IB Global Politics The State Notes

The State

What Is a State?

1. The state is the most fundamental unit of the international political system, possessing sovereignty over a defined territory and its population.
2. Max Weber (1919) defined the state as "a human community that successfully claims the monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory."
3. This definition highlights three elements: territory (a defined geographical area), legitimacy (the right to rule is accepted by the population), and coercive power (the state alone may use force lawfully).
4. The Montevideo Convention (1933) established the four legal criteria for statehood in international law, still widely referenced today.
5. These four criteria are: a permanent population, a defined territory, an effective government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
6. It is essential to distinguish the state (a political and legal entity) from the nation (a group sharing cultural, ethnic, or linguistic identity) and from government (the group of people who run the state at any given time).
7. A state can persist even when governments change; the French state has endured through monarchies, empires, and five republics.

Types of States

Nation-States and Multinational States

1. A nation-state exists when the boundaries of the nation (cultural/ethnic group) align closely with the boundaries of the state; Japan and Iceland are commonly cited examples.
2. In reality, very few pure nation-states exist. Most states are multinational or multiethnic, containing diverse populations within a single political boundary.
3. Multinational states such as India, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom contain multiple national or ethnic groups, each with distinct identities.
4. Managing diversity is a core challenge for multinational states; strategies include federalism (India, Nigeria), consociationalism (Belgium, Lebanon), or assimilation (France).

Other State Types

1. Developmental states (e.g., South Korea, Singapore, post-1949 China) actively direct economic growth through industrial policy, state investment, and strategic trade management.
2. Theocratic states (e.g., Iran, Vatican City) derive their authority from religious law and institutions; political legitimacy is grounded in divine authority rather than popular sovereignty.
3. Failed or fragile states (e.g., Somalia, Yemen, Syria) have lost the capacity to perform basic state functions such as providing security, enforcing law, or delivering public services.
4. Postcolonial states are states whose borders were drawn by colonial powers, often cutting across ethnic or cultural lines. This legacy contributes to internal divisions in many parts of Africa and the Middle East.

Core Functions of the State

1. Security: the state protects its territory and population from external threats (through the military) and internal threats (through the police and intelligence services). This is the most fundamental function, as without security no other functions are possible.
2. Law and order: the state establishes a legal framework, enforces laws through courts and police, and resolves disputes. The rule of law means that everyone, including the government, is subject to the same legal standards.