Global governance constellations, challenges, and trajectories in the 21st century :an issue based empirical analysis of voting in the united nations

Official URL: https://risc01.sabanciuniv.edu/record=b2482907 _(Table of contents)

One of the most salient debates regarding the international system in the 21st century is whether the post-war liberal international order is dissipating due to the increasing amount of stress caused by rapid transformations brought on by globalization. Shifts in global governance constellations and challenges of this new age require responses which adequately address complex global problems in a timely and organized manner. At this juncture, this study investigates the dynamics of state behavior in one of the most important global governance institutions, the United Nations General Assembly, and unveil the instances in which narrow national interests and relative power positions determine their stance against the general will of the international community. Given that global governance encompasses a wide collection of concerns, this study narrows down the inquiry by looking at the most contested issues on the international agenda; the Middle East, nuclear weapons and disarmament, human rights, and economic and social development in the context of the UN General Assembly voting records. Methodologically, the research utilizes an ordinary least squares regression in order to uncover the effects of and correlations between GDP, military power, economic power, and regime type over voting patterns of member states. Additionally, the ratios of voting in line with successful resolutions are also investigated within the framework of global political discourse. The study argues that global governance platforms such as the UN General Assembly are podiums in which power politics are conducted and states are ultimately concerned with their narrow national interests and relative power positions, especially within circumstances in which global crises threaten the balance of power within global governance