The Nation State System in International Relations CSS

The article discusses “The nation state system in international relations css. What is state? What is nation? What is state system? The nation state system in international relations css. What is nation state? The nation state system in international relations css. Nation states examples. Evolution of nation state system. The nation state system in international relations css. Emergence of nation state system. Characteristics of a nation state. The nation state system in international relations css. Expansion of the state system. Factors Responsible For The Rise Of Nation States in Europe.The nation state system in international relations css. Contemporary Challenges to Nation State System. The nation state system in international relations css.”

The Nation State System in International Relations CSS

There is no unanimous definition of state in any language or science. Every sociologist and political scholar have defined it in its own words based on his/her understanding of it. However, the crux of all definitions is same which states “A state is a centralized political organization that has a well-defined territory with a permanent population and a government capable of exercising sovereignty.”

A nation is “A group of people who on the basis of shared features such as ethnicity, history, language, culture and territory perceived themselves to be members of the same group or community.”    

Scope Of International Relations

State System is a pattern of political life in which people are organized into different sovereign states which interacts with one another on state level.

What is Nation State?

A nation state is a legal entity of single or multiple nationalities who joined together and creates a political unit. They have an official language, a system of law, currency management system and bureaucracy to run the state. It is a more precise concept than “country”, since a country does not need to have a predominant ethnic group.

Nation States Examples

Places like Egypt, France, Germany and Japan are famous examples of Nation State. Some countries with even two or more nationalities are also referred as nation states due to their shared features such as history, culture and language. These states include the United States of America, Belgium and Canada etc.

Evolution Of Nation State System

Historically the most common ways in which people have organized their lives were;

City States: The first relatively clear historical manifestation of a city state system is that of ancient Greece (500 BC – 100 BC). Among them the most famous and largest city state was Athens.

Empires: In Middle Ages huge empires were built. The most famous among all was Roman Empire (200 BC – 500 BC).

Emergence Of Nation State System

The concept of nation state emerged in Europe with the end of Thirty Years War (1618-1648) and signing of Treaty of Westphalia. The search for new identity began and thus came the idea of NATION into the picture.

According to Britannica, although France after the French Revolution (1787–99) is often cited as the first nation-state, some scholars consider the establishment of the English Commonwealth in 1649 as the earliest instance of nation-state creation.

Characteristics Of A Nation State

There are four main characteristics of a nation state. These are;

Land: The state must have a well-defined territory of land.

Population: Secondly it must have a permanent population.

Sovereignty: Third important characteristic is sovereignty. The state must be sovereign both internally and externally.

Government: It must have a government for ruling its subjects.

Expansion Of The State System

Nation State System expanded in three stages. These are;

First Stage: In its first stage the state system was expanded via the incorporation of Non-Western states. These were those states which could not be colonized. Examples include Turkey, Japan and China.

Second Stage: Decolonization gave a push to the expansion of state system in its second stage. This period starts after the end of World War II. This raised the number of UN member states from 50 in 1945 to 160 states by 1970.

Third Stage: In third stage State System expanded after the ‘disintegration of Soviet Union’. It raised the number of UN member states to 190 states by the end of 20^th century.

Factors Responsible For The Rise Of Nation States in Europe

Two main factors were responsible for the rise of Nation States in Europe. These were;

• The decline of feudalism and
• The decline of Church power

Contemporary Challenges to Nation State System

Some of the major contemporary challenges to Nation State System includes

1. Globalization
2. Separatism
3. Fundamentalism
4. Irredentism
5. Balkanization
6. Non-State Actors (NSA)

Is Pakistan A Nation State?

Yes, Pakistan is a nation state. Based on above definition, the people of Pakistan shared history, culture, language and territory.