The international relations have been tremendously transformed by globalization due to increased economic interdependence. States are strongly involved in international supply chains and financial systems. Such interconnectivity requires ongoing multilateral coordination of trade, investment and monetary policies to coordinate collective vulnerabilities and prospects in the economy.
Moreover, the international organizations such as WTO, IMF and UN are strengthened by globalization thus forming a stratum of world government. These make rules that states are bound to observe to take part. In enabling collaboration they also limit the freedom of policy by individual parties and require states to relinquish jurisdiction rights and relinquish them to collective norms and processes to resolve disputes.
Most importantly, the shrinking world confronts conflicting ideas of the absolute sovereignty of states. Pandemics, climate change, cybercrime, and terrorism are trans-national problems, which do not respect national boundaries. These issues are only answered by active cooperation of sovereignty in treaties and joint efforts to prove that nationwide control can not be complete in the extended COM CAS.
Global communication and finance has empowered the non-state actors meaning that the influence of the non-state actors is competing with the influence of the states. The multinational corporations influence the economy all over the world whereas NGOs go international blaming governments. Such power diffusion requires states to take action beyond conventional diplomacy.
Power trends are changing. Globalization intensifies the presence of big economies and rising powers and may also marginalize weaker ones that are not as well integrated internationally. Economic strength is also becoming a force to reckon with in terms of determining an international standing, changing the alliances and character of rivalries.
Conclusion
International relations have irreversibly changed under the influence of globalization, placing the state in networks of high interdependence. It increases collaboration by means of international institutions but also undermines the traditional sovereignty by demanding common solutions to transnational problems and by legalizing the roles of non-state actors. Sovereignty continues to exist yet within much greater constraints in the global environment needing continuous adaptation.
