"... Mearsheimer’s theory is based on five assumptions: the international system is anarchic (there is no supreme authority or nightwatchman that can limit the behaviour of states); all great powers possess offensive military capability; states can never be certain about other states’ intentions; survival is a state’s paramount goal; and states are rational actors that think about how they can survive in a time of anarchy."

#GavinJacobson, 2023

https://www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2023/09/tragedy-john-mearsheimer

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#IR #realism

Realism is international relations for adult teenagers who never grew up – still desperate to make their childhood world of heroes, villains, and empires real. The #IR view of how to survive in a hostile world https://hamishcampbell.com/the-ir-view-of-how-to-survive-in-a-hostile-world/

Realism is international relations for adult teenagers who never grew up – still desperate to make their childhood world of heroes, villains, and empires real. The #IR view of how to survive in a hostile world https://hamishcampbell.com/the-ir-view-of-how-to-survive-in-a-hostile-world/