Special Relationship in the Post-Cold War era on the basis of analyzing the history of Anglo -American Special Relationship of Major era,Blair era,Brown era and Cameron era.This thesis concludes that various factors contribute to the persistence of the Anglo -American Special Relationship in the Post-Cold War era,that is, the Anglo -American Special Relationship is an alliance of benevolent hegemony, crisis management, pragmatic interests,highly institutionalization,and highly solidarity of common identity which conduces to its incomparable tenacity and flexibility.As a result,the Anglo -American Special Relationship manages to face up to the ups and downs and possess the unparalleled adaptability in the Post-Cold War era.