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Globalization : the True Fracture of the 20th Century, by Pierre Jacquet and Frédérique Sachwald Late 20th-century economic globalization differs from internationalization the previous century in terms of both its intensity and its complexity. The shock caused to late 19th-century economies by the convergence of prices and wages triggered withdrawal reactions well before 1914. The paper explains why contemporary opposition to globalization took longer to emerge. In this respect current opposition to globalization is focussing today's concerns on the conditions of its governance.

Attempts to Form a World Organization in the 20th Century : Trials and Tribulations, by Victor-Yves Ghebali Although the 20th century did not directly in vent the international organization, it amplified the phenomenon in terms of internationalism, regionalism, transnationalism and the concept of the supranational. The paper is devoted to internationalism, explaining first the failure of the League of Nations by the politico-legal links the latter had with the 1919-1920 peace seulement, the imperfections of the covenant's collective security System and the misconduct of ail the major powers of the day. Starting out with a re-reading of the founding postulates of the United Nations charter, the second part highlights the fact that after having adapted creatively to the parameters of the Cold War, the UN still cannot manage to define its role in the post-Cold War world. The author concludes that in the "post-Westphalian" age that is now dawning, the international organization should rethink its concepts, methods and purposes with a view to playing more diversified and complex roles.

Foreign Policy and the Globalization Process, by Dominique Moisi Monopolized for a long time by diplomats drawn from the highest strata of society, diplomacy has undergone profound changes since the end of the First World War : an extension of its field of action, a diversification and reproduction of the actors on the diplomatic scene, a dialectical game between governments, companies and media, and also dialogue with the whole society. This is a positive evolution in many respects but one that also risks to entail confusions between morality and demagoguery vote-catching tactics and political strategy.

A Century of Imperial Metamorphosis, by Philippe Moreau Defarges The 20th century established itself initially as the century of empire-destruction by nations : the First World War destroyed no less than four empires (the Russian, Austro-Hungarian, German and Ottoman Empires) ; the Second World War brought about the end of the colonial empires. At the same time the 20th century reinvented the idea of empire, with the - a priori surprising - possibility of democratie empires (United Nations Organization, European Union). Finally, some states which thought they were nations found themselves to be empires : Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, of course, but also the United Kingdom, Spain and perhaps France. The clear-cut dividing line between empire and nation has become irremediably blurred.

Warfare Through the Century, by Dominique David Technological breakthroughs changed the face of war machines, war operations and arsenals in 20th century societies ; they diversified military ven-tures and revolutionized the concept of warfare. This concept, while undergoing incessant change, has throughout this century never ceased to perform its role as an instrument for defining political units. The end of the century shows warfare in a novel dynamic, which it is still difficult for us to conceptualize.

International Law in International Relations, by Hélène Ruiz Fabri In the course of the 20th century international law was extended to new areas and was opened up to new players, reflecting the growing need for cooperation and the gradual building of a global society. But at the same time it continues to be drafted and driven mainly by the individual interests of States, in keeping with the balance of their respective powers - the result being that an evaluation of its role in international relations forms part of a dialectic of change and constancy.

The Beginnings of History : Financial Globalization and International Relations, by Marc Flandreau This paper offers an interprétation of the history of international financial globalization based on an analysis of the dilemmas of public policies aimed

Ideas and International Relations, by Pierre Hassner After the defeat of the totalitarian idéologies of the 20th century, the future belongs neither to pure pragmatism nor to the clash of civilizations. Ideas are as important as ever, but they no longer form coherent wholes. They are hard to disentangle from interests and passions. This is the conclusion drawn from the debate in international relations theory, from cursory examination of the wars and revolutions of the 20th century, and from the present struggle between universalism and particularism which is at work both in the debate around globalization and in the successes and failures of religious movements.

Nations and Europe in the 20th century : from a Negative Form of the Sacred to a Positive Form of the Secular, by Paul Thibaud The nation is said to be in décline because it is being engulfed by globalization. Is this the main reason ? Is it not that the nation is being disavowed at the end of a process that lasted from 1914 to the collapse of communism ? Post-nationalism is primarily a rejection that "deconstructs" the political subject without replacing it, giving rise to much disappointment. This waste of our heritage stems from an ignorance of what it meant to our continent to have invented such a particular concept, actively open as it is to universal values - an ignorance that is preventing us from recognizing its resources.

Africa and the 20th Century : Dispossession, Rebirth, Uncertainty, by Elikia M' Bokolo Rather than seeing a single Africa evolving through successive phases -European conquest, colonization, decolonization, independence... -, the 20th century has witnessed several Africas intermingling, fighting and influencing each other : a dominated Africa, which lasted longest, beginning with the modem age and of which the 20th century is only a phase ; a reviving Africa, that of self-willed players determined to emancipate the continent and establish it as a subject in international relations ; a new Africa, the result of many different dynamics, which harbours the uncertainty of an open future.

Women in International Relations in the 20th Century, by Françoise Gaspard Women were for a long time missing from the history of international relations. In this respect, the 20th century stands out, at best, as a late reorientation of a phenomenon which reach a peak in the 19th century. In France, the creation of the ENA, in 1945, started the beginning of a new era, by allowing women to reach high positions in the administration. But it was necessary to wait until 1972 for a French woman to be made an ambassador. On the international scene, from 1946 onward, the rights of women have been progressively recognized, thanks to the UN. But an equality gender policy is still to be fully implemented. Even though many agreements proclaim it, few States, even in the West, make the effort to respect it.

II THE STATES Internal and Foreign Policies in the United States : the 20th Century Parenthesis, by Guillaume Parmentier The period between 1917 and 1989 is often portrayed as having given American Presidents a greater reign to oversee and détermine foreign policy ; coinciding with an increase in US international responsibilities and the advent of nuclear deterrence. Since the end of the Cold War, Congress has been actively reasserting its traditional predominance over the Executive in this matter, suggesting a return to the situation as it was at the turn of the 20th century. By contrast with that period, uncertainties today over what is defined as the "national interest", the litmus test for American intervention abroad, demand that significant efforts be mobilized in the study of American international politics in order to understand American foreign policy.

Russia - [URSS] - Russia, by Anita Tiraspolsky From Nicolas II to Vladimir Poutine, Russia passed through many changes. To the tsarist empire succeeded the Union of the Soviet socialist republics. To Lenin's international revolutionary ambition succeeded Stalin's continental imperialism, and later on Khrouchtchev's and Brejnev's world imperialism. But the superpower "homeland of socialism" could not resist the explosion of the empire announced by the fall of Berlin's wall, in 1989 : in 1991, Russia was reborn, and a new page of Russian history was turned. But despite the specificities and tensions which are still shaking the country, bet- ween North and South, East and West, Christianity and Islam, Russia wants eventually to be integrated into the world community and to stop being considered as an alien actor on the international stage.

The Chinese Century, from the Boxers' Revolt to the Great Leap Towards Global Integration, by François Godement 1900 and 2000 : two key dates in China's history. 1900 is the year of the Boxers Rebellion and the western repression that followed. 2000 on the contrary sees the Popular republic knocking at the door of the WTO and adopting a series of economie, légal and cultural reforms which often find their inspiration in the West. But in many aspects, modem China has preserved the mark of that of the empress Cixi : Chinese nationalism is still alive in its relations with Asia ; and both elites and population still strive to reconcile the temptation of modernity and the fear of interdependence as a resuit of globalization. But the future of China might lie elsewhere : by participa-ting in the creation of régional groups like Europe or Latin America, rather than in entering a race for superpower with United States which already seems to be lost.

Japan's Foreign Policy Since the Meiji Era : an Attempt of Interpretation, by Jean-Marie Bouissou Joining the modem world during the Meiji era (1868-1912), Japan has still not found its real place within the international community. At first having failed in its attempts to establish in Asia its own imperial dominion, and having still failed to transform its tremendous economie efficiency into an equivalent political power, and finally not enjoying its rehabilitation in the Asian community till the very beginning of the 1990s, Japan seems to have been endowed only recently with a global and coherent vision in foreign policy. This vision today tries to impose the image of a strong Japan, capable of bringing peace, prosperity and safety to an Asia Pacific area still in the grip of turbulences, while playing its own part in a process of globalization largely dominated by the United State.

The German Questions in the 20th Century : Identity, Democracy and European Equilibrium, by Michael Mertes What has been called the "German Question" is a set of interdependent internai and external problems. With their peaceful reunification in 1990, after a century marked by disastrous failures, the Germans finally achieved a democratie nation state, free of irredentism, firmly anchored in the West, and no longer a threat to the European balance of power. While the old "German question" has been answered, lack of innovative dynamism could turn out to be the main German problem in the 21th century.

The United Kingdom, 1900-2000 : from a World Empire to an Island Kingdom, by François Bédarida Still a hegemonie power at the close of the Victorian period, and able to claim a seat among the Big Three on the morrow of the Second World War (in spite of the fact that the war had destroyed the wealth of the nation), the United Kingdom holds nowadays a position of middle rank power. Nevertheless the ageing lion, whatever its many wounds, has kept its energy and most of all its extraordinary capacity for readaptation. Consequently, it is now necessary to assess two extremes : a bright future based on periodic reevaluation, or a slope of irreversible decline in a country assailed internally by the danger of disruption and externally by its congenital backward moves in Europe.

The First World War : a Hiatus in the Development of the European System, by Georges-Henri Soutou The First World War constituted the mould for the 20th century. This was the first time countries were engaged in such a total war that drew on ail their national resources. For the first time too a European war involved major non-European countries, a fact that heralded redistribution of the centres of power on a global scale and, in particular, the rise of America. The Great War and its aftermath were also a hiatus for the European international System. Previously European wars had not broken out in this way, they had not been waged in this manner, and above all they had not ended as such and had not led to the same form of peace, all of which had consequences, the effects of which are still apparent today.

October 1917 : a Revolution in International Relations, by Marc Ferro 1917 : Whereas Europe sinked into the depths of war, the czars' empire fell over into a new world, that of Marxism-Leninism. Relinquishing the role of spreading the révolution outside the USSR's borders, the Soviet leaders brought three major changes in international relations : a questioning -although rather limited - of traditional diplomacy, the use of national communist parties in the management of foreign affairs, and a true nationalities policy allowing the right to self-determination.

The 1929 Recession and International Politics : Why the IMF Should not be Disposed of, by Pierre-Cyrille Hautcœur This paper underscores the importance of international political considerations in the origins and course of the 1929 recession. It then examines the multiple consequences of the recession and the analyses that were made of its impact on international relations after the Second World War, and the way they were incorporated into the conceptualization of international organizations. In conclusion, it shows the importance of institutionalized international cooperation in preventing crises.

Afro-Asian States : Actors on, or Challenges for, the International Political Stage ? by Henry Laurens The Bandung conference had tremendous international repercussions. It originated in various anticolonial movements, the oldest of which date from the 19th century, but also in a political environment specifie to the mid-fifties, when the Third World was becoming the major issue in East-West rivalry. The movement's failure is directly connected to the development strategies that were adopted and to the authoritarianism of the principal leaders. Looking back, one aim of the Afro-Asian movement appears to have been to capitalize various forms of income, hence its demanding tone.

Revolutions in 1989 : End of a World and Birth of a Century, by Aleksander Smolar The perception of the events of 1989 has strongly changed during the last 10 years. At the beginning those events were compared to some of the great revolutions of the past ; today they are mainly viewed as a simple geopolitical change. We analyze the reasons for this modified perspective, taking into account the evolution of the societies in both Eastern and Western countries.