Editing International relations theory (section)

=== Neorealism ===
{{Main|Neorealism (international relations)}}
{{Further|Anarchy (international relations)}}

Neorealism or structural realism<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oup.com/uk/orc/bin/9780199298334/dunne_chap04.pdf|title=Structural Realism |access-date=October 18, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090317004530/http://www.oup.com/uk/orc/bin/9780199298334/dunne_chap04.pdf |archive-date=March 17, 2009 }}</ref> is a development of realism advanced by [[Kenneth Waltz]] in ''[[Theory of International Politics]]''. It is, however, only one strand of neorealism. [[Joseph Grieco]] has combined neo-realist thinking with more traditional realists. This strand of theory is sometimes called "modern realism".<ref>Lamy, Steven (2008). "Contemporary Approaches: Neo-realism and Neo-liberalism," in ''The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations'', edited by John Baylis, Steve Smith, and Patricia Owens, 4th edition, New York: Oxford University Press, p. 127</ref>

Waltz's neorealism contends that the effect of structure must be taken into account in explaining state behavior. It shapes all [[foreign policy]] choices of states in the international arena. For instance, any disagreement between states derives from lack of a common power (central authority) to enforce rules and maintain them constantly. Thus, there is constant anarchy in the international system that makes it necessary for states to obtain strong weapons to guarantee their survival. Additionally, in an anarchic system, states with greater power have a tendency to increase their influence further.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2008|isbn=978-0-19-929777-1|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/globalizationofw0000unse_f5x2}}</ref> According to neo-realists, structure is considered an extremely important element in IR and is defined in a twofold manner as: 1) the ordering principle of the international system, which is [[Anarchy in international relations|anarchy]], and 2) the distribution of capabilities across units. Waltz also challenges traditional realism's emphasis on traditional military power, instead characterizing power in terms of the combined capabilities of the state.<ref>Lamy, Steven (2008). "Contemporary Approaches: Neo-realism and Neo-liberalism," in ''The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations'', edited by John Baylis, Steve Smith, and Patricia Owens, 4th edition, New York: Oxford University Press,pp.127–128</ref>

Waltz's version of neorealism has frequently been characterized as "[[Defensive realism|Defensive Realism]]", whereas John Mearsheimer is a proponent of a different version of neorealism characterized as "[[Offensive realism|Offensive Realism]]."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Snyder|first=Glenn H.|date=2002|title=Mearsheimer's World-Offensive Realism and the Struggle for Security: A Review Essay|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3092155|journal=International Security|volume=27|issue=1|pages=149–173|doi=10.1162/016228802320231253|jstor=3092155|s2cid=57569322|issn=0162-2889}}</ref>