Theories of International Relations

Résumé du document

It is commonly perceived in the public opinion that the Moroccan foreign policy since the Cold War has been largely western-oriented; in fact, more specifically, the Moroccan foreign policy is said to be developed in compliance with the will of the United States of which Morocco is extremely dependent. Although the Moroccan external endebtment has been decreasing during the past decades, it remains very high and puts the moroccan economy in a state of dependence vis-à-vis the international financement instititions. At the same time, Morocco has undergone a profound program that aims at leveling-up the different aspects of Moroccan human development, which has kept the moroccan State in the shadow of international relations. Different questions have aroused over this period of the moroccan development. How strongly is Morocco aiming at becoming a powerful country? Is the fact that Morocco is in constant accord with the American superpower favorable to its future rise as an emerging power? Is Morocco truly fulfilling its own interests? What are the Moroccan interests?

Extraits

[...] Nevertheless, is this reason sufficient to claim that Morocco does not really fulfill its national interests? The constructivist approach to international relations tells us something different about what the concept of national interest is, and this approach may in fact explain better the different decisions taken by the Moroccan King in terms of foreign relations since his accession to the Throne in 1999. Constructivism as a tool for determining the nature of Moroccan national interests While realism is materialistic, constructivism as a post-positivist approach is rather idealistic; it considers that the ideas shared by the different actors in a society are the ones that constitute the different social structures; in this sense, the interests and identities of the different social actors are determined by these ideas and by the culture in which these actors intervene. [...]

[...] What are the Moroccan interests? The question of national interest is an interesting one to rise for the case of Morocco because it helps understand better the different foreign policy decisions made by the Moroccan government, and more specifically by the Moroccan King Mohammed VI. It is true that the theoricians of international relations have been focusing mainly on the great powers and their mutual influence, but I believe it is still possible to use these theories in order to identify and explain the functioning of a state's foreign policy even though this state is far from being considered as an international power, and perhaps these explanations will tell us more about the eventuality for Morocco to become a great power. [...]

[...] Subsequently, we can wonder what should the Moroccan national interests be based on? Is realism the best approach to answering this question? One premise to the definition of what national interest should be, based on the realist approach is that “International politics, like all politics, is a struggle for power” (H.Morgenthau, Politics Among Nations, 1948); the assumption behind this is the anarchical system as a basis for international relations; there is no supranational central power that regulates the interstate relations. [...]

[...] Based solely on this, it seems obvious that the free trade is actually going to benefit the US, whose national interest is to expand their economic power across the Middle East. Morocco, in that sense, constitutes the foreordained intermediary between the US and the Arab world. Furthermore, according to the Moroccan American Trade and Investment Council, since the 9/11 attacks, Morocco has been sharing very important information with the US about Al Qaeda and other terrorist networks, and received full American help when it was victim of terrorist attacks . [...]

[...] The Western Sahara case shows on one hand that Morocco does obey by its own values and norms of territorial integrity, and this does not make of the Moroccan Head of State a disinterested one by not opting for a military solution; as King Mohammed VI said during an interview with the Time in 2000, interest is not to have a strong Algeria and a weak Morocco, or the opposite. We absolutely want the U.S. and the U.N. to be involved to maintain balance”. [...]