John Mearsheimer has revived the concept of structural realism in his book, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics. Echoing Kenneth Waltz (1979), Mearsheimer has argued that the structure of international politics is the key towards understanding the state of affairs. However, unlike Kenneth Waltz who is a defensive realist, John Mearsheimer is an offensive realist and views only regional hegemons as status quo states.
The first chapter of the book mainly focuses on offensive realism and the great power behavior. It explains how offensive realism outlines how states should behave i.e. the best way to survive. Mearsheimer has classified power into two main categories; military and latent power. Latent power is the state's ability to translate assets of population and wealth into military power. His main focus throughout the reading has been on the importance of hard power (military capabilities) as he calls it 'the ultimo ratio of international politics'. Mearsheimer equates power not with outcomes but with the material capabilities. For example, Pakistan has the seventh largest military force in the world and it has both won and lost wars against the same opponent; India. What happens in Pakistan has a huge impact not only in its neighboring countries, but also in the West indicating that despite being a small country with a strong military force, it has the ability to affect the macro policies across the globe.
Offensive realism also dictates that band-wagoning should be avoided by states though conceding power to dangerous adversary might make sense as a short term strategy. John Mearsheimer's views were received with some criticism too. His largely explanatory theory gives a limited definition of power with an overemphasis on hard power and completely overlooks the non-military sources of power i.e. the notion of soft power.
The objections however, do not diminish his work. Rather, they underscore the dangers inherent in seeking to explain the contingent course of history through a single analytic framework. John Mearsheimer has laid out testable propositions from his theory and examined them qualitatively and quantitatively against the historical record. He argues that states pursue power because of the anarchic system and are forced to rely on themselves for security. Mearsheimer has made a huge contribution in the field of International Relations by offering new insights into the role of power in world politics.
Excellent post Mishal. You highlight Mearsheimer's key claims and I particularly appreciate you tying it back to India and Pakistan. Pakistan does have strong military capabilities, but compared to India it is not quite up to snuff. But Pakistan cannot bandwagon - as Mearsheimer would advise - and must continue to build both its hard and latent power capabilities.
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