The role of the religious component in international relations

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The Ph.D student of the chair of International Relations and Foreign Policy of the Academy of

The role of the religious component in international relations

Abbasov Sabuhi

The international relations is influenced by different components of power and foreign policy resources of the states. We can mention such components as material and intangible power components. Material power components of actors include the geopolitical position, economy, population, natural resources, financial resources, military potential of theirs and at the scope of actors activities in the context of transnational corporations and NGOs, material power components include their influence on the activities of states and international organizations. The intangible power components include language, race, nationality, religion, worldview, main ideologies of the actors. As one of these components, religion also is noteworthy for its specific impact on international relations. As well as other forms of social, political, legal consciousness, religious and ideological ideas and norms also create a system of spiritual wealth. Person's behavior, including the political person's, statesman's, lawyer's, diplomat's behavior and their views on family, life and even international relations based on these considerations, so these consciousness are also significantly regulates the position of states in international relations. It is known that religion has played a very important role in the lives of societies and in public relations throughout history. One of the important type of public relations is international relations. In this regard today the role of religion in international relations and in foreign policy attracts attention.

Unfortunately, academic analysis of international relations and foreign policy has not yet been fully clarified on the impact of religion on international relations, but the analysis areas mentioned so far has been based in the context of European-centered secularist principles. Events in the history of international relations at the beginning of the 21st century, and especially the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001, have become relevant to the study of the influence of religion on international relations. But delays “the discovery of religion” as a component affecting the quality of international relations also posed a number of problems. Thus, the lack of experience in the analysis of international politics in order to produce healthy conclusions about the role of religion, as well as the false beliefs about the influence of religion on international politics may turn international relations into dangerous tendencies. In order to better understand the interrelationship of religion and foreign policy, it is necessary to emphasize the impact of religion on actors in society and international relations. Israeli scholars Jonathan Fox and Samuel Sandler, who have done research on this issue, note that religion has four major implications for foreign policy:

1) Religion influences on foreign policy because it is also influential in determining the identity of a society; 2) Empowered belief systems direct the actions of society; 3) Religious doctrines also have an effect on policy by limiting or justifying (legitimizing) it; 4) The religious organizations and groups have the power to effect on activity of actors of international relations by using the power of religious. This effect may indicate itself in a variety of ways. The perceived “moral authority” of religious organizations in society increases the influence of their opinion, and makes them play an influential decision-making role in society [1]. Through this study Sandler and Fox sought to explain the impact of religion on foreign policy. However, there is no consensus that is religion an element that influences on foreign policy, or it is just an instrument that justifies the actions and decisions of the actors. At the same time, religion can be used as a means to justify decisions of international actors and it is indicates that of how great influences of religious beliefs have on public opinion. Consequently, the religion as an independent component, as a means of justification and as a tool of political manipulation influences on foreign policy and activitiy of actors of international relations. Hans Morgentau, a prominent expert on international relations commenting on the relationship between religion and foreign policy said that it is difficult for him to become a christian in politics, because the purpose of man in politics is to gain superiority over others and to use them as a tool and it is contrary to christian ethics. Political activity is incompatible with christian ethics [2]. Nevertheless, Hans Morgentau did not completely exclude the influence of moral norms on politics, and advised states to pursue as “less sinful policies” as possible.

Since the international relations have emerged as a research area in the west unfortunately the role of religious is neglected, isolated and even banned in international relations theory. For a long time, it was thought that modernization and economic development would be the end of religion. But the current situation is exactly the opposite. Religion continues to rise on the ground of modernization and economic development, rather than the decline. Therefore in recent studies the religious component has been considered as a major factor in the formation of modern international relations. Since the second half of the twentieth century, due to large-scale religious awakening, the central role of religions in the world political scene has increased. Although it is thought that from the Westphal System of International Relations (1648) there is no place for religion in the international relations but the current processes in international relations deny the influence of religion on foreign policy. religious international economy policy

Unlike American scientist Jim Guth [3], who notes that religion is one of the biggest basics for explaining foreign policy, Turkish scholar Oran emphasizes that religious beliefs do not control international relations alone, but it can also be influential on foreign policy because it can influence on actors' actions [4].

Unlike Johnathan Fox, Samuel Sandler, and Hans Morgentau, who are viewed the role of religion as a political tool in international relations, there are the second group of researchers who argue that the role of religion is growing globally, that religious awakening can even lead to civilized conflicts. Although the second group of researchers have different approaches to the influence of religion on international relations and world order, they generally affirm the role that religion has in influencing both domestic and foreign policy, as well as the formation of modern international relations. Well-known scientists Huntington, Girard and Juergensmeyer, have specifically stated that religious beliefs are a threat to the international system [5]. In Samuel Huntington's famous theory of the clash of civilizations, he cites religion as one of the most important causes of conflict between civilizations. According to S. Huntington, civilizations are separated from each other by their history, culture and, most importantly by their religions. Civilizations have different points of views on relations between God and man, individual and group, citizen and state, parents and children, husband and wife. There are also different views of civilizations in giving greater importance to rights and obligations, freedom and power, equality and hierarchy. These differences have been around for centuries. Therefore, it will not go away anytime soon. The differences between political ideologies and political regimes in civilizations are more profound. But the differences, of course, do not mean conflict, as conflicts are not always violent. Although for centuries the most enduring and violent conflicts have been caused by the separation between civilizations [6]. When Huntington clarified the expression of “civilization,” the main emphasis was on the religious identity that the actors had. This is also the reason why his research is based on the relationship between Christianity and Islam [7].

In a globalized world, there is a direct interaction between representatives of different cultures and religions. The possibility of complex conflict situations in such circumstances should not be overlooked. All this contributes to understanding Huntington's ideas and appreciating his role in the analysis of real international relations [8]. Volker Gehlen, a scientist at the University of Dunde in Scotland, expresses a little more strongly the impact of religion on the cause of violence, suggesting that religion has become increasingly tense in the post-Cold War era [9].

At the same time, the unifying effect of religion on international relations is also of interest. The favorable environment created by the common religious belief does not ineffect in interstate integration. The most obvious example for this is the European Union. All members of the European Union are Christian countries. Despite certain economic and political differences, the most important common point shared by member states is religious beliefs [10]. Thus, in addition to Huntington's approach to religion as a divisive component of the international relations, religion also plays a role as a unifying component and there is a specific example of the European Union in current international relations. American scientist Scott Thomas, notes in his book called “The Global Resurgence of Religion and the Transformation of International Re- lations.The Struggle for the Soul of the Twenty-First Century”: “The global resurgence of religion is the growing saliency and persuasiveness of religion i.e. the increasing importance of religious beliefs, practices and discourses religious in personal and public life, and the growing role of religious or religiously- related individuals, non-state groups, political parties, and communities, and organizations in domestic politics, and this is occurring in ways that have significant implications for international politics”[11].

However, there are also many examples in history that religion directly or indirectly caused to inter-state war or internal conflict. As an example of religious or holy wars caused by religious differences can be noted the wars between the city states from in ancient Mesopotamia to Muslim conquests in the 7th and 8th centuries, Christian crusades in the 11th and 13 th centuries and the conflicts going on now. The role of religious factor in some international and domestic conflicts (Israeli- Palestinian, Pakistani-Indian, Cyprus, Northern Ireland, etc.) is still undermined today. Whereas religion is a spiritual outlook reflecting the sacred, moral elements, but foreign policy is shaped by military, economic, social, cultural, and political means, expressing the official relations of actors with other actors. Both concepts have separate actors; actors of foreign policy are state bodies and politicians, and actors of religion are religious organizations, states and even terrorist groups.

In the 21st century religious identity, along with ethnic identity and ideological identities, has begun to feel its power as a new component in foreign policy. Interesting results are revealed when you look at the foreign policy of a number of countries in order to better understand religious identity and foreign policy relations. For example, US foreign policy is extensively influenced by religious beliefs.

Americans believed that they are a nation chosen by God to establish and maintain order in the world, and they represent “good” against “evil”. US foreign policy declared Japan, Germany, the Soviet Union, Iran and North Korea as “evils” in different historical peri- ods[12]. President Eisenhower expressed the belief that God is with America when he said, “When God comes, communism will have to go away” [13]. According to the American author Jack Miles the 11 September attacks put religion on the American agenda in a new and urgent way. More narrowly, 11 September would seem to have put the Muslim religion on the agenda in the form of Islamist terrorism.

Yet the Bush administration has declared war not on Islamist terrorism but on terrorism tout court. To be sure, it may be tactically wise for the administration to mention Islam only in passing and speak instead, as Attorney General John Ashcroft did on 19 February 2002, of freedom as a sacred cause transcending religious division: This is not a conflict based in religion. It is a conflict between those who believe that God grants us choice and those who seek to impose their choices on us. It is a conflict between inspiration and imposition; the way of peace and the way of destruction and chaos. It is a conflict between good and evil. And as President Bush has reminded us, we know that God is not neutral between the two [14]. At the end of the socialist-capitalist confrontation and the Cold War between them, the collapse of the USSR, one of the world's giants at the stage of replacing the multi-polar world system with a new bipolar world order (from 1991 to the present) religious components also came to the fore as a means to influence on international relations. Religious revival began to rise again at the beginning of the 21st century. Thus, at a new stage, competition, confrontation and reconciliation was transferred from the political-ideological level to the sphere of religious-ethnic relations [15].

As a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks, the influence of religion in international relations began to manifest itself again. Pressure on Muslims that began to increase in the US after the 9/11 attacks has spread to other countries such as Germany, England, Austria, Netherlands, and France, and has led to the popularization of the term of Islamophobia(prejudice against muslims in various areas of public life). According to Professor Abdi Shuriyen, a professor at the International Islamic University in Malaysia, the future development of international relations will be on the background of Islamic revival for a number of reasons. These are the reasons: most Muslims are returning to Islamic values and Islamic schools of thought, and many of them are young people; the Muslim population in the world is growing; Muslim immigrants are also growing in Europe and the United States; attempts to “modernize” the Muslim world with the economic support of the West are ineffective; probability the rise of nuclear weapons actors and so on [16]. Of course, the revival of Islam is conserned by the West. As a result, the religious-Islamic factor has become one of the most common component in international relations today, and has become relevant to the problem of Islamophobia.

Thus, based on the historical features of the aforementioned system of international relations, as well as the opinion of many scholars, it can be noted that at certain historical stages, the role of religious component, along with other components, was important in the formation of modern international relations and today it has grown even more.

References

1. Fox ve Sandler, “The Question of Religion and World Politics,” 2005, s. 295.

2. Ivan Streniski,Why Politics Can't be Freed From Religion, West Sussex, UK:Wiley-Blackwell, 2010,p-127.

3. Jody Baumgartner, Peter Francia ve Jonathan Morris, “A Clash of Civilizations? Influence in Middle East,” Political Research Quartely, 2008, s. 171.

4. Benay Yakiзir, “Din ve Di§ Politik Etkile^imi ve bu Etkile^imin AB Entegrasyon Programma Yansimasi”, 2011, s 45.

5. Jonathan Fox, “The Rise of Religious Nationalism and Conflict: Ethnic Conflict and Revolutionary Wars 19452001,” Journal of Peace Research, 6(41), 2004, s. 719.

6. Huntington, Samuel P. «The Clash of Civilizations» Foreign Affairs Vol. 72. No 3 (Summer 1993) p.22-49.

7. Deniz Altinbaз, “Avrupa'da Kimlik ve Medeniyetler Зatismasi,” Stratejik Analiz Dergisi, 79 s. 54.

8. HiKM0T BABAOGLU.Dьnya siyassti vs beynslxalq mьnasibstlsr.Dsrslik. Baki.2010.ssh-81.

9. Lьbbe Herman, “Religion and Politics in Process of Modernisation,” Politics Religion and Ideology, 1(6), 2005, s. 53.

10. Balazs Schanda, “Religion and State in the Candidate Countries to the EU: Issues Concerning Religion and State in Hungary,” Sociology of Religion, 3(64), 2003, s. 334.

11. Thomas, S. (2005). The global resurgence of religion and the transformation of international relations: Struggle for the soul of the twenty-first century, New York: Palgrave MacMillan.p-26.

12. Miles, “Religion andAmerican Foreign Policy,”2004, s. 152.

13. Warner ve Manfred, “Thinking about the Role...,” s. 114.

14. Jack Miles, Survival, vol. 46, no. 1, Spring 2004, pp. 23-37 © The International Institute for Strategic Studies.

15. HIKMBT BABA OGLU M0MM0DOV «iNFOОMPERlALОZM V0 MEDIA» Baki, «MSA», 2013,ssh-23.

16. Abdi O. Shuriye. The Failed Assumptions of Some Social Scientists on the Role of Religion in International Relations. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Vol. 1 No. 3; March 2011.p-16.

Abstract

It is not a secret that many factors influence to the formation of international relations. Among these factors, religion plays a special role. Throughout history, the influence of religions on international relations has been observed at various levels. At some stages, the influence of religions on international relations was high, and sometimes even low, but it has always existed. Signs of religious influence are also manifested in modern international relations.The purpose of this article is to analyze and clarify the role of religion in international relations. In this context, the article analyzes the various levels of influence of religion in the history of international relations and the potential characteristics of religion in foreign policy have been identified.

Keywords: religious, international relations, foreign policy component, influence.

Це не секрет, що на формування міжнародних відносин впливає безліч факторів. Серед цих факторів релігія відіграє особливу роль. Протягом всієї історії вплив релігій на міжнародні відносини спостерігалося на різних рівнях. На деяких етапах вплив релігій на міжнародні відносини було високим, а іноді навіть низьким, але воно завжди існувало. Ознаки релігійного впливу проявляються і в сучасних міжнародних відносинах. Метою даної статті є аналіз та уточнення ролі релігії в міжнародних відносинах. У цьому контексті в статті аналізуються різні рівні впливу релігії в історії міжнародних відносин і виявлено потенційні характеристики релігії у зовнішній політиці.

Ключові слова: релігія, міжнародні відносини, зовнішня політика, компонент, вплив.

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