THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS

AND THE REMARKING OF WORLD

ORDER
SAMUEL P. HUNGTINTON
GROUP MEMBER
LEE LIP HUAH 111583
NG CHEE KEANG 112605
WONG KENG WEN 113643
I. THE NEXT PATTERN OF CONFLICTII. THE NATU
OVERVIEW
Hypothetically, Huntington believes that “the
fundamental source of conflict in this new world will
not be primarily ideological or primarily economic.
The great division among humankind and dominating
source of conflict will be cultural…The fault lines
between civilizations will be the battle lines of the
future”
The clash of Civilizations according
to S. Huntington (1996), as
presented in the book.
Civilizations and History
In this view, contemporary civilizations represent the
product of a long process of ‘identity formation’
It is the incompatibility between these core values that
will produce inevitable conflict between different
civilizations
While from a contemporary perspective this may seem
like a new phenomenon, it is actually a reversion to a
previous period of history
Read in this fashion, the “clash of civilizations”
represents the closing of a parenthesis in world history.
CLASH OF CIVILIZATION
DEFINATION
- People’s cultural and religious identities
will be the primary source of conflict in the
post-cold war world.
The Next Pattern of Conflict
In the Huntington hypothesis that the
fundamental sources of conflict of in this
new world will not be primarily ideological
or primarily economic.
The great division among humankind and
the dominating source of conflict will be
cultural.
 The principal conflict of global politics will
occur between nation and group of
civilization.
THE NATURE OF CIVILIZATION
According to the Huntington during the
Cold War was divided into first, second,
and third world, but those division are no
longer relevant.
A civilization is a culture entity. Villages,
region, ethnic group, nationalities, religious
group, all have distinct cultures at different
level of culture heterogeneity.
WHY CIVILIZATION WILL CLASH
According to the Huntington the world will
shaped in large measure by the
interactions among seven or eight major
civilizations.
- western, Confucian, Japanese, Islamic,
Hindu, Slavic-Orthodox, Latin American,
and possibly African civilization.
Have six reasons:
First, differences among civilization are not only real.
-civilization are differentiated from each other by history,
language, culture, tradition, and most important, religion.
-They are far more fundamental that differences among
political ideologies and political regimes.
-Differences do not necessarily mean conflict, and conflict
does not necessarily mean violence. Over the centuries,
however, differences among civilizations have generated the
most prolonged and the most violent conflicts.
Conti…
Second, the world becoming smaller place.
-The interaction between peoples of
different civilization are increasing. These
increasing interaction intensity civilization-
consciousness and awareness of
differences between civilization and
commonalities within civilization.
In turn, invigorates differences and
animosities stretching or thought to stretch
back deep into history.
Conti..
Third, the processes of economic
modernization and social change
throughout the world are separating
people from longstanding local identities.
- such movements are found in Western
Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and
Hinduism, as well as in Islam.
Forth, the growth of civilization-consciousness is
enhanced by the dual role of the west.
-The west is at peak and power.
-At the same time, however and perhaps as a
result, a return to the roots phenomenon is
occurring among non-Western civilization.
Increasing one hears references to trends
toward a turning inward and “Asianization”, in
Japan, the end of the Nehru legacy, and the
“Hindunization” of India, the failure of Western
idea of socialism and nationalism and hence
“re-Islamization”, of the Middle East.
Firth, cultural characteristics and
differences are less mutable and hence
less easily compromised and resolved that
political and economic.
-In class and ideological conflict, key
question was “which side are you on” but
in conflict between civilization is “what are
you”. That given that cannot be changed.
Finally, economic regionalism is increasing.
The importance of regional economic blocs
is like to continue to increase in future.
The success of the North American Free
Trade Area (NAFTA) depends on the
convergence now underway of Mexican,
Canadian, and American cultures.
 Successful economic regionalism will
reinforce civilization-consciousness.
The clash of civilization thus occur at two level
which is micro-level, and macro-level.
-micro-level, adjacent group along the fault lines
between civilization struggle, often violently, over
the control of territory and each other.
-macro-level, states from different civilization
compete for relative military and economic power,
struggle over the control of international
institution, and third parties, and competitively
promote their particular political and religious
values.
The “kin-country syndrome”
Groups or states belonging to one civilization
that become involved in a war with people
from different civilization naturally try to rally
support from others of their own civilization.
Examples , the Gulf War, the former Soviet
Union in the Caucasus, and Yugoslavia.
In the gulf war one Arab state invaded
another and the fought a coalition of Arab,
western and other states.
The Islamist fundamentalist universally
support Iraq than the western backed
governemnet (kuwait and Saudi Arabia).
The kin-country syndrome also appeared in
conflicts in the former soviet union.
Armenian military successes in 1992 and 1993
stimulated turkey to become increasing supportive
of its religious, ethnic and linguistics brethren in
Azerbaijan.
With respect to the fighting with former yogoslavia,
the Irannian leaders urged muslims from all
countries to provide help to bosnia.
Iranian-supported Lebanese groups sent guerrillas
to train and organize the Bosnian forces.
As the conflicts in the Persian Gulf, the
Caucasus and Bosnia continued, the
positions of nations and the cleavages
between them increasingly were along
civilizational lines.
Greater line thickness represents more conflict in the
civilization relationship
The West versus the Rest?
The West Versus the rest is about “ the world
community” and the “free world” , according
to Huntington, a thin veneer for the
domination of global affairs by western
interests.
The West sees its values as universalist
(meaning that they are applicable to
everyone, irrespective of civilization).
International institutions based on these
values are merely tools for maintaining and
promoting western values and domination.
The west is now at an extraordinary peak of power
in relation to other civilizations.
Decisions made at the U.N. Security Council or in
the International Monetary Fund that reflect the
interests of the West are presented to the world as
reflecting the desires of the world community.
The west in effect is using international
institutions, military power and economics
resources to run the world in that ways that will:
-Western predominant
-Western interests
-Western political and economics values
THE TORN COUNTRIES
TORN CONTRY- Some other countries have a fair
degree of cultural homogeneity but are divided over
whether their society belongs to one civilization or
another.
Their leaders typically wish to pursue a
bandwagoning strategy and to make their countries
members of west, but the history, culture, and
traditions of their countries are non-western.
THREE REQUIREMENT FOR A TORN
COUNTRY
Its political and economic elite has to be generally
supportive of and enthusiastic about this move.
Its public has to be willing to acquiesce in the
redefinition.
The dominant groups in the recipient civilization have
to be willing to embrace the convert.
Example Torn Country
Turkey at Europe are the most profoundly Torn
Country
Mexico at North American are the most immediate
Torn Country.
Why Russian so difficultly joining the West?
- Because the conflict between liberal democracy and
Marxism-Leninism was between ideologies which
like ultimate goal of freedom, equality and prosperity.
THE CONFUCIAN-ISLAMIC
CONNECTION
The obstacles to non-western countries joining the
west is- their countries culture and power do not wish
to, or cannot, join the West compete with the west by
developing their own economic, military, and political
power.
The most prominent form of the cooperation is the
Confucian- Islamic connection that has emerged to
challenge Western interests, values , and power.
THE CONFUCIAN-ISLAMIC STATES VS
WESTERN COUNTRIES
In the post-Cold War world the primary objective of arms
control to prevent the development by non-Western
societies of military capabilities that could threaten Western
interests.
The West attempts to do this through international
agreements, economic pressure, and controls on the transfer
of arms and weapon technologies.
But in this new form of arms competition, one side is
developing its arms and other side is attempting not to
balance but to limit and prevent that arms buildup.
The non-Western nation like China, North Korea and
several Middle Eastern states, increase expanding their
military capabilities
They acquire and to deploy whatever weapons they think
necessary for their security.
Example: China in 1992, tested a one-megaton nuclear
device.
A Confucian-Islamic military connection has thus come
into being, designed to promote acquisition by its
members of the weapons and weapons technology needed
to counter the military power of the west.
Example: China has sold to Iran nuclear technology.
IMPLICATIONS FOR THE WEST
The implication has been divided between
a)
Short-term advantage
b) Long-term accommodation
a)Short-term advantage
- promote greater cooperation and unity
within its own civilization, particularly
between its European and North American
components
- to promote and maintain cooperative relations
with Russia and Japan.
- to prevent escalation to local inter-civilization
conflicts into major inter-civilization wars.
- to incorporate into West societies in Eastern
Europe and North American components .
- to limit the expansion of military strength of
Confucian and Islamic states
- to moderate the reduction of Western military
capabilities and maintain military superiority
in East and Southwest Asia.
- To exploit differences and conflicts among
Confucian and Islamic states
- To support in other civilizations groups
sympathetic to Western values and
interests.
- To strengthen international institutions
that reflect and legitimate Western interests
and values
- To promote the involvement of non-
Western states in those institutions.
b) Long-term accommodation
- Western civilization is both Western and modern.
Non-Western civilization have attempted to become
modern without becoming Western.
- The West will increasingly have to accommodate
those non-Western modern civilization whose power
approaches that of the West but whose values and
interests differ significantly from those of the West.
This will require the West to maintain the economic
and military power necessary to protect its interests
in relation to these civilization.
Critiques of Clash of
Civilizations
 Some events challenge it
 Unclear how to distinguish civilizations
 Globalization can lead to convergence and synthesis
of cultures
 Not all cultures aspire to imperial power
 Overstates West’s decline
 Exaggerates Islam’s militancy
 Major conflicts within civilizations
 Economic cooperation across civilizations
 Lack of democratic institutions is real problem in
Islamic world
GUESS WHO?
Clash of civilizations?
The attack was
Osama bin Laden's
attempt to draw the
U.S. and the West
into a full-fledged
clash of civilizations
with Islam.
Summary of Argument
Nation states will not disappear
Civilizations not coherent or conflict-free
But differences among civilizations real
Civilization-consciousness growing
Civilization conflict will be dominant global form
of conflict
Major axis of relations between “West and Rest”
No universal civilization possible
THANK YOU