1st Edition

Ethics and International Relations

Edited By Ethan B. Kapstein, Joel H. Rosenthal Copyright 2004

    This volume offers a new dimension to realist theories about world politics. It questions both the theoretical and empirical foundations of much of traditional realist thought by offering realist-oriented analyses that emphasize the possibilities of cooperation and accommodation through agreement over common motivations and concerns. The articles in this volume demonstrate that moral considerations can and do play a significant role in shaping state behavior and that despair about the possibility of improving the systems and institutions within which we live is unwarranted. Specific points of normative convergence are raised in some detail, especially on issues of war, membership and authority, humanitarian concern and the social consequences of globalization. Three ethical concepts form the core of the 'realism reconsidered' argued for here, namely, the ideas of pluralism, rights and fairness.

    Contents: Introduction; Part I Pluralism, Rights and Fairness: Basic moral values: a shared core, Frances V. Harbor; Morality and foreign policy, George F. Kennan; Moral skepticism and international relations, Marshall Cohen; International ethics and international law, Terry Nardin; The law of peoples, John Rawls; Human rights and capabilities, Amartya Sen; Reciprocity in international relations, Robert O. Keohane; Covenants with and without a sword: self-governance is possible, Elinor Ostrom, James Walker and Roy Gardner. Part II Just War?: Just war and human rights, David Luban; The slippery slope to preventive war, Neta C. Crawford; Political action: the problem of dirty hands, Michael Walzer; Terrorism without intention, David Rodin. Part III Intervention: The politics and ethics of military intervention, Stanley Hoffmann; Humanitarian intervention: an overview of the ethical issues, Michael J. Smith; The responsibility to protect, Gareth Evans and Mohamed Sahnoun. Part IV Nuclear Ethics: Force and diplomacy in the nuclear age, Henry A. Kissinger; NPT: the logic of inequality, Joseph S. Nye Jr. Part V Human Rights and Citizenship: The relative universality of human rights, Jack Donnelly; Patriotism and cosmopolitanism, Martha C. Nussbaum; Aliens and citizens: the case for open borders, Joseph H. Carens. Part VI Ethical Globalization: Moral universalism and global economic justice, Thomas W. Pogge; International liberalism and distributive justice: a survey of recent thought, Charles R. Beitz; Debate: global poverty relief: more than charity: cosmopolitan alternatives to the 'Singer solution', Andrew Kuper and Peter Singer; An equal-opportunity approach to the allocation of international aid, Humberto G. Llavador and John E. Roemer; Fairness considerations in world politics: lessons from international trade negotiations, Ethan B. Kapstein; Name index.

    Biography

    Ethan B. Kapstein is Professor of Economics and Political Science at INSEAD, France. Dr Joel H. Rosenthal is President of the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, New York City, USA.