Role Quests in the Post-Cold War Era

by Le Prestre, Philippe G.; Universite Du Quebec a Montreal Centre D'Etudes Des Politiques etrange

• ISBN13: 9780773515338
• ISBN10: 077351533X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1997-04-01
• Publisher: McGill Queens Univ

Summary

A state's articulation of its national role betrays its preferences and an image of the world, triggers expectations, and influences the definition of the situation and of available options. Extending Kal Holsti's early work on the usefulness of the concept of role, Role Quests in the Post-Cold War Era examines the nature, evolution, and origins of role conceptions, key aspects largely ignored in a literature obsessed with the quest for immediate relevance. For each country contributors present the major foreign policy debate that took place at the end of the Cold War and examine, through an analysis of major speeches, the relative weight of identity and international status in the definition of the national role. Uncovering the different roles that states claim for themselves allows reflection on the possibility of international cooperation in the maintenance of international order. This study helps assess the importance of identity in national role conceptions, identify potential conflicts arising from the clash of roles masquerading as interests, and clarifies existing contradictions in prevailing roles. Contributors include Caroline Alain, Onnig Beylerian, Christophe Canivet, Jean-Rene Chotard, Andre Donneur, Philippe G. Le Prestre, Paul Letourneau, Jacques Levesque, Alexander Macleod, Marie-Elisabeth Rakel, Jean-Francois Thibeault, and Charles Thumerelle.

Author Biography

Philippe G. Le Prestre is professor of political science, Universite du Quebec a Montreal.

Table of Contents

Figures
Tables
Acknowledgments
Author! Author! Defining Foreign Policy Roles after the Cold War	p. 3
The Soviet Union/Russia: Which Past for Which Future?	p. 15
Articulating the New International Role of the United States during Previous Transitions, 1916-1919, 1943-1947	p. 40
The United States: An Elusive Role Quest after the Cold War	p. 65
Japan: A Great Power Despite Itself	p. 88
Germany: To Be or Not to Be Normal?	p. 111
France: The Straitjacket of New Freedom	p. 131
Great Britain: Still Searching for Status?	p. 161
China: Role Conceptions after the Cold War	p. 187
Canada: A Reassertion of Its Role as a Middle Power	p. 225
Change and Continuity in Foreign Policy Role Conceptions after the Cold War	p. 251
Notes	p. 263
References	p. 271
Contributors	p. 305
Index	p. 307
Centre d'etudes des politiques etrangeres et de securite, Universite du Quebec a Montreal	p. 317
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