2008 Woodie Awards
Harvard professor discusses global politics
Stewart Salwin
Issue date: 4/30/03 Section: News
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A diverse group of students and faculty packed into Gaston Hall on Apr. 28 to hear a lecture delivered by Dr. Samuel P. Huntington, the world-renowned Harvard professor best known for his book The Clash of Civilizations. Huntington’s speech, the second annual Goldman Sachs Distinguished Lecture, was sponsored by the Mortara Center for International Studies.
Huntington is a familiar name to many students at Georgetown University. Most students who have taken International Relations classes have at least a basic understanding of Huntington’s provocative description of the current world order. Flying in the face of those who would argue that globalization is leading to a more united world, Huntington asserted that since the breakup of the Soviet Union, the various regions of the world have reaffirmed their unique civilizations in opposition to the West.
The warm afternoon sun filtered through the stained glass windows as Gaston Hall quickly filled up and the lecture began. “The subject that I have been asked to discuss with you,” Huntington began, “is the dynamics of global politics.” Huntington argued that contemporary global politics could be seen in the context of a clash of civilizations.
Despite current events, such as Sept. 11 and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Huntington argued, “The fundamental characteristics of global politics today … are the result of what happened over a decade ago in Moscow.”
Outlining the structure of his lecture, Huntington stated, “The collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War produced changes in three central characteristics of the global, geopolitical, and strategic environment.” These are “the global power structure,” “the basic alignment and antagonism of states,” and “the prevailing type of war.”
To describe the current “global power structure” which he believes has emerged since the end of the Cold War, Huntington defined two traditional power structures and then presented his own model. Huntington argued that, traditionally, there have existed unipolar orders in which there is one superpower, and there have existed multipolar orders in which several powers cooperate but none predominates. Synthesizing these two structures, Huntington asserted that today the world order has a “uni-multi polar system.” In this system, there is a sole superpower, the United States, and many major powers, such as the European Union and China. The superpower, Huntington explained, can veto the actions of the other major powers; however, the superpower can solve international problems effectively only “in cooperation” with the other major states. Huntington stated, “If that cooperation is not forthcoming, the system suffers a major crisis, as was dramatically the case in the U.N. Security Council a month or so ago.”
Huntington is a familiar name to many students at Georgetown University. Most students who have taken International Relations classes have at least a basic understanding of Huntington’s provocative description of the current world order. Flying in the face of those who would argue that globalization is leading to a more united world, Huntington asserted that since the breakup of the Soviet Union, the various regions of the world have reaffirmed their unique civilizations in opposition to the West.
The warm afternoon sun filtered through the stained glass windows as Gaston Hall quickly filled up and the lecture began. “The subject that I have been asked to discuss with you,” Huntington began, “is the dynamics of global politics.” Huntington argued that contemporary global politics could be seen in the context of a clash of civilizations.
Despite current events, such as Sept. 11 and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Huntington argued, “The fundamental characteristics of global politics today … are the result of what happened over a decade ago in Moscow.”
Outlining the structure of his lecture, Huntington stated, “The collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War produced changes in three central characteristics of the global, geopolitical, and strategic environment.” These are “the global power structure,” “the basic alignment and antagonism of states,” and “the prevailing type of war.”
To describe the current “global power structure” which he believes has emerged since the end of the Cold War, Huntington defined two traditional power structures and then presented his own model. Huntington argued that, traditionally, there have existed unipolar orders in which there is one superpower, and there have existed multipolar orders in which several powers cooperate but none predominates. Synthesizing these two structures, Huntington asserted that today the world order has a “uni-multi polar system.” In this system, there is a sole superpower, the United States, and many major powers, such as the European Union and China. The superpower, Huntington explained, can veto the actions of the other major powers; however, the superpower can solve international problems effectively only “in cooperation” with the other major states. Huntington stated, “If that cooperation is not forthcoming, the system suffers a major crisis, as was dramatically the case in the U.N. Security Council a month or so ago.”