This book provides a unique examination of how a middle power uses international organisations to achieve greater global influence. The authors focus on the OECD, ‘the rich man’s club’ of most of the world’s wealthiest nations. It demonstrates how the decision by Australia to apply for membership was a long drawn out process, delayed by political factors. Eventually agreement was reached with assurances that membership would provide access to valuable and timely policy-related information, especially in relation to international trade and finance. In addition, membership would potentially increase influence by providing greater access to its powerful member states at an earlier stage in their policy discussions and agreements.

Examining how leading developing countries are increasingly shaping international economic negotiations, this book uses the case studies of India and South Africa to demonstrate the ability of states to exert diplomatic influence through different bargaining strategies and represent the interests of the developing world in global governance.

This volume summarizes, synthesizes, updates, and contextualizes Turkey’s multiple roles in global governance. As a result of various political, economic, cultural and technological changes occurring in the international system, the need for an effective and appropriate global governance is unfolding. In such an environment, Turkey’s and other rising/middle powers’ initiatives appear to be indispensable for rendering the existing global governance mechanisms more functional and effective. The authors contribute to the assessment of changing global governance practices of secondary and/or middle power states with a special focus on Turkey’s multiple roles and issue-based global governance policies.

At the end of the Cold War many experts in the international community expected a new world order to emerge in which international security institutions. Instead, the emerging order was marked by the overwhelming power of the United States, which, under the Bush Sr and Clinton administrations, did not see such a system as a necessity.

This book marries the disciplines of International Relations and Diplomatic History to provide a major new study of the GATT system in the 1960s. Using recently declassified British and American government documents, this book identifies the key role British diplomats played at the Kennedy Round. Through the close ties that characterise the Anglo-American relationship, the British influenced American policy and strategy in the negotiations. The evidence of this study challenges realist theories of middle power influence in the international political economy by demonstrating the determining role of state-level factors such as diplomatic skill and policy expertise.

This book takes an innovative approach to studying international climate governance by providing a critical analysis of climate leadership, pioneership and followership across the globe. The volume assesses the interactions between climate leaders, pioneers and followers, across multilevel and/or polycentric climate governance contexts. Examining the state and sub-state levels in both the Global South and Global North, as well as regional, supranational EU and international climate governance levels, the authors explore 16 countries across Asia, Australasia, Europe, and Central and North America, plus the European Union. Each chapter employs a comprehensive and consistent framework for analyzing leadership and pioneership, as well as followership. The findings provide new insights into the strategies and actions of sub-state, state-level, and supranational leaders and pioneers. This book will be of key interest to scholars, students and practitioners in environmental politics and climate change governance, as well as those interested in political elites, EU studies and, more broadly, comparative politics and international relations.

The term "middle power" is conceptually fragile. Some scholars have even argued for abandoning it. This book argues that the concept needs to be analysed more profoundly and that new analytical tools need to be developed to better understand the phenomenon. The traditional approach, based on Western states, is insufficient and has become increasingly irrelevant in a transformed global environment. Instead of drawing from a single theory of international relations, the contributors have chosen to build upon a wide range of theories in a deliberate demonstration of analytic eclecticism. A pluralistic approach provides stronger explanations while remaining analytically and intellectually rigorous. Many of the theory contributions are reconsidering how the largely "Western" bases of such theorising need revising in light of the "emerging middle powers", many of which are in Asia. Presenting a strong argument for studying middle powers, this book explores both the theory and empirical applications of the concept by rethinking the definition and characteristics of middle powers using a range of case studies. It examines changes in the study of middle powers over the last decade, proposing to look at the concept of middle powers in a coherent and inclusive manner. Finally, it aims to further the discussion on the evolution of the international system and provides sound conclusions about the theoretical usefulness and empirical evolution of middle powers today.

This volume discusses Korea’s role as a middle power in the midst of the 21st century global power shift. Focusing on Korea’s middle power diplomacy from the perspective of coalition building, the book discusses structural factors that shape middle power strategy and diplomacy. Written by leading Korean researchers, the chapters use diverse methodologies to offer a range of perspectives on Korea’s place in the developing global order. Topics discussed include South Korea’s approach to technology policy in the midst of US-China cyber competition, the East Asian ‘Thucydides Trap’, MITKA and middle power diplomacy, Korea’s role in the South China Sea dispute, and South Korean cyber security. Providing a unique treatment of middle power opportunities and motivations in the East Asia region, this volume will be of interest to students and scholars of international relations, Asian politics, diplomacy, security studies, and global governance.

Drawing on insights from differentiation theory, this book examines the participation of middle powers in multilateralism. Taking Australia, Indonesia and South Korea as examples, the book examines these countries’ roles in regional organizations, and particularly during the creation of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and East Asia Summit. Through its analysis, the book argues that middle powers pursue dilution of major power stratificatory forces, as well as functionally differentiated roles for themselves in multilateral diplomacy. The book sets out a valuable new framework to explain and understand the behaviour of middle powers in multilateralism.