A Questioning of the State in a World in Crisis
(2009) Studia Diplomatica — Vol. 6, n° 1, p. 35-56 (2009)
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- Abstract
- Since the end of the 20th century, several university and scientific circles agree that the State institution is going through a serious crisis, that it is declining and even disappearing. For the first time, the crisis is hitting the five continents simultaneously but differently according to the region, thus entailing a universal crisis of this institution. But in a period of globalization when frontiers are no longer clearly defined, the coexistence of the State in crisis can generate both tension and incomprehension. Having the fundamental functions of social cohesion, macro-economic balance and security, the State is the only political entity situated at the junction of three spheres: the economic sphere, the security sphere and the signification sphere. In each of these spheres,the State is hit by the crisis, which partly explains its present fragility.It thus loses its control on the economy and faces growing problems in the management of internal and external security issues. This expresses itself in a decline or loss of effective monopole of governance. Both a victim and responsible for the crisis that threatens its existence, the State seems condemned to overcome this crisis alone. But being the sole actor within the three spheres mentioned above, it cannot be avoided. In our societies facing globalization, this paradox begs the question of its legitimacy and the question of the need for a State.
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Vercauteren, P. (2009). A Questioning of the State in a World in Crisis. Studia Diplomatica, 6(1), 35-56. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/209936 (Original work published 2009)