International Politics

The international system is the set of rules by which states relate to one another. Most of these rules arise from tradition and custom, but states can break them at times. Each state is sovereign.

Although both realism and liberalism are predicated on the assumption that the world is an anarchic place, realism emphasizes the desire of states to increase their military power relative to other states, whereas liberalism stresses the importance of economic engagement and the role of international institutions.

The American and French Revolutions have served as models for many modern revolutions.