International Relations: Globalization and Marxist Theory in the Context of COVID-19 Pandemic

This report analyzes the concept of globalization and Marxist theory of international relations in the context of COVID-19 pandemic. It concludes that globalization is a legit concept and not a fad and the dirty politics played around COVID-19 shows a gradual shift against capitalistic frameworks.

INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS

Contents
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY.............................................................................................................................3
CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
The way nations have interacted and engaged has changed continuously over time
but one thing that has stood strong amidst the constant changes is the importance of
international relations. International relations refers to the field of study in which two or more
nations are studied in terms of their personal relations, their relations with established
international bodies and also between particular institutions and interest groups. This report
will reflect critically upon major drivers of international relations such as globalization and
will also analyze the theory of international relations which was formulated by Karl Marx and
Friedrich Engels to shed some light on the politics which has taken place globally around the
COVID-19 pandemic.
MAIN BODY
Question 1: ‘Globalization is the fad of the 1990s, and globalization is made in America’
(Kenneth N. Waltz, 1999). Do you agree or disagree, and why?
Globalization refers to the phenomenon which has defined the increasing
interdependence between nations in terms of their populations, culture and major resource
needs which has been brought about by the growing ease of free flowing cross border trade
wherein goods, services, human resources and technology has turned the entire world into
one well-functioning trading hub. The advent of globalization had started during the time of
the industrial revolution wherein the transport services all over the globe went through a
major overhaul but it picked up pace in the backdrop of the cold war in the 1990’s wherein
the rapid advances in information technology boosted its growth and made it into a
worldwide driver of growth and change it is today such as airplanes, internet and computers.
I do not agree with the argument presented in the question that globalization is a fad
of the 1990’s as if one looks at the detailed origins of globalization, its roots have been placed
in the 1800’s by eminent historians as there was vast networks of trading and chartered
trading companies across the Atlantic ocean. The growth that it has registered over the years
has been highly organic and can be seen on a global level even in small scale countries and it
being called a fad does not match with the way some countries owe their entire growth model
and modernisation to globalization such as India and America, two major countries with
major global influence in current international relations. The effects of globalization can be
seen even in countries where the critical aspects of a global trade framework are solely

missing and the most important drivers of globalization are all economic concepts which
have been backed by major schools of economic thought some of which are given below.
 Stock market improvement
 Liberalisation of the foreign trade
 Establishment of global bodies governing international relations and trades such as
The World Trade Organization (WTO)
 The advent of supranational regulation systems
 The major leaps that have taken by Science and technology especially in the west
 The increase in ease of conducting business on an international scale was also a major
driver of globalization as the strides made by MNC’s blurred the divide between local
and foreign goods in major markets around the world
If we chart the major growth and effects that globalization has had on the way people
lead their lives globally, it is clear that the phenomenon is very much real rather than a fad as
all its major advantages and drawbacks have significant impact on the global economy and
for countries. Some clear effects of globalization that prove it is much more than a fad are
listed below.
 It has led businesses around the world to grow exponentially by using cheap labour
and resources in remote locations through global expansion
 Globalization has blurred the gap between local and foreign product lines which had
led to major price differentiation which allows the customers in many developing
countries like India to enjoy goods at a cheaper price as companies aim to out value
each other through constant price cuts and discounts.
 The ill effects of globalization are also very real as competing with low cost markets
and getting their core jobs outsourced has many countries local residents to lose their
jobs which is a major reason behind the anti-globalization sentiment of major
politicians such as America’s Donald Trump.
As far as the argument presented about globalization being a concept which has been
made in America, I would once again disagree as although globalization could not have
happened without the burst of power and global influence that U.S.A got after the World War
2 happened and the American influence on globalization, globalization is based around the
significance of U.S.A rather than being made by it. The concept of globalization has always
been mixed up or blamed to be one that is Americanization in disguise but this is also not true

as unlike globalization which is a multi-directional phenomenon, Americanisation is a single
direction concept and unlike and the various states of America and the entire country is as
dependent on the rest of the world as they are on the U.S.A. Another argument that supports
this line of thought is the recent wave of anti-globalization that has swept America as both the
left and right hate the concept equally and one of the major reasons why trump came to
power was to repeal the loss of jobs which he blamed on globalization and the mass
immigration and migration which are major effects of it which further supports that it is not a
fad and is not made up in America either.
Question 2: What can Marxist international theory tell us about the politics of the global
Covid-19 pandemic?
Unlike the traditional view of international politics and relations which is often bent
towards a more liberalistic outlook where the role of free markets and economic corrections,
Karl Marx has a much more opposite view with an on brand focus on socialist politics and a
complete rejection of the popular political sub contexts and dominating school of thoughts.
The Marxist theory of international relations given by Marx follows the complete reversal in
logic and states that rather than libertarian and neo-liberalistic views which dominate the
current landscape of political and international trade discussions, the international relations
are instead based on proletariat internationalism and peaceful existence driven by anti-
imperialistic tendencies and the theory also proposed the end goal of international relations as
being one where the capitalistic frameworks governing the world would break down and true
internationalism would surface driven by values of peace and shared resources. Just like
Marx’s own personal view on politics where the clash between the rich and elite and the poor
which are exploited by the former drives the global politics forward, his theory about
international relations works on the assumption that the international relations between
countries involved continuous clash between the imperialist and elitists states against the less
privileged and marginal states through means of Imperialism, War and extraction of local
talent and resources in the name of globalization and capitalism.
Although popular, this theory has been discredited by popular schools of economic
thought sand my pundits of international trade and staunch proponents of socialism as a
concept against capitalism. However the COVID-19 pandemic has shown the entire world
that capitalistic markets and frameworks often fail to protect the vulnerable in times of need.

If one closely analyses the tool that the coronavirus has taken on the global population, one
also arrives on the conclusion that the obsession that western countries such as America and
its followers have with neo-liberalism wherein state intervention is frowned upon and social
welfare policies takes the backseat, the pandemic took the biggest chunk of the economy in
terms of losses and damages. The safety net that was once existing in and between nations
was completely washed out by the wave of global politics which look after the west and
thought that free market policies would save them but that did not happen.
Marx’s theory of international relations holds true in this regard as the COVID-19
pandemic showed that in times of true crisis, the powerful nations banding together for the
betterment of the human race is a lie which is mostly found in movies as most of all major
countries such as majority of the EU, UK, America, India and China all prioritized their own
economic welfare and did not offer immediate help to poor nations right out the gate with
financial aid or vaccine exports. The ‘global community’ concept does not work in the
current capitalist frameworks as most nations and their governments shut of their borders as it
is the basic tendency of modern day politics to stay at maximum safety before branching out
for aid. The Marxist theory also helps shed light on the exploitation and suffering that poor
states suffered during this pandemic as the more affluent nations as Russia, U.S.A and U.K.
did not immediately participate in providing extensive rollouts even after their vaccines were
ready to go and even the global news networks ran personal coverage all the time centered
around major nations rather than hearing and broadcasting the plight of these lesser
privileged nations such as ones in Africa and the Caribbean where millions died surrounded
by poverty. One of the major assumptions and bases which the theory of international
relations of Marx works is that the current cycle of international relations will end with the
destruction of capitalistic constructs with united existence and socialism tasking its place in
the mainstream global politics which is something that is already being shown in the post
pandemic world. The massive damage that has been done to the global economy by COVID-
19 has once again made the role of state very important and many interventions are being
made in countries like America which used to thrive on neo-liberalism and open markets.
There is also growing debate on the ill-effects of the pandemic on high profile global
platforms and the problem with free markets is also being addressed which might not make
the theory given by Marx more legibility but it helps in understanding the politics
surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic in a new light.

CONCLUSION
The above report went into detail the various theories of international relations and
drivers of the way nations engage with each other in the modern world such as globalization.
The concept of globalization, kits authenticity and roots were all analyzed in this report to
determine whether or not it was a fad and something that was ‘made in America’ and it also
discussed the Marxist theory of international relations in context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It was concluded from the report that Globalization is a legit concept and not a fad and it is
centered on America, not something made by the country and the dirty politics played around
COVID-19 shows a gradual shift against capitalistic frameworks.