Subversion Among the Great Powers in Historical Perspective

• In Event: Meddling! What is it Good For?

Abstract

External interference in the domestic affairs of states has become a contentious issue in international politics as well as a major topic of academic research. Almost everything scholars know about the subject, however, is based on evidence of powerful states meddling in weak ones. I begin to fill that gap by examining subversion within the great power subsystem. First, I define great power subversion and explain why falls through cracks of academic research. Second, drawing in standard IR theory, I explain why great powers do it, and the ways we should expect it to differ from the standard big-vs-small power setting. Third, I examine key cases. Fourth, I conclude with implications for current debates about great power subversion.

Author

• William C. Wohlforth, Dartmouth College