Why did Britain intervene in Libya in 2011? Several explanations suggest themselves: security, R2P and status. The article shows that status was a significant motivating factor, and this demonstrates a dynamic that helps to refine a classical realist theory of intervention. The article calls for status to be seen intrinsically and instrumentally, and for more attention to be paid to the related motive of revenge. The findings suggest (though do not prove from a causal standpoint) that status may be a stronger motive than security for state decision-makers. The article's central empirical argument is that regime change in Libya was not the last stage of Britain's foreign policy of intervention. Rather, intervention was the last stage in Britain's status and revenge-driven foreign policy of regime change. Britain saw the Libya crisis as a chance to preserve its great power status and revenge Muammar Gaddafi for past wrongs. 1 Hans Morgenthau, Catherine Gegout, and other scholars prefer the term 'prestige.' However, because of its link to rank in a social hierarchy, 'status' is more commonly used in the literature. 'Status' is used throughout this article for the sake of consistency (Welch Larson et al 2014, 16). The author would like to express thanks to colleagues Nicholas Ross Smith and Emilian Kavalski and the Journal's reviewers and editors.
Reptiles, the only ectothermic amniotes, employ a wide variety of physiological adaptations to adjust to their environments but remain vastly understudied in the field of immunology and ecoimmunology in comparison to other vertebrate taxa. To address this knowledge gap, we assessed the current state of research on reptilian innate immunology by conducting an extensive literature search of peer-reviewed articles published across the four orders of Reptilia (Crocodilia, Testudines, Squamata, Rhynchocephalia). Using our compiled dataset, we investigated common techniques, characterization of immune components, differences in findings and type of research among the four orders, and immune responses to ecological and life-history variables. We found that there are differences in the types of questions asked and approaches used for each of these reptilian orders. The different conceptual frameworks applied to each group has led to a lack of a unified understanding of reptilian immunological strategies, which, in turn, have resulted in large conceptual gaps in the field of ecoimmunology as a whole. To apply ecoimmunological concepts and techniques most effectively to reptiles, we must combine traditional immunological studies with ecoimmunological studies to continue to identify, characterize, and describe the reptilian immune components and responses. This review highlights the advances and gaps that remain to help identify targeted and cohesive approaches for future research in reptilian ecoimmunological studies.
The usefulness of ‘realism’ in explaining Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine has become a keenly contested debate not only in International Relations but in wider public intellectual discourse since the onset of the war in February 2022. At the centre of this debate is the punditry of John J. Mearsheimer, a prominent offensive realist who is a Professor of International Relations at the University of Chicago. This article argues that although Mearsheimer is indeed a realist, his offensive realism is but one of many different realist theories that can forward an explanation of the Ukraine War. Beyond the apparent hegemony of structural realism (the branch of realism to which Mearsheimer’s offensive realism belongs), it is argued that classical and neoclassical realist frameworks can provide more nuanced and, ultimately, convincing arguments as to why Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine. This is because both classical and neoclassical realism can incorporate insights from non-realist studies—such as the concepts of civilization and ontological security—and combine them into an overarching power politics framework. Although neither classical nor neoclassical realism is flawless in their explanations, they demonstrate that realism does not just have to be about international power structures but can offer multivariate accounts of why a state, like Russia, decided to act, such as invading Ukraine.
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