International politics is the study of the pattern of relations between sovereign states, at the bilateral, multilateral, regional and global levels of interaction. The subject matter of international politics covers issues such as economic development, the environment, terrorism, ethnic conflict, foreign and security policy making and the balance of power. The underlying theme is power and the use of it in the international arena.
Theoretical speculation on international politics has tended to be of a normative nature. Those who pursue it often believe that the future is semidetermined and that scholarship can help men move toward a world more suited to their value preferences. It is not possible to examine international relations without the involvement of values, values which are reflected in the choice of subjects for investigation, in the selection of means for gathering data and in the choice of theories for interpretation.
A central concept is sovereignty, the principle that a state has supreme control over its territory and that this control may be exercised only in accordance with the laws of the state. This concept has shaped the structure of national societies, and it has been the basis of a number of international organizations.
There is in the Western world a growing awareness of the need for international co-operation, and there has been an increase in the number of international institutions and organizations. At the same time, there are still powerful bonds of loyalty to the nation and national identities persist.
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