Original scientific paper
CRITIQUES OF LIBERAL THEORY OF DEMOCRATIC PEACE
Đana Luša
; Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The paper analyzes the link between Kant’s “Perpetual peace” and the democratic
peace paradigm with which contemporary International Relations are
being interpreted. In doing so, the monadic and dyadic versions of liberal
theory of democratic peace are explained through the institutional-structural
and cultural-normative models. The theory of democratic peace is critically
analyzed, with emphasis on the causal relationship between the independent
variable, the democratic regime, and the dependent variable, peace. Empirical
studies of cases in which the crises among democratic states have not resulted
in war are also questioned, which brings into doubt the causal logic of
the theory itself. In critical thought about the democratic peace theory, special
emphasis is placed on the realistic interpretation of causes that are believed
to contribute to democratic peace, as well as on the existence of the so-called
“democratic war”. There exist a number of factors explaining this foreign policy
behavior of democracies and their hiding behind the theses of the theory
of democratic peace. An example is the position of power that democracy
occupies in International Relations, with which, aside from liberal dependent
variables, realistic variables must be taken into account as well, such as
the concentration of power, economic interdependence and national interest.
Keywords
Democratic Peace; Liberalism; Institutional-Structural Model; Cultural-Normative Model; Realistic Critique
Hrčak ID:
129725
URI
Publication date:
18.11.2014.
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