Publication

This article addresses John Mearsheimer’s concept of ‘offensive realism’, which provides a framework for how to understand international affairs and maintains that states want to dominate the international system, at least to the point of becoming a regional hegemon. In general, the author contends that Mearsheimer’s framework does not adequately represent the priorities of states, that it incorrectly assumes that all states are always under threat from one another and that it underestimates the incentives for interstate cooperation.