142 CHAPTER FivE ■ The STaTe
system. The state enjoys sovereignty— the authority to govern matters that are within
its own borders and that affect its people, economy, security, and form of government.
As a sovereign entity, the state has a consistent set of goals— that is, a national
interest— defined in terms of power. Diff er ent kinds of power translate into military
power. Although power is of primary importance to realists, as we will see later in this
chapter, ideas also matter in their estimation; ideology, for example, can determine
the nature of the state, as with the North Korean state under communism. But in
international relations, once the state (with power and ideas) acts, according to the
realists, it does so as an autonomous, unitary actor.
An example of the realist interpretation of the state can be seen with re spect to
natu ral resources. States recognize certain strategic commodities as vital for their
national security. Thus, states desire stability in the availability and prices of these
commodities. They do what is pos si ble so that they have a guaranteed supply. Oil is
a key resource for the rapidly developing China. Thus, one high priority of the govern-
ment is to forge strong relations with governments possessing petroleum resources,
like Iran, Sudan, and Angola. China defends these states in international forums and
provides foreign aid to guarantee consistent supply. China’s creation of territory in the
South China Sea to augment its own resources is another example of China acting in
its national interest, consistent with a realist conception of the proper role of the state.
the liberal view of the state
In the liberal view, the state enjoys sovereignty but is not an autonomous actor. Just
as liberals believe the international system is a pro cess occurring among many actors,
they see the state as a pluralist arena whose function is to maintain the basic rules of
the game. These rules ensure that vari ous interests (both governmental and societal)
compete fairly and effectively in the game of politics. There is no single explicit or
consistent national interest; there are many. These interests often compete against
The RealiST View of The STaTeThe state is:
■ an autonomous actor
■ constrained only by the anarchy
of the international system■ sovereign
■ guided by a national interest that
is defined in terms of poweri n focuS