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UK’s International Role

What part does Britain play in international politics? Does Britain punch above its weight?

• Due to the special relationship “Britain could continue to exert an influence in international affairs far beyond its fading status as an imperial power” (BBC)
• Will Hutton claims that the relationship is harmful to Britain- far from preserving
• Britain’s world role, it gives the USA a wide-ranging domination over Britain
• Tony Blair views Britain to be a “pivotal player”
• Tony Blair believes that Britain should play a bridging role between Europe and the US, but an effective bridging role assumes that Britain affords an approximate equality of weight and intimacy in both the US and Continental Europe.
• According to Peter Mangold, Blair argues like his predecessors that despite it’s relative loss of power, Britain’s offshore European geography and history of global connections place it in a unique position to remain an active power, one which is at the forefront of international affairs and which takes initiatives and a larger shave of international responsibility than most other states.
• According to Peter Mangold “Britain has still not found an international level at which it is comfortable operating”
• “British foreign policy has tried to punch above its weight for the past half-century, while balancing between different sets of international allegiances” (William Wallace)
• The official foreign office website points out that the UK is in a unique position through its membership of a wide and diverse group of powerful international organisations such as the UN Security Council, NATO and the G8
• Blair doesn’t call Britain a great power but a pivotal player and it could be argued that it is certainly a major power in world events with its 6th largest world economy, highly trained armed forces and extensive diplomatic links.
• Critics argue that Britain has fallen into the trap of exaggerating the UK’s real place in the world and that her high level of involvement in international events in recent years is overstretching its resources and is ultimately unsustainable
• For above weight:
  • Depends on ability to intervene but military overstretched and economic influence declining
  • Delusions of grandeur stemming from the old imperial days
• Against above weight:
  • Membership of international organisations shows willingness to work in an active multilateral role
  • UK still has great political influence through commonwealth
  • Britain has nuclear weapons
  • Britain is 6th largest world economy
• “The United Kingdom occupies a unique position in global affairs. It is the only state which is a member of the G8, the EU, NATO and the Commonwealth and it is a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The UK is also a member of the OSCE and Council of Europe” (FCO Website)
• Much of Britain’s influence today can be traced back to WW2. Following the end of the war the UN came into being in October 1945, and with it, as one of the victorious allies Britain was given its seat as a permanent member of the Security Council.
• This gives Britain a permanent voice at the centre of the UN’s decision-making and a permanent veto over any policy it doesn’t like
• Britain was also a founding member of NATO, the G8 and OSCE
• According to Dean Acheson Britain has “lost an empire and not yet found a role”
• Britain is an “awkward partner” in Europe as it doesn’t show enough commitment, and it is claimed it sacrifices its relationship with the EU for its Atlantic relationship
• UK has only the 27th largest number of military troops

Comments

These notes are aimed at people studying for Edexcel A Level Politics, module 5 and 6, route D, but will be suitable for other people too.

Originally submitted by joker13na on TSR Forums.