Most of the international relations issues have their connection with envy. It is high time world leaders put a mechanism of envy admiration in place
SUDHIR HINDWAN
The penchant towards over-preponderance for power during the 1950s resulted in numerous conflicts between states in International politics. The initial phase of the cold war saw the sudden emergence of a number of coalitions/groupings like NATO, SEATO, and CENTO from the western Group led by the US and the Warsaw Pact of Eastern Block mainly centred around pure military might leading virtually to a war-like situation. The ideological differences between Capitalism and Communism resulted in a complete trust deficit and lack of cooperation. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991 International Relations changed into a unipolar world dominated by a single most potent centre of power with the emergence of a few countries with approximately similar capabilities to influence world politics. This resulted in the decline of ideological-based rivalries and the rise of interest-based relations where there are no permanent friends and enemies and the beginning of a new era of more pragmatic and flexible IR involving conscious attempts towards more pertinent issues such as political development and modernisation.
The post-1991 witnessed tremendous change on account of LPG (Liberalization, Privatisation and Globalization) creating a background for a multifaceted International process involving frequent shifts leading to a period of transition between traditional to modern societies despite maintaining significant regularities and similarities despite differences.
There appears to be a visible shift towards building exogenously influenced social interaction without affecting the question of identity through a latent process of interdependence communication due to mushrooming of MNCs across the globe. The steep rise in multiple channels of communication and multifaceted interdependence ranging from an economic, healthy environment and lurking problem of scarcity of water has gradually blurred the difference between national and international politics.
Issues such as the regional conflict in West Asia the Ukraine -Russian War, the expansionist mission of China and the rising tide of transnational terrorism have once again proved that peace, harmony and equality among nations are mere ideas.
The reality of world politics still revolves around human nature as propounded by Thomas Hobbes ( nasty, selfish and intentionally governed by greed and fear) and tacit explanation of envy by Bertrand Russell in his renowned work “Conquest of Happiness” holding competition, anxiety and envious nature mainly responsible for problems.
Russell concedes that “envy is the most unfortunate; not only does the envious person wish to inflict misfortune and do so whenever he can with impunity, but he is also himself rendered unhappy by envy. Instead of deriving pleasure from what he has, he derives pain from what others” Ultimately this makes relations highly toxic among nations finally leading them into a gyre for competition and struggle for power.
The concept of security needs to be understood in the context of economic, energy, environmental, food security, cyber-security, institutional security, health security and women's security. Nevertheless, still, the issues like funding terrorist activities, policing cooperation and dealing with cyber threats through enhancing technological innovation and tightening border and maritime security information-gathering exercises are among the top priority areas of any country. About 50 per cent of international relations problems have their direct or indirect connection with envy and it is high time countries of the world take a cue from Russell's philosophical discourse that finds the solution of envy in admiration.
(The author, a recipient
of the Bharat Gaurav award
is a professor and an expert
on strategic affairs)
