International relations (IR) is concerned with the global interactions of sovereign units, mainly states but also non-state actors like multinational corporations and NGOs. It explores complex issues like war, trade and the environment, using approaches from political science, economics, history, law and more. As a discipline it’s multidisciplinary, drawing influences from anthropology, economics, geography, philosophy and sociology. It has a long history and is the subject of many theories.
A key concept in IR is sovereignty, which refers to the principle of state independence from other nations. Some schools of thought in IR emphasise this, including realism, liberalism and neoliberalism. Others believe that sovereignty is no longer an important factor in determining international politics and argue for a shift to interdependence. This view is often linked to Marxism and dependency theory, which assert that a set of core countries exploit a group of weaker periphery states for their own prosperity.
The field of IR has evolved significantly since 1648, with the rise of the first multinational organizations and the development of the modern international system, which includes the UN and various other treaty bodies, regional groups, and global institutions like NATO and the World Bank. It has also been affected by technological, social and economic change. The development of nuclear weapons, the growing dominance of China and India, and the spread of social media have all changed the nature of international relations. In addition, globalisation has created new opportunities and challenges in the pursuit of economic and security goals.