Managing the Arab Spring: Reactions of the International Community to the Crises in Libya and Syria
LUUKKAINEN, MIKKO (2012)
2012
Kansainvälinen politiikka - International Relations
Johtamiskorkeakoulu - School of Management
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2012-12-21
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:uta-1-23185
https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:uta-1-23185
Tiivistelmä
This thesis focuses on the differences in the reactions of the international community to the recent crises in Libya and Syria. In the Libyan crisis, the international community was able to agree on a concerted response, which resulted in sanctions and ultimately a military intervention to protect civilians. In Syria, however, the international community has been deeply divided. It has not been able to agree on common policies, even though the death toll of the Syrian civil war has far exceeded the death toll in Libya prior to the military intervention there.
Both conflicts belong to the chain of revolutionary uprisings known as the Arab spring, which started to unfold in Tunisia in December 2010. In this chain of events, however, Libya and Syria stand out, because in them the level of violence has been the most extreme.
The differences in the reactions of the international community are analysed through five institutions of international society: great power management, diplomacy, sovereignty, equality of people and the market. The tools of analysis come from the English school approach to international theory.
The research material of the thesis consists of statements and comments made by the leaders of the so called great powers, as well as the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions on Libya and Syria. The term great power, in this study, refers to the permanent members of the Security Council – the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France. The research material is supplemented by analyses and news articles. In all, 74 texts have been chosen as primary sources.
The analysis reveals that, in the case of the Libyan civil war, there were many factors that made outside intervention possible, even appealing. In the Syrian case, however, the analysis reveals many difficulties with intervention. One of these reasons, it can be argued, is the legacy of the Libyan crisis, which strained the relations of great powers.
Keywords:
Libya, Syria, Arab spring, international community, English school, international society, great power management, balance of power, war, diplomacy, sovereignty, equality, human rights, humanitarian intervention, market, trade, crisis, conflict, United States, Russia, Great Britain, France, China
Both conflicts belong to the chain of revolutionary uprisings known as the Arab spring, which started to unfold in Tunisia in December 2010. In this chain of events, however, Libya and Syria stand out, because in them the level of violence has been the most extreme.
The differences in the reactions of the international community are analysed through five institutions of international society: great power management, diplomacy, sovereignty, equality of people and the market. The tools of analysis come from the English school approach to international theory.
The research material of the thesis consists of statements and comments made by the leaders of the so called great powers, as well as the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions on Libya and Syria. The term great power, in this study, refers to the permanent members of the Security Council – the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France. The research material is supplemented by analyses and news articles. In all, 74 texts have been chosen as primary sources.
The analysis reveals that, in the case of the Libyan civil war, there were many factors that made outside intervention possible, even appealing. In the Syrian case, however, the analysis reveals many difficulties with intervention. One of these reasons, it can be argued, is the legacy of the Libyan crisis, which strained the relations of great powers.
Keywords:
Libya, Syria, Arab spring, international community, English school, international society, great power management, balance of power, war, diplomacy, sovereignty, equality, human rights, humanitarian intervention, market, trade, crisis, conflict, United States, Russia, Great Britain, France, China